During my trip to Birisiri I was lucky enough to talk with some of the producers at the project. I met Ms Koruna Rangsa who works in the tailoring department and asked her a few questions about her work and family, the Garo people and climate change.

How long have you been working with this organisation?
6 years – 10 years including working in the embroidery section.

Are you enjoying tailoring?
I like both, tailoring is easier on the eyes.

Do your family live nearby?
I live with my husband, Mum and 3 year old boy.
Mum looks after my son, next year he goes to school. My husband used to work in a grocery store now he does daily labour work. He gets work very irregularly, working only half of the time. He had no work last month, but 10 days work this month.
It is a big pressure knowing that I’m the breadwinner for my family, but I do it for all our sake, especially my son. My husband, has retrained in electrical repairs and completed a driving course to improve his work prospects.

What are your hopes for the future?
I hope my son will become a doctor, because in the rural communities we don’t have enough doctors. One year ago my aunt died because she was treated by an unqualified doctor.

What is the biggest problem that the Garo people face in Bangladesh?
We are discriminated against, for example if we go for a post as a teacher we will be over looked. I applied but was refused, even though I completed my secondary education with good grades.
Land issues are also a problem with people moving to the ingenuous people’s areas.

What do you know about climate change and global warming?
We cultivate land but have lost it to floods, it turned from fertile land to sand.
The weather is changing and this affects us. The seasons are changing too, natural rain doesn’t come and it makes cultivation of rice late. In the end we get less rice despite all the hard work. We used to get 10 kilos from 1 field. Today we get 6-7 kilos per field.
I need handicraft work to cover my family needs. I cannot get enough rice from the field.

Who’s responsible for climate change and global warming?
It is all of our fault, in Dhaka city we have a lot of cars and factories this is creating global warming and climate change. I feel upset about this.

What do you think we should do to protect the climate and food security?
We can plant more trees and industries that create pollution should be more careful about wastage as it pollutes our rivers. I’m shocked to see the industrial wastes and environmental degradation – it doesn’t make sense.
I would like to ask people not to sit idly but to work all month – we need to work to fulfil our needs.