ENVIRONMENT & MEDIA

UNIT 1: Nature of Environment Studies

Structure: 1.1 Introduction Objectives 1.2 Definition, scope and importance 1.3 Multidisciplinary nature of environmental studies 1.4 Need for public awareness 1.5 Case Study and its Analysis 1.6 Summary 1.7 Glossary 1.8 Terminal questions 1.9 Answers 1.10 Further Reading

1.1 Introduction A billboard announces: Only 1411 left. No, this isnt a breathless countdown to a mega event, but the sad reality of the dwindling tiger population in India. The photo of this magnificent creature against a black background brings home the stark irony of the situationthe powerful tiger, our national icon and symbol of ferocityis fighting a losing battle. With India being home to more than half the world tiger population, the crisis facing the Indian tiger has attracted worldwide attention. Besides the government, many organizations are making efforts to save the tiger before it is too late. It is widely acknowledged that the key to saving the tiger lies in saving its shrinking habitat. For it is impossible for a species to survive without its natural environment. What is environment? The word environment is derived from the French word environ, which means to surround or around and refers to the external conditions in which an organism lives. Both living organisms and non-living objects together constitute the natural environment. Living

organisms like plants and animals, including human beings, draw nourishment from the environment and survive in its lap. The environment does not remain static for any living organism, but changes with time and from place to place. Living organisms have to adapt, or make adjustments in response to the changes in one or more environmental factors such as temperature, humidity, pH, etc., in order to survive, grow, feed and reproduce. Species that are unable to cope with changes in the environment are likely to die out, or become extinct. Many plants and animals have become extinct in the past, for example, the dinosaurs. Among the likely causes of the extinction of the dinosaurs could have been a change in the environment.

Human beings, as part of nature, are directly or indirectly affected by the environment. In turn, humans also change or modify the nature of the environment to suit their requirements. As the human population increases, the impact of human activities on the environment is also increasing tremendously. This impact is not always beneficialfor example, global climate change, air and water pollution and depletion of natural resources. These impacts have consequences for human health and well being.

Environmental studies, or the study of human interaction with the environment, is an important area of study today. It is through this study that one learns about the natural environment and resources, as well as the impact of human activity on the environment. This knowledge is crucial in protecting the environment for the present and future generations.

In this unit, you will learn the definition and scope of environmental studies. Along with this, you will get to know the importance of this area of study. The multidisciplinary nature of the subject will be explained, followed by a discussion on the need for public awareness in this area.

Objectives After studying this unit, you should be able to: Define environmental studies and what it encompasses Recognize its scope in terms of the environmental challenges faced and the need to address these

Assess the importance of this study in the present context Recognize the multidisciplinary nature of environmental studies Discuss the need for public awareness in this area, both at international and national levels

1.2 Definition, scope and importance

1.2.1 Definition Environmental studies refers to the study of the interactions between humans and the environment, both living organisms and non-living objects. It is an overarching subject that encompasses the natural as well as man-made environments. While including the basic principles of ecology and environmental science, it differs from these sciences, as it also covers literature, political science, social studies, economics, planning and laws related to different environmental issues. It is an applied science as it seeks practical answers to making human civilization sustainable vis--vis the earths finite resources. Its components include biology, geology, chemistry, physics, sociology, health, anthropology, economics, statistics, and so on.

1.2.2 Scope Environmental studies is a growing field in the present age, as it is concerned with the issues that affect living organisms, including human beings. With the human population continuing to grow, human needs--in terms of water, land, and natural resources--are also increasing. Along with this, there are rapid advances in science and technology, making the human impact on the environment more widespread and severe. Some of the major challenges that these impacts have thrown up include the following:

Increasing levels of carbon dioxide and other heat-trapping greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, mainly due to the burning of fossil fuels (coal, oil and gas) leading to the greenhouse effect and global warming.

Global warming-- average global temperatures could increase by as much as 12 degrees Fahrenheit by the end of the century if carbon emissions continue to increase. This could make the planet virtually uninhabitable for humans. A global temperature rise of just 7.2

degrees Fahrenheit would cause a catastrophic domino effect, bringing about various disastrous consequences.

Global climate change and its various consequencesextreme weather conditions that would result in food and water shortages and destructive floods, melting of glaciers, rise in sea levels (which could inundate coastal cities), etc.

Depleting forest cover due to global warming and deforestation (it is estimated half of the Amazon rainforests could be destroyed or severely damaged by 2030.)

Serious consequences of deforestationchange in local and global climates due to disruption of the carbon cycle and water cycle, soil erosion (leading to siltation of water bodies), desertification and extinction of animal species.

Extinction of animals and plant species, leading to loss of biodiversity due to global warming and habitat loss.

Management of global water resources for an ever-expanding population that relies on limited supplies of freshwater to survive. (According to the World Bank, as many as two billion people lack adequate sanitation facilities to protect them from water-borne disease, while a billion lack access to clean water altogether. )

Depletion of energy and mineral resourcesenergy resources like oil, coal and natural gas have been the backbone of technological and economic development. At the same time, the choice of energy resources has major consequences for the environment, local and global climates, and even international politics.

A number of other issues such as air and water pollution due to the presence of hazardous chemicals, depleting fish stocks around the world, ocean acidification and loss of coral reefs, acid rain, spread of infectious diseases, and so on.

The global community needs to tackle the above and many more problems urgently in order to ensure the survival of future generations on this planet. The solutions lie in sustainable development, use of clean and renewable energy, energy efficiency, and conservation and judicious use of natural resources.

Application in other areas Environmental studies can be applied in a number of areas: o Natural resource conservation

o Pollution control o Waste management o Green industry (manufacture of eco-friendly goods and products) o Research and development o Social development (generating awareness and public opinion) o Environmental law and politics

1.2.3 Importance of environmental studies Primitive man used physical strength to hunt and obtain food. As time passed, man learned to domesticate animals and grow crops. He started to use the available energy resources like fire and wind. Gradually, tools were made, first from stone, and later from metals like iron. Thus, humans learned to use the resources of nature, which greatly improved the quality of life. But in doing so, man's interference with nature increased. As the population increased, requirements in food, clothing and household materials increased. Industries started coming up to manufacture goods. Urbanization became widespread, and forests started being cleared. Today, industries through their effluents and emissions, discharge both toxic and non-toxic chemicals into air, water and soil. They also enter the food chain and affect the biochemical processes in living bodies. Non-toxic chemicals may also harm though in a different way. They may affect the ozone layer, produce greenhouse effect, acid rain, heat up water bodies, form smog, and thus cause significant damage to the environment.

It is the responsibility of the present generation to know the fundamental aspects of environmental principles so that they may be used to protect and restore the earths fragile environment for the future generations. To understand all the different aspects of our environment, we need to understand biology, chemistry, physics, geography, resource management, economics and population issues. Environmental studies, with its multidisciplinary approach, provides a basic knowledge of environmental systems and their processes. It also provides an understanding of the changes that take place due to human factors. It helps us acquire skills in using techniques to analyse various environmental systems and the effect of human activities on them. Environmental studies includes diverse

areas such as environmental management, environmental policy analysis, property rights, economic instruments for pollution control, cost-benefit analysis and environmental policy. Concepts from environmental studies are applied in areas such as agriculture, industries, building, urban planning, and the design of sustainable production systems.

Self-assessment questions 1. State true or false. (a) To understand the different aspects of our environment we need to understand biology, chemistry, physics, geography, resource management, economics and population issues. (True/ false) (b) Environmental studies is a pure science. (True/ false) 2. Fill in the blanks. (a) Environmental studies provides an understanding of the changes that take place due to .. factors. (b) Environmental studies is the study of the interactions between and the ... Activity 1 Imagine that you have slept for 100 years, what would the world look like when you wake up? Knowing about the environmental threats, do you believe that humans will be able to solve the problems or will the situation take a turn for the worse? Individuals or groups can write, act or discuss possible scenarios.

1.3 Multidisciplinary nature of environmental studies The environmental challenges faced by the world today are multidisciplinary in nature, involving physical and chemical sciences, biological and earth sciences, geography, demographics, economics, as well as politics and law. Therefore, the field of environmental studies is also multidisciplinary in nature. That is, in order to understand each environmental challenge well enough to develop practical solutions, the environmentalist must have an understanding of several disciplines.

Environmental studies is a broad multidisciplinary field of study that covers the natural and man-made environments and the sets of relationships between them. While distinct from ecology and environmental science, the discipline encompasses study in the basic

principles of those two fields of learning as well as the associated subjects, such policy, politics, law, economics, sociology and other social aspects, planning, pollution control, natural resources, and the interactions of human beings and nature. Environmental studies incorporates more of the social sciences for understanding human relationships, perceptions and policies towards the environment. It is driven by the need for a multidisciplinary approach to analyse complex environmental problems, (b) the formulation of effective environmental laws and (c) the growing public awareness about the need for action to address environmental problems. 1

Self-assessment Questions 3. Environmental studies is the same as ecology and environmental science. (True/false) 4. Environmental studies is a broad . field of study involving chemical sciences, biological and earth sciences, geography, demographics, economics, as well as politics and law.

1.4 Need for public awareness Human beings are part in the environment and depend on the environmental resources like air, water and land. While meeting our ever-growing needs from nature, we are also making an impact on the environment. Often, this impact is negative, for example, to meet the growing need for waterfor drinking, irrigation and so on--groundwater is being pumped beyond its limit of replacement, and this may lead to loss of this resource forever.

Human activities have had major impacts at the local, as well as global levels. Since the start of the industrial age in the 19th century, the amount of carbon dioxide released into the earths atmosphere has steadily increased, leading to dramatic changes in the atmosphere and this has affected the global climate. The carbon emissions are mainly due to the burning of carbon-based fossil fuels, the main source of energy on which the world depends.

Environmental degradation and climate change are likely to have grave consequences for the future of humankind. Therefore, there is an urgent need to create awareness about the
1

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Environmental_studies

environmental problems faced by the world today, as well as the need to resolve them. While efforts are being made at the national and international level to protect our environment, it is also the responsibility of every citizen to use environmental resources with care and protect them from degradation.

1.4.1 Efforts at international level In 1962, Silent Spring, a book by environmentalist writer Rachel Carson documented the dangers of pesticides and herbicides in the US. Through careful research, Carson showed the long-lasting presence of toxic chemicals in water and on land and the presence of DDT--even in mother's milk. The book helped spark the environmentalist movement in the late 20th century. Such was the impact of the book that President John F. Kennedy, who read it, initiated a committee, which issued a report in 1963 largely backing the scientific claims made by Carson. By 1970, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) was established and in 1972, DDT use was banned!

Before the 1960s, the concept of environment was of little concern to any national government and unheard of in the international arena. Today, it dominates international dialogue. The credit for this revolution is in part due to the dozens of global conferences organized by the United Nations, and particularly the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), which was set up in 1972 after the first conference in Stockholm. UNEP is the voice for the environment in the UN system. Its mission is to provide leadership and encourage partnership in caring for the environment by inspiring, informing, and enabling nations and peoples to improve their quality of life without compromising that of future generations.

The various UN conferences have been at the forefront of international efforts at environmental awareness. The first United Nations Conference on the Human Environment was organized at Stockholm from 516 June 1972. Since then, 5th June is celebrated as World Environment Day (WED), to stimulate awareness of the environment and enhance political attention and public action. The first WED was on celebrated in 1973. World Environment Day is hosted by a different city every year with a different theme. As John McCormick wrote in his book Reclaiming Paradise, the Stockholm Conference was the landmark event in the growth of international environmentalism, as it was the first occasion on which the political, social and

economic problems of the global environment were discussed at an intergovernmental forum with a view to actually taking corrective action. Since then various UN conferences have been held, most notably the UN Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED), popularly known as the Rio Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro in June 1992 and the World Summit on Sustainable Development, WSSD or Earth Summit 2002 in Johannesburg, South Africa. These have generated popular opinion and brought the world community together on a single platform for protecting the environment.

According to UNEP, public environmental awareness and education can be increased by the following actions: Generating public awareness and environmental education, particularly among targeted groups, about relevant laws and regulations and about their rights, interests, duties and responsibilities, as well as about the social, environmental and economic consequences of non-compliance. Promoting responsible action in the community through the media by involving key public players, decision-makers and opinion-builders in such campaigns; Organizing campaigns for fostering environmental awareness among communities, nongovernmental organizations, the private sector and industrial and trade associations; Inclusion of awareness and environmental educational programmes in schools and other educational establishments as part of education. Organizing campaigns for fostering environmental awareness and environmental educational programmes for women and youth. Organizing campaigns for encouraging public involvement in monitoring of compliance. During the past few decades, the environment has attracted the attention of decision makers, scientists and common people around the world.

1.4.2 Efforts in India In India, environmental awareness became a major issue during the 1970s, after the UNs Stockholm conference (1972). The Ministry of Environment and Forest was established and laws were enacted on environment protection. The National Environment Policy (NEP) was formulated, with the following objectives:

To conserve and develop safe, healthy, productive, and aesthetically satisfying environment Upgrade, develop and manage rural and urban settlement to enhance the quality of life Plan development on sound ecological principles with environmental impact assessment and incorporating appropriate environmental safeguards Promote environmental safety technologies, recycling of resources and utilization of waste Conserve the biotic diversity in the country by creating nature reserves and sanctuaries for specific habitats such as mountains, rain forests, pastures, deserts, wetlands, lakes, beaches, mangroves, estuaries, lagoons and islands

Safeguard the environment within the national maritime Exclusive Economic Zone ; Evolve environmental norms and establish effective mechanism for monitoring surveillance and collection and dissemination of information Preserve scenic landscapes, as well as historic and cultural monuments and their environs Promote environmental education at all levels and create public awareness Encourage research in environmental science and technological and social investigation to conserve and improve the environment.

The successive Five-Year Plans have included environment concerns along with development. During the Sixth Plan (1983-84), the Environment Education, Awareness & Training (EEAT) Scheme was introduced as a Central scheme with the following objectives: To promote environmental awareness among all sections of the society; To spread environment education, especially in the non-formal system among different sections of the society; To facilitate development of education/training materials and aids in the formal education sector; To promote environment education through existing educational/scientific/research institutions;

To ensure training and manpower development for environment education, awareness and training; To encourage non-governmental organizations, mass media and other concerned organizations for promoting awareness about environmental issues among the people at all levels;

To use different media, including films, audio, visual, print, theatre, drama, advertisements, hoardings, posters, seminars, workshops, competitions, meetings, etc., for spreading messages concerning environment and awareness; and

To mobilize people's participation for preservation and conservation of environment.

The objectives of this scheme are being realized through implementation of the following programmes launched over the years: National Environment Awareness Campaign (NEAC). National Green Corps (NGC). Global Learning & Observations to Benefit the Environment (GLOBE). Strengthening Environment Education in School System and other courses at graduate and postgraduate level, including professional courses. Advertising and publicity. Seminars/symposia/workshops. Publication of resource material related to environment. Grants-in-aid to professional societies and institutions. Other awareness programmes like vacation programmes, quiz/essay/debate/poster/slogan competitions, training programmes, etc. Libraries

Self assessment Questions

5. Match the following: Carbon emissions Silent Spring Johannesburg Rachel Carson

WED WSSD 1992

fossil fuels 5th June

6. Answer these: (a) UNEP stands for. United Nations Energy Project United Nations Environment Project United Nations Environment Programme United National Environment Programme (b) Where was the first United Nations Conference on the Human Environment held? Activity 2 Identify an important environmental issue that concerns your city, such as air and water pollution, use of plastic bags, improper waste disposal, recycling, etc, and organize an awareness campaign using posters, streetplay or an online campaign on a social networking sites.

1.5 Case Study and its Analysis In 2006, a film by former US Vice President Al Gore became a landmark in the crusade against global warming. An Inconvenient Truth presents a wide array of facts, figures and examples on global warming and its consequences in a compelling way. Combined with footage of the destruction wreaked by Hurricane Katrina, a series of comparative photographs showing disappearing glaciers around the world, footage of collapsing ice shelves, data on the record numbers of storms, floods, and other kinds of extreme weather, animations of the effects of rising sea levels, new diseases, photos of dying polar bears and disappearing coral reefsthe film sends a powerful message--we are now seeing the beginning of a climate crisis that threatens life on Earth as we know it. Some of the major threats presented in the film are as follows: Record heat waves: The ten hottest years on record have occurred in the last 14 years. Violent weather: Wind and ocean patterns are changing because of warmer ocean temperature. This is leading to increasingly frequent and severe hurricanes and typhoons. Floods and droughts: Because of the warmer ocean temperatures, glaciers melt, causing flooding in countries like China. While precipitation increases in some areas, it is drawn away from other areas like Africa, which suffer from drought.

Crisis in the Arctic: The Arctic ice cap has declined by 40 per cent in the last 40 years. As the water melts the ocean becomes warmer and the sun mirrors off of the water which in turn hastens the melting process. Antarctica and the disappearing ice shelves: If ice shelves from western Antarctica melt, it would raise the sea level by 20 feet. If Greenland ice shelf were to melt, it would raise it 20 feet more. Ice melt is speeding up both in Greenland and Antarctica, which makes the situation alarming. The increased sea level would cause flooding in coastal areas, including heavily populated cities like Florida, San Francisco, Manhattan (New York), the Netherlands, Beijing, Shanghai and Kolkata. Large areas of Bangladesh would be inundated as would be small island nations like Maldives. As Al Gore says in the film, Maps of the world will have to be redrawn. Loss of species: Animal are in danger of extinction due to changing climate and vanishing habitats. Migration patterns have changed, which affects their food supply. The film argues that global warming is not a political issue, but rather a moral issue. Gore also demolishes the usual skeptic's argument that there is any controversy or doubt surrounding global warming. Among scientists, there is one hundred per cent agreement on the threatGore backs this up by showing results of a study which pulled 928 articles from scientific journals. There was no dissent among those scientists with regard to the current climate crisis. It is now clear that we face a deepening global climate crisis that requires us to act boldly, quickly, and wisely, says Gore. Is the world heeding his call? Questions: 1. Suggest measures that can be taken at global and national levels to curb global warming. 2. List the major lifestyle changes that we as individuals need to adopt to reduce our own contribution to the climate crisis. 3. Many developing countries like India face the dilemma of the need for rapid development while balancing it with environmental conservation. Discuss whether development can be compatible with environmental conservation and how. 4. Do you think global warming can be stopped? Give your views and reasons to support them.

1.6 Summary Let us recapitulate the important concepts discussed in this unit:

Living organisms and non-living objects together constitute the natural environment, and human beings, as part of the natural environment, are also directly or indirectly affected by the environment. Environmental studies refers to the study of the interactions between humans and the environment, both living organisms and non-living objects. With the increasing human population, the impact of human activities on the environment has also increased, posing some serious challenges for humankind. Environmental studies is a broad multidisciplinary field of study that involves physical and chemical sciences, biological and earth sciences, geography, demographics, economics, as well as politics and law.
Environmental degradation and climate change could have grave consequences for the future of

humankind. Therefore, there is an urgent need to create awareness about the environmental problems faced by the world today, as well as the need to resolve them.

1.7 Glossary Climate change: Any change in global temperatures and precipitation over time due to natural variability or to human activity. Deforestation: Removal of a forest or stand of trees where the land is thereafter converted to a non-forest use Environment: Surroundings or conditions in which a person, animal, or plant lives or operates. Environmental studies: The academic field which systematically studies human interaction with the environment. It is a broad interdisciplinary field of study that includes the natural environment, built environment, and the sets of relationships between them. Extinction: The state or process of ceasing or causing something to cease to existFossil fuels Food chain: A group of organisms interrelated by the fact that each member of the group feeds upon on the one below it and is in turn eaten by the organism above it in the chain. Global warming: The gradual increase in the temperature of the earth's atmosphere, believed to be due to the greenhouse effect, caused by increased levels of carbon dioxide, chlorofluorocarbons, and other pollutants Greenhouse effect: The phenomenon whereby the earth's atmosphere traps solar radiation, caused by the presence in the atmosphere of gases such as carbon dioxide, water vapor, and methane that allow incoming sunlight to pass through but absorb heat radiated back from the earth's surface.

Renewable energy: Energy that comes from natural resources such as sunlight, wind, rain, tides, and geothermal heat, which are renewable (naturally replenished) Sustainable development: A pattern of resource use that aims to meet human needs while preserving the environment so that these needs can be met not only in the present, but also for generations to come. Urbanization: The rapid and massive growth of, and migration to, large cities.

1.8 Terminal Questions 1. 2. 3. 4. Define the term environmental studies and elaborate upon its scope. What is the importance of environmental studies in the present day? Discuss the multidisciplinary nature of environmental studies. Discuss the need for public awareness on environmental issues. Briefly mention the UNs role in promoting the cause of environment at the global level.

1.9 Answers Answers to Self-Assessment Questions 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. True False True Human False Multidisciplinary Carbon emissions fossil fuels Silent Spring - Rachel Carson WED - 5th June WSSD 1992 Johannesburg 8. (a) United Nations Environment Programme (b) Stockholm, 1972

Answers to Terminal Questions 1. 2. 3. 4. Refer to Section 1.2.1 and 1.2.2 Refer to Section 1.2.3 Refer to Section 1.3 Refer to Section 1.4

1.11 2 3 4 5

Further Reading

Allaby, M. Environment. York: Gareth Stevens Publishing, 2000 Carson, R. Silent Spring. Boston: Houghton Miffin Harcourt, 1962 Rajagopalan, R. Environmental Studies, 2nd edn. New Delhi: Oxford University Press. Rangarajan M. and K. Sivaramakrishnan (eds). Indias Environmental HistoryA Reader: (Vol. 1: From Ancient Times to the Colonial Period, Vol. 2: Colonialism, Modernity, and the Nation), New Delhi: Orient Blackswan Press, 2011. 6 Rangarajan, M (ed). Environmental Issues in India: A Reader, New Delhi: Pearson Longman, 2007. 7 WCED (World Commission on Environment and Development). Our Common Future. New York: Oxford University Press, 1987