duty Canberra Memory Yogyakarta Ecofeminism
Our duty towards our environment Protection and including youth in fight against pollution”
“The present generation is holding environment as a Trustee not as an owner “
Introduction
The environment is one of the most precious things in our lives, without a clean and healthy environment our life will become a mess. Human life cannot exist if there is no clean and healthy environment left. We need a healthy and clean environment.
We are not holding the environment as the sole owner, we are holding it as a trustee for future generations. Unfortunately people have started thinking of themselves as the owner of the environment which is one of the biggest reasons for environmental degradation. It is important to realize that nobody is the owner of the environment. The owner of the environment is the creator of the universe.
Role of Youth in Protecting Environment
As such, protecting the environment is the responsibility of every single person who is living on this planet. Nature is for all, every single person who is living as the duty to fight against pollution.
Youth has to play a vital role in fighting against pollution and environmental damage. The youth of today have to fight for the youth of the future. As the fight for environment protection is not an easy fight. However the youth has the power and also a special duty to fight against environmental degradation.
How can Youth Contribute in Environmental Protection?
Youth can contribute in many ways for protecting the environment. There can be endless ways in which youth can respond to the grave pollution that is making life toxic & unhealthy. Youth can be creative and find many new and unique ways for fighting against pollution. As far as the ways of fighting against the pollution is concerned nobody could give an exact answer as there can be endless ways in which it can be done.
However we should discuss some of the possible ways for fighting against the pollution.
- Education:
Education is one of the most powerful tools which can transform the world. Education is a must in today’s world. The education curriculum does contain environmental pollution as one of the topics & subjects as well.
However unfortunately there has been very less focus from the Student side as well as the teaching institutes on this subject. This is not to say that the educational institute or the students take no interest in the topic and subject of environmental pollution. They do a lot of project work ,research work, exhibition work, seminar presentation etc however the problem in the approach is that students’ mindset is that this is not going to help them in their future careers.
- Awareness Campaign:-
Youth needs to involve itself in a lot of awareness campaigns for environment protection. As such we do see awareness campaigns from the youth and other parts of the society. However such campaigns are just made for the purpose of making and there is no involvement of heart into it. What is happening is people are just campaigning for the sake of campaigning or just becoming part of an environment protection campaign. Yes it is not to say that everyone is not involved with their whole heart into it. There are people from the youth war actually involved and very passionate about environment protection however we are speaking generally.
- New Mediums to Inspire
New Mediums & modes could be used. Singing, Painting etc are used for campaigns. However the use of songs can be really effective for raising awareness among the masses for environmental protection. Songs can be created to inspire people for environmental protection. Slogans are used typically that’s also good mode to inspire people for environmental protection.
- Policy making:
Youth can do as many campaigns for environment protection as they like however that will not change the problem drastically. Unless and until the youth involves itself in the policy making process. In order to involve themselves with policy making, youth need to enter politics.
As without being involved in the Policy making process it will remain a futile exercise. The Youth mostly remain far from Politics but they need to change their approach.
Not only the policy making process but by being involved in Politics it’s much easier to inspire the society & fight for a particular cause.
If more & more Youth enter politics that could be helpful for the society & if after entering into the political realm, if the Youth could show determination for environmental protection that would go a long way in the fight against pollution.
It’s not to forget that political fabric decides the fate of a country. The elected representatives have vast powers to table a bill, to vote & to oppose a bill. Any law before being passed by the legislature is introduced as a Bill in the parliament or state legislature as the case may be.
This is just the power of Individual elected representatives; the power increases as the number increases. The power of a political party is much more, especially when it has a high number of elected representatives.
It’s very important for youth to involve itself into this. The fate of the country is decided by the elected representatives of the people in any democratic country. Hence youth is much needed in this process.
- Stringent Laws & Strict Implementation of the Laws :-
The success and failure of anything in the society depends upon the Rules , Regulations & its implementation. There needs to be Stringent Laws for environmental protection & strict implementation of the law. The law needs to be followed in the letter & the spirit. Merely making stringent laws won’t be sufficient. What is equally important is strict implementation of the law.
As far as Laws & its implementation is concerned in regards to environmental protection unfortunately the situation is far from satisfactory. Let it be National Laws or International Laws, they are not as stringent as they ideally should be & it’s implementation is very poor as well.
Unless & Until Strict laws will be made & implemented there will never be a safe environment. Youth needs to enter political realm & contribute towards legislating laws which can ensure environmental protection.
- Youth from all walks of life need to contribute:-
The environment belongs to all & people from all walks of life need to contribute towards environmental protection. It is not a duty only of public representatives but it’s duty of Public at large.
Let it be Businessman, Teacher, Engineer, Architect, Traders, Farmers, Politicians, Students etc.
For example
A)Businessman:-
Business houses could consider eco-friendly means of production & manufacturing. The amount of damage which is done by manufacturing industries by releasing untreated waste is very ravaging to the environment.
Why can’t they think beyond profit making alone? If they are making more profit but the environment is suffering by discharge of untreated pollutants then that’s a loss for the society overall.
Youth should endeavour to establish their own Business & set an example by taking all precautions for protecting the environment. Obviously it’s not possible for all to establish their own businesses hence the youth environment activists should visit such industries which are causing grave damage to the environment & try to convince them to use alternative methods of production which causes least or no damage to the environment.
Legal Action
Most likely business class won’t pay heed to such activists then legal action is the best option apart from peaceful protest.
B) Engineers :-
Engineers have a big role to play in protecting the environment. They can discover new & better technology of production which can cause least to no damage to the environment.
All youth in engineering have a huge responsibility on their shoulders.
C) Architects
Architects along with engineers have a huge role to play as well, in construction & designs which are planned.
There has been use of waste products like plastic bags etc in construction of roads etc.
D) Teachers :-
It’s needless to say the role of teachers in spreading awareness about pollution. They have one of the biggest responsibilities to transform present & future generations.
E) Advocates
Lawyers have one of the biggest responsibilities to fight against environmental pollution.
Lawyers have deep knowledge of law & they can contribute by fighting cases against those who are causing pollution.
They can also be instrumental in spreading awareness about Environmental laws.
Young lawyers & those with experience need to come together in the fight against environmental pollution.
All have to contribute towards environmental protection. If only one section of the public is fighting against pollution & others don’t bother then there will never be a safe environment.
How can different professionals come together for Environmental Protection?
In order to come together & work together they should form an organisation, have a platform to meet regularly , conferences, meetings, action group & policy making group & strategy making group.
NGO
One option is NGO, which should consist of experts from all the fields. That would be a very effective formation in the fight against environmental pollution.
But the question arises is there are many Non Governmental organisations already but yet we don’t see much output?
That’s true to an extent but not entirely true. Many Non Governmental organisations are just operating for the sake of operating. There are many who are corrupt but it should not be forgotten there are some who are genuinely making efforts.
- Sustainable development:-
We need development but development should be sustainable. If Development is done at the cost of harming the environment then in reality it’s destruction. It can’t be called development. Albeit the immediate effect looks like it’s Development but that’s the development for the present generation. For future generations it’s destruction. As I said in the beginning the present generation holds the environment not as an owner but as a Trustee. Nobody has absolute rights over the environment. Nobody owns the environment.
In fact we all are alive because of the environment. Our very existence depends on the environment.
- War needs to be stopped:-
One of the biggest problems of the present time is wars. As such the history of mankind tells us that there have always been wars, much before the state came into existence. Wars between two clans , groups, kingdoms have always happened. However, now the magnitude of the war is much bigger and the kinds of destructive weapons which are available today were not available in the past.
The war has been going on between Russia and Ukraine for the past 3 years and there has been no possibility of a solution yet. Israel is involved in tormenting Palestine & recently the 12 days war with Iran.
There has been World War 1 & 2 already, especially the destruction caused by World War 2 is still felt till today. In the nuclear strike at Hiroshima & Nagasaki not only those places suffered but it impacts all neighbouring surroundings. And any such attack ultimately affects the whole environment. The Nuclear Atomic Weapons, Hydrogen Bombs & even other Bombs used in wars create a terrible impact on the ecosystem.
This needs to be stopped & youth needs to come forward. Youth needs to take a lead and try to stop these wars. Because until and unless this wars are stopped there will always be massive destruction to the environment.
- Weapons of Massive Destruction need to be stopped:-
One of the biggest problems that we face in the world today is the availability of weapons of mass destruction. Let it be nuclear bomb hydrogen bombs or other weapons of massive destruction this weapons are frequently tested. While testing this weapon it is either tested in the sea or deep underground of the earth. Now wherever it is tested, destruction to the environment is obviously going to happen.
Now the question before the world is this:
How far will we allow & tolerate production & testing of weapons of Massive destruction?
We have already seen the kind of impact the second World war had on the environment. Yet we all are helpless in this power struggle between different countries. We as individual citizens of the world we do feel pained about it, we are also aware of the consequences of using the weapons of massive destruction.
Yet the bottom line is that we are helpless.
Now the question is “why are we so helpless?
Reason & solution
We are so helpless because we are not coming together. As an individual sometimes we do think about environment and the weapons of massive destruction, but ultimately we feel I am too tiny before the mighty powers of countries.
It is true that we are tiny in front of the massive power that each country holds. Obviously any country has much more power than an individual.
However we often realise the fact that there is a power in the unity. The reason why any state holds power is because they have power behind them.
But from where this power comes, it comes from unity, if people unite & decide to fight against pollution then it could change things a lot.
Biggest Environmental Threats to the present & future generations:-
Global Warming:-
As we all know global warming has been rising. The ozone layer is affected & the sea levels are rising.
Climate change
Because of the climate change caused by the pollution there are a lot of issues which are alarming & need to be addressed.
Rising Sea Levels:-
One of the biggest problems before us and the future generation is the rising sea level , because of climate change and melting of the glacier sea levels are rising & the risk of land slowly & slowly sinking under water is rising.
Plastic Pollution:-
One of the major problems is plastic pollution that has caused grave damage to the environment. Apart from empty talks nothing much has happened in addressing this issue.
Pollution overall
Air Pollution
Overall the pollution level has increased so much that there is no clean air left.
Water Pollution
Water has become dirty by the release of untreated pollutants in the river & the sea. There are many other reasons for water pollution. The quality of water is becoming worse day by day because of pollution.
Noise Pollution
The use of various devices & speakers have caused a lot of noise pollution.
Deforestation:-
Deforestation has been one of the biggest problems for a long time. No government is paying any attention in protecting and preserving the forest. Environment protection laws are made on paper but are not implemented in reality. Unfortunately environment protection laws are not followed in the letter & the spirit.
Can an Individual make a huge impact in the fight against environmental pollution?
When there is a will there is a way , there have been many individuals who made tremendous contributions for the environment.
M.C. Mehta
One of the leading Advocate of India, M.C. Mehta has made a huge contribution in the fight against environmental pollution through his public interest litigation in India.
Taz Trapezium Case, Ganga river pollution case and the list can go on and on. In the Taz trapezium case , the damage which was done to the 7th wonder of the world Taj Mahal by the release of coal fumes & toxic gases released from the neighbouring industries was stopped by the public interest litigation by M.C. Mehta.
Because of M.C. Mehta cases a lot of pollution could be stopped. His contribution to the Indian environment protection is huge and highly appreciated by the people all over India.
Chandi Prasad Bhatt & Sunderlal Bahuguna:-
The Chipko movement is one of the most inspiring movements for environment protection in India. Chandi Prasad Bhatt and Sundarlal Bahuguna are instrumental for this trailblazing event.
Women hugged trees in order to stop deforestation.
Greta Thunberg
A very inspirational story of a young girl fighting against climate change. She left 1 year of her education to fight against climate change. She’s a valorous young girl who has given a lot of hope to the world for environmental protection.
There are many other individuals who have made great efforts for protecting the environment. But unfortunately there are many more individuals who have made great efforts in ravaging the environment. Most of us are only harming the environment. Most of us are not making any effort to protect and preserve the environment.
Conclusion:-
In this essay we discussed environmental protection with special emphasis on Youth. We discussed what Role Youth could play & what should be the ideal approach, what are the existing flaws & what is the possible solution. We discussed what could be the Roadmap & blueprint to fight against pollution.
As once the great Greta Thunberg said lot of Climate change conferences have been held but apart from talks nothing has happened in reality. The state of affairs doesn’t give much hope, the political realm as usual is not concerned about it apart from giving empty talks.
But the Activism shown by Individuals like M.C. Mehta , Greta Thunberg & many more in their fight against environmental pollution gives a ray of Hope.
We don’t need to forget we all owe duty to nature. We all owe duty towards the environment. The essay speaks about cooperation & coming together to fight against pollution. It’s not possible for a few individuals to fight & the rest of us don’t pay heed to it. They are not the only ones who are enjoying the nature we all are & we all owe duty towards it.
If we don’t fight against environmental pollution then we are doing grave injustice to the coming generations. We can’t abuse the environment. We tend to act as if we are absolute owners of the environment. However the fact is nobody & I mean nobody owns nature except God. We are a small creature of God & the natural surroundings are also creations of God. God has created this because it’s needed for our existence. We need fresh air & oxygen to live , we need good healthy food to eat, how will we survive if we ourselves annihilate nature?
And who gave us the right to annihilate nature anyways?
It’s only our hunger for power , selfishness, fake Ego & never ending greed that has made us believe we are the owners of the environment.
By doing this we are not only causing great danger to ourselves & the present generation but much bigger damage to the coming generations.
In the end I will conclude by saying that
“Youth of Today has to Fight for the Rights of The Youth of the Future”.
& “All of us owe duty towards the environment & the future generations to come”
By: AMIT LAXMICHAND GALA
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