Sustainable development needs more actions, less rethoric

"Now, Katmandu has changed. Trips in the city take at least two hours, and if we look north, we can no longer see the Himalayan. Their snow caps have disappeared and the rivers have become open sewerages," said Shrestha who is now Regional Director of UNEP (United Environment Program) for Asia and the Pacific, when he recalled his childhood recently.

The population of Katmandu significantly increased from around 200,000 about 20 or 30 years ago, to nearly two million at present, said Shrestha.

Not only Katmandu but the whole world has changed radically since 1987 - socially, economically, and environmentally, according to UNEP's latest comprehensive report entitled "The 4th Global Environment Outlook (GEO-4): Environment for Development."