By Seoyun Nam, Seungju Lee
What made the camels march through central Budapest on a Thursday morning? Environmental protesters, AP news reported, organized the spectacle to accuse European nations of pursuing flawed water management policies, still focused on outdated drainage and irrigation systems. Hungary now struggles with air pollution and poor waste management. Water quality has also been deteriorating.
The country has already drawn criticism from the European Union for passing controversial new laws described as authoritarian, according to the SGI Network. Also, as mentioned, government campaign against what it labeled “climate hysteria”, further highlights Hungary’s hesitancy on environmental issues. The government has consistently opposed stronger EU's climate policies and is among the countries that tried to block the SGI report noted bloc’s plan to become carbon-neutral by 2050.
Environmental sustainability has been on the decline. In July, CTV News, citing the European Drought Observatory, reported 63% of Hungary’s territory was affected by severe drought. Much of this vulnerability stems from outdated 19th-century flood management infrastructure, which was built for excess rainfall but is ill-suited to today’s climate extremes. Hungary’s situation is further complicated by its dependence on transboundary water inflows. According to the OECD, 94% of the nation’s freshwater comes from rivers originating in other countries. SGI Network reported that governance weaknesses deepen the challenge. Progress on renewable energy has been slow. Heavy reliance on nuclear expansion, particularly through Russian partnerships, further limits flexibility in responding to the climate crisis. With these combined pressures, early this year, the economy slipped by 0.2%, according to Reuters—while life expectancy still lags nearly five years behind the EU average.
Across Europe, climate change is reshaping landscapes and livelihoods, pushing governments to reconcile short-term economic pressures with long-term survival. The camel protest in Budapest mirrors other acts of creative activism worldwide. These images spread rapidly through global media not because they are comfortable, but because they disrupt routine and demand attention. The protesters remind us that behind every spectacle lies an urgent reality: droughts, floods, rising seas, and failing infrastructure. If Hungary’s deserts grow, Europe will not be a spectator but a participant in a crisis without borders.
Environmentalists could have held another press conference or published another policy paper, but few would have noticed. According to AP news, instead, they brought camels into the capital. Analysts note that this kind of protest belongs to a broader tradition of creative activism, where the form is as important as the message. By bending expectations—camels in Budapest, soup thrown at a Van Gogh in London, activists gluing themselves to highways—protesters translate abstract threats into images that cannot be ignored. Analysts note that activists often use shock, humor and absurdity to cut through the political noise and draw attention. Observers note that, whether applauded or condemned, such actions often generate more public debate than traditional statements.
The through line is clear: Hungary’s environmental struggles are not just statistical warnings but lived realities that demand attention. Analysts argue that governments now face the test of turning the urgency highlighted by creative activism into concrete policy measures. Yet behind this unusual street scene is a more serious reality: if Hungarians want to avoid a future where camels feel less like exotic visitors and more like natural residents, urgent steps must be taken to address desertification and drought.