Environmental sustainability: A tale of two presidents

The irony is how the ECC becomes an economic misdemeanour and a toxic asset, while Kulhudhufushi airport becomes a material blessing of economic progress. What does environmental sustainability mean when it comes to how we define economic growth?

When I was in my year 12 at school, Mezzo’s debut album Guguri was released and the song “Miyoh Dhuniye” (This World) about searching for dolphins or terns and saving rhinos made me wonder whether the environment was about saving rhinos. However, after becoming an environmental social science academic, I realised that it is not about the rhinos anymore but humans and the place we live and want to raise our future generations. It is about sustainability and making our lives and that of our future generations better, by utilising our resources efficiently and by balancing the social and environmental benefits with economic growth.

When the ECC was about to be built by reclaiming the Maakilhi freshwater wetland in Hithadhoo, I was working in the environment ministry. During the construction of the ECC, I visited the site and saw more than a million cubic feet of swamp soil being excavated and the area filled with sand from the lagoon of Hithadhoo.