It's been a few months since I first started my research on Pakistan's water security. Since this environmental issue is also a personal one for me, I tried my best to check my patriotism at the door and offer an unbiased view of the challenges Pakistan is facing; I hope I have succeeded. As soon as I got into the research, the politics surrounding the disputed territories of Kashmir, through which some of Pakistan's most important rivers flow before entering Pakistani territory, immediately became apparent and, as is often the case, inseparable from the environmental issue of water security. Add Pakistan and India's uneasy relationship, and it seems like a recipe for disaster. But disaster can be averted, and here's how:

 1.) The Kashmiri people need to be given the right to self-determination; an international body like the United Nations must conduct fair and transparent elections allowing the people of the disputed territories to decide if they wish to be a part of Pakistan, India or exist as an independent state. This goal can be achieved only through international pressure and a UN resolution that is binding on both Pakistan and India. 

2.) The current Pakistani administration must treat the water crisis as one of the country's biggest challenges; this includes recognizing the threat from India as a very real one and implementing techniques and policies that make the most of the water that Pakistan does have. 

3.) Pakistan needs to invest in its education sector in order to build a skilled workforce trained in tackling environmental challenges. By building a technical domestic workforce, Pakistan will have the necessary knowledge to deal with challenges such as water security with minimal external dependence.

4.) Pakistan should create a more proactive and effective body to monitor the water flow of its rivers and immediately alert the proper authorities if it is deemed that the Indian projects on these waters are altering the water flow. Such a "watchdog" body should be transparent and operate with the collaboration of international partners, so as to give legitimacy and weight to its findings. 

I wish to explore this complicated - and, indeed, very controversial - topic further, gaining a better understanding of perspectives from both sides of the border. I hope everyone who has come across my blogs has become more aware of this pressing issue, which desperately deserves international attention.