2025 Spotlight: The Fight for Climate Justice and Disaster Accountability
A look back at nine NIMJN stories that went beyond the headlines to reveal the struggle for climate justice and the reality of disaster response in 2025.
As we reflect on the stories that defined our year, we turn our attention to the most pressing challenge facing Nepal: the climate emergency.
For NIMJN, this is not a theoretical debate. It is a crisis of justice happening now. This year, our reporters went to the frontlines—from the eroding traditions of the high Himalayas to the submerged plains of the south—to expose how systems of protection are failing the people who need them most.
These investigations reveal the human cost of disaster. Here are 9 stories that define the fight for climate accountability in 2025.
I. Climate Justice — The High-Altitude Warning
1. Climate Change Toll on Nepal’s Kanchenjunga: Floods and Landslides Grip the World’s Third Tallest Mountain
This story documents how escalating landslides and floods are gripping the world’s third-highest peak. It exposes the immediate danger to mountain communities as the landscape literally shifts beneath them.
2. Climate Change Takes Toll On The Himalayas: Nepal’s Upper Mustang Could Soon Lose Its Cultural Identity And Existence
We explored how the changing climate is not just a physical threat, but an existential one for the people of Upper Mustang. The investigation reveals how the loss of traditional water sources is forcing a slow disappearance of ancient cultural identities.
3. How Risky Is Heat For Pregnant Women?
This groundbreaking piece looks at the intersection of public health and rising temperatures. It uncovers the specific, often ignored physiological risks that extreme heatwaves pose to maternal health in Nepal.
4. Non-Economic Losses in Upper Mustang: Samjong Residents Displaced by Climate Change
Moving beyond financial metrics, this story documents the displacement of Samjong residents due to climate-induced water scarcity. It highlights the profound emotional and social cost of losing one’s ancestral home to a changing planet.
5. Panchkund Glacial Lake in Nepal’s Annapurna Region Expanding Rapidly
A technical but terrifying look at the Annapurna region, where a glacial lake is growing at an alarming rate. The investigation serves as a critical warning of the potential for catastrophic outburst floods downstream.
II. Disaster and Accountability — Beyond the Monsoon
6. When Schools Flood, Children with Disabilities Pay the Highest Price
This investigation exposes the total lack of inclusive disaster planning in Nepal’s education sector. It shows how flooded schools become impassable barriers for children with disabilities, deepening the educational divide.
7. Billions Down the Drain: Nepal’s Earthquake Resettlement Efforts Fall Flat
Years after the earthquake, this story reveals how massive resettlement budgets have been squandered. It documents the reality of families still living in precarious conditions due to bureaucratic failure and mismanagement.
8. City in the River: The Havoc of the Flood
A deep dive into urban planning failures that have turned cities into flood traps. The story captures the human and economic toll when rivers reclaim developed areas during the monsoon.
9. Four Years After Melamchi Flood Disaster: Trauma of the Affected Remains Unhealed
While the news cycle has moved on, NIMJN returned to Melamchi to find a community still living in the shadow of disaster. This piece focuses on the long-term psychological and economic trauma that persists when recovery is poorly managed.
If you missed our previous newsletters, explore the links below:
⏮️ Previous Showcase: 2025 Spotlight: A Year of Unflinching Reporting on Human Trafficking
🌐 Our Regional Hub: South Asia Journalism Collective (SAJC) — Building a Network for Power and Persistence
Don’t Miss Our Recent Stories
📌 Find us on: Facebook | Instagram | LinkedIn | X
📚 Discover more stories: www.nimjn.org
📧 Contact us: info@nimjn.org
Stay curious. Stay aware. Share our stories. Together, we can make every story count.
With Gratitude,
The NIMJN Team