A STUDENT at the University of Sussex will have his film shown to attendees at the COP26 conference in Glasgow.

Journalism student Syed Jazib Ali co-directed the Act Now film along with other volunteers from British universities.

The film combines the voices of environmental influencers to share their views and the stories of extreme changes they have lived through.

Syed said that they chose to highlight personal and heartfelt stories to focus minds at the conference.

He said: "I remember a guy from China showing a river, saying when he was growing up the river was this high, but now it's almost gone.

"As a team, we never realised that these stories were being repeated on a global scale. There were many similarities, but on such personal levels."

He said the stories he heard made him reflect on his home in Kashmir and a river that has dried up there.

Kashmir is at the centre of a border dispute between India and Pakistan, and Syed said that, prior to studying at Sussex, the conflict attracted more of his attention than climate change.

However, with mining and environmental resources being plundered in the region, he said he can "connect the human rights and humanitarian issues with climate change".

Syed explained: "If I talk about these things in my community, people say they have other things to be bothered about. They don't care about the villages because they think the cities offer the better life.

"Some are ignorant and say this is not about climate change, this is just the cycle of nature - but the reality is that we did it, we're responsible.

"It's upsetting when you see beautiful resources disappearing in your lifespan."

The film will be screened on Thursday November 11 in the green zone at the conference.

Syed said that he hopes that world leaders will come together to acknowledging the urgency of the climate emergency and its root causes.

"I hope to see ambitious targets and immediate and drastic actions addressed with realistic and pragmatic approaches," he said.

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