Lalima’s father (Yurgen) was seated behind the desk and was pleasantly surprised to see Tashi walking in.

"Hello, my friend. Long time!"

After a warm hug and pleasantries were exchanged, all three settled inside the shop.

"So, you’ve been prepping Lalima up for a successful entrepreneurship journey, huh?"

Tashi laughed.

"A few pieces of advice here and there. She has big dreams you know."

"Yes, she does. That is my hope as well. I can get some help with good ideas from the upcoming generation. It’s been 25 years since I’ve been selling diesel water pumps. It’s been my bread and butter. Over these years, I’ve learned a fair bit about water resources and services related to it. So, since last year, we have assembled a small team of technicians and engineers to expand services in the construction of irrigation and drinking water systems. In the last six months, we’ve got some small contracts for the construction of intake and reservoir tanks, laying of water piping systems for drinking water and so on; but still, diesel water pumps remain our primary business. Now, I wonder what next? Where do we go from here? So, my young Lalima can help. The youth have to come in now – you know. Lalima told me about the negative effects of diesel pumps on the environment and that other technologies that are not harmful to the environment are available. I hear solar energy can be used to pump water – wow!"

"But, I’m not sure how that works. When I started my diesel pump business 25 years ago, neither I nor any of my friends considered environmental impacts in the work we did. The times have changed and technology has come a long way. Lalima is best versed to pave the path ahead for my business while I support her."

"I think it’s very wise that you acknowledge this. Lalima and I were in the coffee shop across the town and had an amazing conversation throughout. What do you think Lalima?"

Lalima eagerly started to recap her conversation with Tashi to her father.

"Absolutely! We discussed some of the things you mentioned. We talked about climate risks to businesses and why businesses such as ours should seriously start taking measures for climate resiliency. In summary, the effects of climate change are being felt in South Asia and you know I want to consider expanding. So, while we plan this out, we need to consider the region-specific climatic risks – the same applies to this store in Lalapur as well. Turns out there are studies that have ranked the probability of risks we face, such as urban floods, wildfires, extreme heat, river floods, and landslides; just to name a few. If we don’t plan for the adaptation and contribute to the mitigation of climatic risks, then it will disrupt our business operations.

And right before we arrived here, we were talking about the importance of energy in businesses. Without reliable energy, business operations will again be negatively impacted – we can’t run our machines, office equipment, and so on. On a national scale, after learning how businesses like ours contribute significantly to the economy, disruption in business operations should be avoided. What you mentioned about utilizing solar energy to pump water is an example of using renewable energy. I learned from my friends that the uptake of renewable energy is rapidly growing globally and the use of fossil fuels such as diesel, is being discouraged. All three elements, climate, businesses, and energy – more specifically renewable energy – seem to be interconnected."

Tashi (looking at Yurgen): "She’s smart."

Yurgen nodded with a laugh.

Yurgen: "She is. With your mentorship, I think Lalima can come up with solutions that our business can apply."

Lalima interrupted before Tashi could reply.

"I believe so too. Can I suggest that we meet regularly while you are in town? When do you plan to return to your city?"

"I plan to return in a few days, but I’m fine with meeting regularly."

"Great. Then can I also invite my friends who can benefit from your mentorship? Let me see, I know Kishor is thinking of starting an agri-enterprise, Aabroo wants to build on her family business of urban construction services and as far as I know, Baisali was planning to establish a business in fisheries. All of them want to work in South Asia. You see, expanding across South Asia wasn’t my idea alone, actually my friends discussed this well. So, maybe tomorrow we can all meet and discuss as a group?"

"That’s a great idea. I’ll be happy to help you and your friends and share what I know – even learn from your guys."

Lalima: "I’ll invite them right away. Alright, see you tomorrow."

Lalima jumped out of her chair in excitement and ran behind the shop to her house.

Tashi and Yurgen both laughed seeing Lalima’s enthusiasm. They continued to reminisce about old times until Tashi leaves for his relative’s home for dinner. Along the way, he thinks about what he should discuss tomorrow with Lalima and her friends.

“Maybe, as a group, we can discuss some examples of how MSMEs are impacted by the effects of climate change. Then we can talk about the steps taken by the governments and institutions to build climate resilience of MSMEs in South Asia.”

The night had settled in Lalapur and the streets glowed with colorful lights emitting from the shop signboards, streetlights, and vehicles.