From Different Corners

Ways to Grow With Minimum Environmental Hazard

To grow is a basic human instinct. Civilizations across the globe and across the time have celebrated growth and people responsible for growth have always been admired and respected and others have been advised to get inspired by these examples. Nations from every corner of the world have made policies, provided incentives and have taken steps to facilitate growth and development in economic terms. In the past environmental issues were not crucial as number of people on the planet and the amount of natural resources used by them were comparatively. The accelerated development of technology, growing human population, and exponentially growing usage of resources and consequent wastage have brought the environmental concern on the forfront.The inventions of non-biodegradable materials,deforestation,pollution of various kinds created by machines and automobiles have made the sustenance of this growth pattern questionable. The use of a new pesticide can have harmful impact on food products and soil, and the long run damage caused by it can be much more than short term benefits. Various new drugs and medicines can cause severe damage to human organs in the long run. The growing industrialization and usage of automobiles may pollute the environment ultimately resulting into a series of diseases and untimely deaths of human beings. Various industrial accidents like Bhopal Gas tragedy are hard to forget for any civilized human being. The fear of rising temperature and meltdown of glaciers, damages to ozone layer, depleting drinking water, vanishing animal and plant species can put the entire civilization’s existence at risk. Hence, there is a need of tackling these issues with conviction. The real concerns for environmental hazards started getting voiced at national and international forums in the second half of the twentieth century. Various protocols and summits like Kyoto, Montreal and the latest Copenhagen summit etc. are evidences of growing concern across the globe regarding environmental issues. People from every country have started thinking and working for sustainable development. A real development is the development which can be sustained for a long term. We can’t afford to ignore the issues related to environment, if we want to hand over a beautiful earth and prosperous future potential to future generations. We must look at the both sides of effects related to usage of new inventions and adoption of new processes. Our experiences with legislations and summits have taught us the hard way that a lot more needs to be done. The issue of sustainable development or growth with environmental protection may be ensured with following for steps: 1) Creating awareness through media and education-No universal problem can be solved without creating awareness about it to all. For this, environmental study should be made the compulsory part of education at all levels in all streams. It should be given the same importance what we give to the education of languages, technology, mathematics and general awareness. Secondly, the power of all types of media including print, electronic, internet, campaigns should be harnessed to the maximum to make people know about the environmental impact of their consumption or activities, and their probable consequences. 2) Making uncompromisable legislations- Although we have various legislations related to protection of wildlife, forest etc. and there are government institutions and ministries to look after environment, but it’s obviously not sufficient. There is a need to enact legislations which make intentional damages caused to environment as serious as causing damages to human lives or sovereign nations. We must realize that if environment does not sustain then nothing will. People with power and contacts should not be allowed to remain unpunished if they have committed crimes against environment. 3) Emphasizing research on environmental protection-In order to ensure growth without environmental hazards, researches related to it must be given due priority. We spend billions of rupees on researches related to industries, defense, health etc., but environmental researches still do not attract best talents or substantial resources. There is a need to promote environmental researches with the cooperation of both governments and private sector at every possible level.Universities, institutes and research agencies must work in this direction in every related discipline area. There is also a need to facilitate environmental researches at local levels to find alternative ways of production and consumption which are environment friendly. 4) Balancing the distribution of Income-One of the major causes of environmental hazards is the fact of people in large number struggling for survival every day in the different parts of the world. An individual, who is not sure of his next meal, can’t be sensitive to possible problems in future years or hardships to next generation. For him survival at any cost is the fact of life. No campaign or legislation can stop a starving individual to cause environmental damage. This is evident in damages caused to forest in areas full of poor people and a large number pf poverty stricken employees working for dangerous and environment damaging occupations. Hence, enough honest efforts must be made to create a reasonable balance in the distribution of income. The poverty of masses also makes the economic growth unsustainable in many ways including sustainability in environmental terms. In order to ensure the growth with safe environment these points should be considered by policymakers and general public at large. Human beings survive on hope of better future, and without protecting environment we lose the hope of bright future. It’s the case of saving our hope and our environment. Skyline University College is among the top educational institutes in Sharjah and it continues working for sustainability and environmental protection through the community service activities and training to students. SUC is among the best options for BBA in Sharjah. It has also started BBA in public administration to prepare a students for administrative responsibilities.