Sohanur Rahman
Democracy & climate action
About
After surviving super-cyclone Sidr as a child, Sohanur recognized the extreme vulnerability of communities to climate-induced disasters, which hit Bangladesh especially hard.This led him to become a key figure in the country’s fight against climate change. In 2016, he founded YouthNet for Climate Justice, to raise awareness of climate issues among younger generations. In 2019, a campaign led by YouthNetled the Parliament of Bangladesh to declare the climate crisis a planetary emergency. YouthNet also helped halt the construction of ten coal plants.
Work
Recently, Sohanur and his group played a key role in peaceful student protests advocating for greater democracy in Bangladesh. This uprising ultimately led to the ousting of the country’s Prime Minister, who had been in power for the past 15years. Today, Sohanur continues to push for climate action to be prioritized on the interim government’s agenda.