The Right to Life Is the Right to Protection: Climate Adaptation as a Legal Duty

Pakistan contributes less than one percent of global greenhouse gas emissions, yet we are among the countries most affected by its consequences. This monsoon season, floods have once again brought immense hardship, taking lives, damaging homes, and displacing communities.
Behind every number are human stories of loss, resilience, and the long road to recovery. In Buner, flash floods swept through villages overnight, leaving families with nothing but rubble. In Gilgit-Baltistan, a glacial lake burst and sent torrents of water roaring through narrow valleys. Meanwhile in Punjab, rivers spilling over their banks have affected more than 1,400 villages, disrupting the lives of an estimated 1.5 million people. Farmers have seen their crops swallowed by water, children have been forced out of school, and whole communities are struggling to regain a sense of normalcy.

These events highlight the diversity of Pakistan’s climate risks. In Punjab, rising rivers threaten fertile plains and rural populations. In the north, unstable glaciers create dangerous lakes that can burst without warning. In hilly districts like Buner, sudden downpours trigger flash floods that overwhelm villages within minutes. Different landscapes, different threats -yet the story repeats of families forced to rebuild their lives in the face of relentless threats.
What stands out is the quiet strength of communities – neighbours helping neighbours, sharing food and shelter – but their resilience alone cannot carry the burden of climate change. When inadequate planning, weak institutional coordination, and delayed response leave citizens to fend for themselves, it becomes clear that the problem is not just environmental, it is structural.
The law too is not silent on this matter. Article 9 of our Constitution guarantees the right to life, and our courts have recognised that this includes the right to a clean and healthy environment. This principle reminds us that protecting people from climate risks is not an act of charity, rather it is a legal and moral responsibility.

This means adaptation must be placed at the heart of our planning. In Punjab, reducing the damage from overflowing rivers requires more than emergency relief. It calls for reinforcing embankments, restoring wetlands that can absorb excess water, and ensuring early-warning systems reach those most at risk. These steps can save countless lives and reduce suffering long before the waters arrive.

Debates about dams often dominate flood discussions. Large reservoirs do play a role in regulating river flows, but they are not a complete solution. No single dam can withstand the kind of extreme rainfall and rapid glacial melt we are now experiencing. What is needed is a balanced approach: maintaining major dams, building smaller water storage structures where feasible, and complementing them with nature-based solutions and careful management of floodplains. Together, these measures can turn inevitable floods from catastrophic events into manageable risks.

It is also important to recognize that Pakistan’s vulnerability to climate risks is shaped not just by geography, but by global injustice. Despite contributing minimally to global emissions, the country bears some of the harshest consequences. International agreements rightly acknowledge that those most responsible must support those who are most vulnerable. For Pakistan, this assistance must be fair, predictable, and in the form of grants, not loans that add further strain on our fiscal resources.
At home, much still depends on how we choose to prepare. When budgets make room for climate resilience, when new projects take risk assessments seriously, and when local communities are empowered with knowledge and resources, the benefits are immediate and lasting: safer homes, protected harvests, and children spared the trauma of repeated displacement.

Climate change is not a distant threat- it is already here. Each flood season is a reminder that the right to life in Pakistan must also mean the right to safety, dignity, and a healthier environment. Adaptation is not an act of generosity but a collective responsibility – to our children, and to the generations yet to come. If survival is to be more than chance, resilience must become a shared national priority.

Author Bio:
Barrister Adil Jamal is an Advocate of the High Court and Executive Director of the Climate Action and Policy Initiative (CAPI), a Pakistan-based think tank focused on climate law, governance, and sustainable development.