If you are a regular at the UN Climate Conferences, you might have noticed him — a middle-aged man walking with quiet determination, a faded backpack resting on his shoulders. From it hangs a hand-painted placard that reads:
“Cut the Greed, Not the Green.”
The words are simple, yet they slice through the noise of policy debates — a raw plea from the soil itself.
The man is Zakir Hossain, a farmer from Barishal, one of Bangladesh’s most climate-affected coastal districts. Since 2001, Zakir has been on a mission — raising awareness among marginal farmers about nature, its delicate balance, and the plants that sustain it. His deep love for the environment began in childhood, shaped by the rhythm of rain, river, and soil.
He works tirelessly in his community to promote the role of trees and vegetation in maintaining ecological balance. But his journey did not stop there. In 2016, Zakir took his message beyond the fields of Barishal to the grand halls of global dialogue — speaking for the first time on the world stage about the impacts of climate change on agriculture.
That moment marked the beginning of an unyielding journey.
Since then, Zakir has attended seven UN climate conferences, carrying his humble backpack and his unmissable placard. Each day, he walks to the venue — sometimes stopped by security guards who hesitate to let his message through. Yet nothing can deter him. The man with the placard keeps walking, keeps speaking, keeps believing.
In rooms filled with world leaders and negotiators, Zakir stands as the reminder of what is at stake — not numbers or pledges, but lives, livelihoods, and the beating heart of the Earth.
His placard may be small, but its message thunders across continents:
Cut the greed, not the green.
