Category: Uncategorized

I and my team members from CCDB Climate Change Program visited the climate centre on 9^th February 2022. As I were a new employee at that time, it was my very first visit to the Climate Centre. We started from Dhaka in the early morning and had our breakfast at Maona, Gazipur. We arrived at the Centre at 10 am. Then we greeted everyone at the office and had coffee. Meanwhile, the other team came, and then we started our tour to the Climate Centre.

We started the tour by entering the main gate through the reception desk. At the reception desk saw the sofas and tables made with bamboo. It amazed me. And what amazed me most was the wall of the reception, it was made from different types of soil from all areas of Bangladesh. The difference between the soils was visible to us. It really was astonishing. Then we went to the learning centre. We saw the outdoor and indoor exhibition rooms, library, and young learner’s zone, playground for children, training and conference room. In the library room, we saw that people can read there in the sunlight, not by the light. I have never seen a room like this. Again I got stunned.

Then we had a short lunch break. After eating we started the second half of the journey. We went to the five representative zones of Bangladesh. We first went to the Coastal area and saw the technologies and the waterbody situated there. Then saw the Char and hill area. The hill area is still under construction. Hope it will be soon constructed and we will be able to enjoy the scenic beauty of the hill region of Bangladesh. After that, we went to the Drought area, which has a circular area filled with different crops of the area. From the upper aerial view, it looks like pizza and it seems like the ‘apple logo’ as it has a section that seems like a person had a bite on the pizza slice.

Later we went to the Char area and saw the amazing technologies there. The house is run by ‘Solar System’ and this was my first time seeing a house like this. I also liked the ‘hanging garden’ in the yard. At that time the sun was setting, and we enjoyed the sunset with some light snacks. And this moment was mesmerizing.

Then we rested for some time. After the winter night settled around 8.00 PM, we went out to experience the nightlife of the Climate Centre. The staff of the centre told us about foxes that live near the centre. We started on the electric car of the centre to visit the five ecological zones at night. The winter fog and air were really chilly that day. We were literally freezing. After rounding almost all the zones we went to the far end of the ‘Char’ zone. The zone was completely dark and it felt frightening. We could watch the watch towers from afar and hear some music on the radio. But who was there I could not see. It was feeling like nobody is there, only the music is playing. From there we came back to the office area and then went outside the centre to experience the village marketplace. We went there and had tea and snacks. We roamed around the market for some time and then came back.

After having a grand dinner, we went to our rooms. And it was the end of the day, do not know about the others but I was too tired to wait to hear the howling of the foxes. I just went to the bed and slept.

It is the end of my story about a night in the climate centre.

The Haor Zone represents the hydrologically transient basin area of North-eastern Bangladesh. This zone represents a seasonally variable wet area where agriculture can take place. One can also experience wetland and swamp associated plantation at this zone. Additionally, this zone includes flood-tolerant agricultural systems and technologies, appropriate climate-smart technologies, model floating house, climate-resilient model Haor house, etc. Haor Zone together with associated Hill Zone presents a bigger climax zone for the visitors composed of both high-lands and low-lands; thus, offering refreshing vista within and beyond the park boundary for those coming along the long way.

The Drought-prone Zone or the Drought Zone represents the North-western Barind Tract and Central Terraced Landscape Regions of Bangladesh. Upon entering the zone, visitors would experience a central, large agricultural zone mostly devoid of large trees or water-bodies. The major features of this zone are drought-tolerant agricultural systems and technologies, climate-resilient model rural mud house and homestead, food forest, audio-visual zonal-learning hub, etc. Visitors can also access to the iconic Vertical-Garden Tower from this zone to catch refreshing vantage point views of most of the greeneries, lake, and water-bodies of the Climate Technology Park from varying heights.

Coastal zone of the park represents the vast southern dynamic coastal belt of Bangladesh. To resemble this deltaic character, this zone has been developed within mutually reciprocating land and water edges of the park. The major features of this zone include water and salinity adaptive agricultural systems and technologies, appropriate climate-smart technologies, climate-resilient model rural homestead for coastal belts, demonstration mangrove forest, audio-visual zonal-learning hub, etc. The journey through the coastal zone is an adventurous one that requires visitors to travel and experience terrestrial, transitional, and aquatic systems – representing the typical characteristics of coastal regions.

Coastal zone of the park represents the vast southern dynamic coastal belt of Bangladesh. To resemble this deltaic character, this zone has been developed within mutually reciprocating land and water edges of the park. The major features of this zone include water and salinity adaptive agricultural systems and technologies, appropriate climate-smart technologies, climate-resilient model rural homestead for coastal belts, demonstration mangrove forest, audio-visual zonal-learning hub, etc. The journey through the coastal zone is an adventurous one that requires visitors to travel and experience terrestrial, transitional, and aquatic systems – representing the typical characteristics of coastal regions.

The Char Zone resembles the iconic shifting sandbars or shoals of the deltaic and braided riverine landscape of Bangladesh. This Zone marks the northern end of the lake where water fluctuations are most visible during monsoon months. At the same time, it is also situated at the lowest-lying land area of the park to convey the essence of Chars’ proximity to fluctuating water levels. The Char Zone includes sandbar-responsive agricultural systems and technologies, appropriate climate-smart technologies, model floating house, flood-resilient raised model house and homestead for floodplains, Agri-silvi-pastoral system, wildlife refuge zone, audio-visual zonal-learning hub, etc. Visitors can explore the zone through a lifted boardwalk that results in an exciting yet soft transition of one’s journey from land to the watery landscape.

Apart from these conspicuous features, the Climate Technology Park also embodies important eco-friendly features like landscape-wide internal stormwater management infrastructure (bioswales, rain-gardens, continuous contour trench, vegetated biofilter strips, etc.), water garden, stormwater retention zone, eco-friendly WASH facilities, native deciduous forest patch, wildlife corridors, etc.