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Caring for the Environment: 7 Reasons to Protect & Sustain Earth

If the environment is destroyed, there’s nowhere to escape to, so here are seven reasons to start caring about the state of the earth.

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The environment has become a prominent but controversial talking point in modern times. We all understand that many of the natural resources we consume are not infinite, and problems like air pollution and waste management aren’t going to go away without taking action.

However, a lot of the headline discourse on environmental issues is going on at a political level, far away from the mundanities of everyday life. This means it’s easy to wonder why should we care for the environment, especially if you’re not glued to the news.

If you’re looking for the reasons why we should care for the environment, this article explores the seven key reasons why the environment and its care should matter to every person on the planet.

What do we mean when we refer to ‘the environment’?

Put plainly, the environment is the sum of all living and non-living things on Earth (including climate, radiation, electrical phenomena, and weather) and their non-artificial relationships and interactions. The natural environment exists on a continuum with environments that are artificial or at least heavily influenced by man.

The environment spans vast natural ecosystems, including rock, soil, water, and vegetation. Natural resources like fossil fuels and the atmosphere are also part. Constituent ecosystems within the environment consist of various forms of life, ranging from microorganisms to animals.

Of course, the environment we experience today has been shaped by the activity of man. Built environments are the opposite of natural environments and have been completely modified and developed to meet the requirements of man. Examples of built environments are farms and cities where the natural environment has been altered or effaced, and something else is in its place.

The environment has been impacted by the activity of mankind with contemporary challenges that include:

• Biodiversity loss
• Natural resource depletion
• Atmospheric and climatic changes

7 reasons why we should protect the environment?

1. environmental degradation is destroying our health.

The material benefits of the industrial revolution to much of the world are undeniable, but one of the major downsides of industrialization has been the massive amounts of pollution generated, with a catastrophic impact on human health.

Pollution generated by industrial processes such as mining, transportation, manufacturing, energy generation, and even food processing is incredibly pernicious, affecting almost every organ system in the body.

In many cases, such as the Dupont PFOA scandal , the DDT controversy, and the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, the environment has been deliberately damaged through the dumping of industrial waste or negligent operational procedures.

Recognized effects of environmental pollution on human health include:

Respiratory disease

Air pollution is one of the most serious environmental issues and has been suggested by the UN to cause over 7 million premature deaths each year. Urban areas are particularly affected by dense particulate pollution that can cause or exacerbate respiratory diseases like asthma, bronchitis, and COPD.

In addition, indoor air pollution due to inadequately ventilated cooking or heating puts over a quarter of the world’s population at risk of developing cardiovascular or respiratory health problems.

Reproductive disorders

In many parts of the world, the environment has been polluted by the persistence of a variety of endocrine-disrupting chemicals. These ubiquitous chemicals, which include pesticides, plastics, heavy metals, and the oral contraceptive pill, disrupt the hormone-controlled reproductive processes of humans and animals.

Reproductive disorders like infertility, subfertility, and menstrual disorders may be driven by the pernicious effects of endocrine disruptors in our environment. Sampled average male sperm counts have decreased significantly since the middle of the 20th century, and the downward trend is accelerating.

Environmental pollution has led to the widespread dissemination of cancer-causing chemicals called carcinogens. These substances are incredibly diverse and include byproducts of combustion, pesticides, hazardous waste, and ionizing radiation.

Prolonged exposure to these agents has been implicated in the development of cancers in people of all ages. For example, people living in environments with high levels of PM2.5 particulate pollution are at an increased risk of developing lung cancer.

2. Destruction of the environment puts the global food supply at risk

Environmental welfare is a distant thought when we buy our food from grocery stores and markets, but the effects of environmental damage are evident to the food producers who rely on clean water, fertile soil, and a supportive climate to grow and raise our food.

Agriculture is reliant on the environment but can also be one of the biggest polluters due to the use of pesticides, fertilizers, and the generation of agricultural waste. This essential sector is now being threatened by environmental damage in a variety of ways. Examples include:

• Decreasing biodiversity and soil degradation because of intensive farming techniques.
• Loss of viable agricultural land because of the physical presence of a landfill.
• Long-term land and water contamination from landfill leachate.
• Soil and water contamination due to the improper disposal of hazardous waste.
• Pesticides cause the loss of natural pollinators like bees, wasps, and other insects.
• Land loss because of desertification or flooding, driven by climate change. 
• Loss of farmland to construction to accommodate urban sprawl .

The effects of environmental changes may not be apparent in economically advanced countries because they can afford to import food. But poorer countries have a greater dependence on their domestic agricultural production to supply their food. These countries may also be food exporters, putting pressure on available land and compromising food security.

3. Caring for the environment helps us to live productive lives

The welfare of the environment is also important to our ability to work and the wider economy. Pollution has tangible human and economic costs that impact the lives of communities and nations.

According to the Lancet Commission on Pollution and Health pollution and environmental damage cost the global economy up to $4.6 trillion per year, more than 6% of the total economic output of the world! A large contribution to this sum is the loss of human productivity from health problems, polluted land, and population displacement due to environmental changes.

Human activity needs to be sustainable if we are to maintain our environment long-term and lead productive healthy lives. Developing sustainable ways of living and managing the Earth’s resources is, in fact, a major economic opportunity that could lift billions of people out of poverty.

For example, the $65 billion the United States has invested in air pollution control since the 1970s has yielded over $1.5 trillion in economic benefit. New and innovative solutions for the world’s most challenging environmental problems could lead to commercial sectors that every country can access and use profitably. 

4. Environmental integrity promotes peace

Though the causes of war are multifactorial, environmental degradation can be a significant stressor as nations and communities compete for dwindling natural resources. Over the last century, there have been numerous domestic and international conflicts as nations and people fight over water, land for agriculture and grazing, and natural resources.

Environmental changes like deforestation and desertification limit the natural resources available to communities. In pastoral or subsistence farming communities, the integrity and resilience of the environment can be the difference between life and death and increases the potential for struggles for the remaining land.

Wars damage and pollute the environment, exacerbating the scarcity surviving people experience. There needs to be a global effort to ensure that environmental conditions do not deteriorate in the poorest and most challenged regions so that people are less likely to resort to conflict.

5. Protecting the environment prevents the displacement of people 

Migration is a global issue that is heavily affected by environmental degradation. Pollution, drought, and local climate and weather changes are making parts of the earth uninhabitable for existing populations and leading to involuntary migration.

Environmentally displaced people

These people termed ‘Environmentally displaced people’, have no choice but to leave regions that have been degraded by environmental degradation or natural disasters, leaving them unable to pursue their livelihoods.

Large population shifts because of environmental change 

The neglect of environmental issues and subsequent stress and degradation could lead to upward of 200 million people being forced to leave their homeland and resettle by 2050. According to Oxford University’s Refugees Studies Center , countries like Pakistan, Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Ghana, Kenya, and Somalia as well as the Pacific island are already affected by this problem.

6. Future generations will have to survive on the Earth we leave behind 

We are responsible for the environmental legacy we leave to future generations. All human activity affects the environment in some way. Sustained negative impact on ecosystems, will lead to the depletion of natural resources and loss of biodiversity, leaving the next generation to inherit our contaminated land, water, and air.

Unrestrained consumption leads to loss of resources

We are currently in the midst of a massive loss of biodiversity, with 25% of wild species facing extinction. This leaves the world a poorer and ecologically scarcer place with the absence of species that may have performed vital but unrecognized roles.

Industry and governmental stakeholders are already aware that the current rate of consumption of natural resources like oil may become critically diminished as the decades roll on. Future generations may not be able to live a lifestyle similar to the ones we’re used to.

However, the outlook isn’t all negative. Recognizing the need to care for the environment returns us precious time to remedy current environmental problems and find new ways to live more sustainably . With effort and investment, we may be able to leave the Earth better than we found it.

7. We are all called to be stewards of the environment we have received

Whatever your belief system, there is an innate understanding of our sovereignty and the need for us to become stewards of the resources that are in our care. Over millennia, mankind has cultivated and tended to its immediate environment with plant and animal husbandry continuing to be a key means of survival to the present day.

But, the mass production of goods and services and careless consumer culture has robbed many people of the sense of responsibility and moral obligation by which efforts could be made to live in a way that is less environmentally damaging. Not caring for or about the environment often serves the agenda of corporate interests that want to sell products at all costs.

Environmental damage for profit

Much of the damage to the environment has not been committed by individuals but by corporations who have exploited environmental resources for profits and polluted carelessly. Great wealth has been generated and is now held by stakeholders who have taught populations the consumerism that is now condemned. 

Control of populations 

Since the early 20th century, urbanization has accelerated . At the start of the 20th century, half of Americans lived on farms . The number of farms in the US has steadily declined from 7 million in the 1930s to 2 million today.

The impact of this massive shift in how people live, and work is that vast populations are completely disconnected from the land and obligated to be consumers of food and goods with little choice or say in how they are produced. This alienation is often the root of indifference to environmental issues across the world.

Making the individual a stakeholder

Fostering engaged, self-determining communities that care for the environment would require whole populations to regain sovereignty that has been ceded to commercial and governmental interests, with critical thinking and reflection on how the present environmental challenges have arisen. 

Many governments espouse behavioral change, sustainability, and reduced resource consumption as the key solutions to the environmental challenges of the 21st century, but without the reclamation of personal responsibility and equitable access and ownership of land, these changes are likely to be cosmetic.

The environment affects everyone

For many people, their immediate environment in a city or town is completely removed from rainforests, rivers, deserts, and the natural disasters we hear about on the news.

Caring for their environment may involve picking up litter, recycling , or choosing to drive an electric car. It is hard to see how the daily activities of running a household and feeding oneself are connected to famines and droughts.

Many countries are geographically and economically shielded from the stark consequences of environmental degradation, but they cannot be indefinitely insulated. Famine, war, and migration are capable of reaching any shore, and decades of unrestrained pollution affect the health of everyone.

Caring for our environment is a must if we want to guarantee ourselves a healthy life, as well as a good life for future generations. Our environment is life-sustaining and must be preserved for all.

How can we save our Earth?

Across the world, people are rightly concerned about the state of the environment and want to take action to make things better. The are numerous initiatives and protest movements that are pressing for urgent changes to the way we live to mitigate environmental damage. 

However, the steps that need to be taken aren’t specific actions, behavioral or lifestyle changes. These are superficial as long as the stakeholders who undertake the most polluting activities for profit on an industrial scale can continue to do so without meaningful change.

In many countries, a significant amount of the waste the people diligently separate for recycling is landfilled because it costs ‘too much’ money to recycle. Electric vehicles run on electricity generated by cutting down trees and shipping them thousands of miles to be burnt, all for profit. Groceries clock up thousands of air miles when they could have been grown locally.

Here are some thoughts on how the environment can be helped:

Regain individual sovereignty

We’re only going to care for the environment when we cultivate personal responsibility and see ourselves as stakeholders in the environment we live in. We need to push back against the disenfranchisement that comes with consumerism and dig deeper.

Take time to learn about the state of our environment and its root causes, drawing information from a range of sources that you can critically evaluate. Think objectively about the way we live and the true cost of convenience in advanced economies.

Develop productive local communities

Armed with personal sovereignty, people can come together and reason to gain a collective, objective understanding of why environmental change has happened and what needs to be done. With cooperation, productivity can shift from taking place at a national or international level to a local scale so communities become resilient and truly sustainable.

Strengthen national sovereignty

With strong, locally productive communities, nations become better equipped to manage their environment by harnessing the skills and expertise of their population to develop strong domestic economies. 

Rather than selling out to supranational interests, lawmakers and governments can hold these corporate and financial entities to account so that they have to change their polluting activities at their own expense.

As Steve Cohen from the Columbia Climate School states;

“I believe that on a more crowded planet, with instant and inexpensive global communication, a company that engages in wanton acts of environmental destruction will not survive long in the marketplace.”

Develop a less opportunistic global economy

We live in societies that are dominated by the demands of economic systems rather than what is best for individuals, communities, and the environment. This has led to the prioritization of global economic agendas and profiteering at the expense of environmental welfare and authentic sustainability.

Not everything should be done because a profit can be made, but until countries regain their sovereignty, they and their citizens are largely captive to a way of living that damages the environment and generates vast profits for a small group of people.

A step in the right direction would be nations coming together to insist that the crippling debts that prevent poorer countries from developing basic infrastructure for sanitation, waste management, and other environmental problems are canceled.

So why should we care for the environment? Because we need change!

Caring for the environment is really caring for ourselves, but it needs to be done with understanding rather than superficial choices and activities that do not contend with the sources of large-scale environmental degradation.

By making the decision to become an engaged and informed citizen, you can start to build grassroots communities that are truly sustainable and hold the sovereignty and power to hold the corporate polluters to account.

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Why We Should Care About Environmental Health

Earth is the only place with perfect conditions for human existence. Nature supplies absolutely everything for our physical and mental well-being. With the human population increasing at an unprecedented rate over the past century, nature exploitation has also reached unsustainable levels; so high that many natural resources and living creatures are now on the verge of complete extinction. Sustainable development has not always been a priority and as a result, we live in polluted or even contaminated environment that harms our own health. Many health problems and deaths around the world as a consequence of unhealthy environments could be preventable or drastically reduced through efforts put into better environmental quality. Now more than ever, it is crucial that we understand and take action to protect our environmental health. 

Environmental Health Matters

We live in a world with quite unlimited options for living. Naturally, some people have more options in deciding where to live than others. The leading criteria for the best places to live usually include affordability, job opportunities, home value, proximity to family and friends, safety, good schools, and climate and weather conditions. However, it was not until the beginning of the 20th century that people started to realise how air pollution could cause a dent in the atmosphere. Basically, that was the beginning of an academic discipline created to try to understand the environmental threats mostly caused by human activities and their consequences on the environment and also to find a way to reduce the negative impact on nature and maintain the Earth in the best possible condition for the generations to come. 

The World Health Organization (WHO) defines public health as “the art and science of preventing disease, prolonging life and promoting health through the organized efforts of society.” Public health thus involves the protection of the health and well-being of the whole population. These populations can be represented by smaller local neighbourhoods, larger regions, or even the entire world. 

The quality of the environment we live in is affecting us every day without us even realising it. The food we eat, the place we live in, and the community we interact with on daily basis all affect our physical and mental well-being. This is a part of a broad area of study called ‘ Environmental Health ’, a discipline that – as the name suggests – speaks for every aspect of the environment that can influence our health. 

6 Sources Responsible For Environmental Health Issue

1. air pollution.

Pollutants are a mixture of natural and manmade elements, molecules, and particles with an undesired effect on human health. Breathing air polluted by nearby factories or heavy traffic affects the lungs and heart , causing asthma and even increasing the risk of heart attack or stroke. According to World Health Organization (WHO), 600,000 children die every year from infections of the respiratory system caused by air pollution. 9 out of 10 people breathe polluted air which results in almost 9 million deaths annually. 

You might also like: Air Pollution: Have We Reached the Point of No Return?

2. Water Contamination

Access to clean water is a common human right but unfortunately, it is still a privilege for many. 780 million people in the world lack access to safe drinking water and a stunning 2.5 billion people, equivalent to almost one-third of the world’s population, do not have access to acceptable sanitation services as simple as bathrooms. Over 2,000 children die daily due to diseases linked to non-adequate water and sanitation.

3. Toxic Substances and Hazardous Waste

Toxic substances can be found in discarded materials with properties that can cause harm to the environment and human health, such as heavy metals or chemicals. Such waste is often stored in landfills or simply thrown away as rubbishcontaminating the environment. Man-made production of chemicals has increased drastically between 1930 and 2000, from one million to approximately 400 million tons a year and the trend shows no sign of slowing down. An average human absorbs around 300 man-made chemicals and according to WHO, exposure to them leads to more than 1.6 million deaths annually.

4. Climate Change and Natural Disaster

Climate change is the biggest single human health threat of the 21st century. Increasing global temperature and changes in rain patterns, which result in extreme weather events such as cyclones, hurricanes, droughts, and wildfire have catastrophic effects on entire communities and infrastructure, in many cases resulting in loss of lives. A very well-remembered earthquake in Haiti in 2010, which lasted just about 30 seconds, cost more than 160,000 lives , with many more injured or affected.

5. Infrastructure Issues

Infrastructure represents one of the main pillars of high-quality life. Healthcare centres and hospitals should be integrated into the wider community. Yet, local, state, and federal governments must allocate more resources in order to overcome infrastructure problems and must make this a priority. 

Better infrastructure naturally comes with better access to health care. As Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Director–General of the World Health Organization (WHO), said : “It is completely unacceptable that half the world still lacks coverage for the most essential health services.” 

The Danger of An Unhealthy Environment

As Anne Stauffer, director for Strategy and Campaigns of the European not-profit Health and Environmental Alliance (HEAL) rightly says : “There is not that much of a difference between 2012 and 2020, in fact, the urgency to tackle environmental pollution and climate change has only increased.” She also highlights that “one root cause of the problem is that our whole way of production, consumption and way of life is based on fossil fuels.”

A 2019 report by the European Environment Agency found that heatwaves are the deadliest type of extreme weather in Europe. It also reveals that, under current global warming scenario, the death toll due to heatwaves could be higher than 130,000 per year. Other statistics suggest that 23% of all deaths (26% of deaths of children aged 0-5) are utterly preventable environmental health problems. 

You might also like: The Key Takeaways From This Summer’s Heatwaves

What Can We Do to Enhance Environmental Health?

• Afforestation: More plants and trees to help absorb carbon dioxide and reduce its content in the atmosphere, helps build new ecosystems, helps with the wood demand 
• Reduce the Use of Plastics: Plastic waste makes up 80% of all marine pollution. Researchers worry that by 2050, plastic might even outweigh all fish in the sea .
• Practice Sustainable or Regenerative Agriculture: Regenerative agriculture and other methods of sustainable farming help cut emissions and boost soil health. Agriculture is responsible for 80% of the soil degradation in Europe alone. With unhealthy soils, there will be not enough food of sufficient quality for the increasing population. 
• Electric Cars: Electric cars are not only a great alternative to gasoline-powered cars but they can also reduce a car’s carbon footprint by up to 70%. Additionally, these types of vehicles do not produce the same exhaust noise level as gasoline cars, which can help in very populated areas where noise pollution is a concern already.
• Rainwater Collection: Harvesting rainwater helps manage stormwater runoff and prevents erosion, flooding, and poor water quality in water bodies. Using rainwater as a source for irrigation helps replenish groundwater supplies. 
• Energy Saving: Simple switching to energy-saving bulbs can reduce electricity used in homes anywhere between 25-80%. Adopting this and other energy-saving practices, significantly decreases our reliance on fossil fuels, which still represent the major source of energy around the world
• Reducing Industrial Emissions and Waste: Earth will become uninhabitable if fossil fuel emissions do not decrease quickly. The majority of the greenhouse gases in the atmosphere over the last 150 years has originated from human activities. 

Final Thoughts

E nvironmental health has never been more important. All we need to do is to care about our planet. Many might feel too little to stop the climate change or environmental tragedies, but there are numerous ways we can help and be part of this change. To live longer and to enhance the quality of people’s life, supporting a healthy environment is essential.

You might also like: How to Lower Your Carbon Footprint Through An Eco-Friendly Home Audit

About the Author

Denisa Ogoyi

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Why having a clean and healthy environment is a human right

It's a human right to live in a healthy, clean and sustainable environment. Image:  UNSPLASHAngela Benito

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• The WHO forecasts that climate change is expected to cause around 250,000 deaths per year between 2030 and 2050.
• After being first debated in the 1990s, the UN Human Rights Council declared that having a clean, healthy and sustainable environment is a human right.
• Leading civil society voices told us why this is so crucial to ensure a healthy environment for all.

On 8 October 2021, the UN Human Rights Council declared that having a clean, healthy and sustainable environment is a human right , with 43 votes in favor and 4 abstentions. The measure was first debated during the 1990s, and the new resolution follows decades of advocacy from various civil society groups.

The WHO forecasts that climate change is expected to cause around 250,000 deaths per year between 2030 and 2050, from factors such as malnutrition, malaria and heat stress, and that the direct costs will be between USD 2-4 billion per year by 2030. More than a quarter of the planet’s population rely on forests for their livelihood, while 1.2 billion people in tropical countries rely on nature for their basic needs.

Have you read?

Why local action is key in the fight against climate change, climate change: how wildfires are causing tree species to relocate.

Following the declaration, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Michelle Bachelet, said: “Bold action is now required to ensure this resolution on the right to a healthy environment serves as a springboard to push for transformative economic, social and environmental policies that will protect people and nature.”

We asked leading civil society voices what they think is needed from government, business and civil society to take action and mobilize efforts around ensuring and protecting a clean environment for all. Here’s what they said:

We need to reframe our relationship to nature

Gopal Patel, Co-Founder & Director, Bhumi Global

A reframing of our relationship with the natural world is needed in order to ensure we can provide everyone with a clean, healthy and sustainable environment. For too long we have artificially separated ourselves from nature. We’ve placed an artificial divide between ourselves and the natural world. Our politics, economic models and modern lifestyles reflect this.

This is not natural, and as we are seeing, not healthy or sustainable for the planet or for humanity. The human species is inextricably interconnected with nature. Throughout history, and in all parts of the world, nature is a common denominator. It is the basis of our civilizations, cultures and ways of life. A return to this way of thinking needs to be the basis of any meaningful action to restore the environment, address the climate crisis, and put nature on the path to recovery.

A social dialogue is needed

Kitso Phiri, Executive Secretary, Botswana Mine Workers Union

Realization of the right to a clean and hazardous free environment requires commitment to social dialogue by tripartite partners in reconciling economic and social interests. Although the laws generally make it mandatory for businesses to remedy environmental impacts caused by their economic activities, weak government regulatory mechanism makes enforcement an onerous exercise. These challenges are even more pronounced in the case of multinational enterprises. An equally weak civil society is disabled from monitoring the level of compliance with environmental obligations and provide meaningful contributions to environmental policy formulation and management.

Therefore, states should strengthen their environmental management policies and regulations; they should build capacities of civil society and government entities; provide additional funding for training and education of social partners; establish a tripartite social dialogue forums on environmental protection, inclusive of civil society.

A game-changer for people and the planet

Monica Iyer, Human Rights Officer, Environment and Climate Change Team, United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights

The Human Rights Council’s recognition that a clean, healthy and sustainable environment is a human right can be a game-changer for people and the planet.

But there is much more needed to make this right a reality for all. States must advance efforts to implement the right working hand-in-hand with civil society, businesses and other stakeholders. They must take urgent environmental action, backed by adequate finance, and support a just transition to a sustainable, human rights-based economy. Businesses should integrate environmental considerations in human rights due diligence processes, fully accounting for how the environmental effects of their activities can also affect human rights.

Those with power and access in fora where environmental policy is being developed, like COP26, should elevate the voices and leadership of affected individuals and communities, who are frequently excluded despite often having the most at stake and the best understanding of effective solutions. They should also promote and accept accountability for the harms caused by environmental damage.

The lives of women and vulnerable communities depend on clean air and clean water for all

Kahea Pacheco, Co-Director, Women’s Earth Alliance

An estimated 240 acres of natural habitat is destroyed every hour. Women and girls bear the brunt of this environmental degradation. While ~30% of humanity does not have access to safe drinking water, UNICEF acknowledges the 200 million hours that women and girls spend collecting water daily as a “colossal waste of their valuable time.” Evidence shows women's participation and decision making in management of local forests significantly improves forest conditions and conservation. And, leadership by Indigenous women, who have sustainably stewarded our natural world for generations, is crucial to preserving life without perpetuating the undue burden on already vulnerable communities.

Economic recovery and environmental action can go hand in hand

Jennifer Morris, Chief Executive Officer, The Nature Conservancy

The connection between human wellbeing and nature is indisputable. Governments, businesses and civil society must collaborate on every level to protect the ‘best’ of what is left on Earth and at sea, and improve areas of food production, energy siting, fishing and infrastructure planning. There is a clear path to funding this transformation by reducing ineffective subsidies and supply chain practices, producing new sources of funding and investing in a manner that pays dividends for nature.

In fact, we can close nearly half the biodiversity funding gap with no new funding, by reducing the flow of capital to harmful behaviors and shifting it toward activities that benefit nature. If done thoughtfully, economic recovery and environmental action can go hand in hand, leading to healthier, more prosperous lives.

This is a clarion call for public engagement and accountability

Amali Tower, Founder & Executive Director, Climate Refugees

The pandemic has made clear how shared our environment truly is, and also how unequal. Rich, high emitting countries that have benefited from the forces that created climate change are insulating themselves from those effects, in similar ways to the pandemic. This is a moral issue, but also one of justice. The most urgent changes needed are from these governments – crucially, the G20 countries – to reduce their emissions, which accounts for a staggering 80% of global emissions, and to fully transition to green economies. These countries need to grant, not loan, urgent climate adaptation finance that developing countries have long awaited so as to develop sustainably and build resiliency to the disproportionate impacts of climate change on their populations, many of whom are on the move. They also require parallel loss and damage climate finance to avert and minimize effects, and as compensation for the irreversible damage, forced migration and displacement.

Governments must also ratify and update their laws to uphold the right to a healthy environment to its full extent, including holding businesses, particularly extractive industries compliant. Environmental pollution and climate change have shown to be effective issues in empowering people to action, and climate related litigation has proven effective in Germany and the Netherlands , and in individual rights, where in France, pollution was a factor in determining a migrant’s residency rights . Civil society must seize this opportunity as a clarion call to mobilize public engagement and hold governments to account, where the greatest hope is in the resilient Global South and youth, pointing the way forward.

The right to a healthy environment offers hope to those most impacted

Katharina Rall, Senior Researcher, Environment & Human Rights, Human Rights Watch

The adoption of the resolution recognizing the right to a healthy environment could offer some hope to many communities around the world already hard-hit by environmental degradation and climate change. To make the enjoyment of the right a reality for those most impacted, governments should recognize the right at the national level and develop strong environmental protection laws and policies to safeguard the rights of at risk populations. This includes requiring businesses to comply with environmental and human rights standards, for example through mandatory climate change due diligence regulations, and ensuring broad participation in environmental decision making by civil society groups and impacted populations – including protecting environmental defenders under threat or attack.

Businesses should comply with existing laws and ensure that their operations, including their global value chains , do not negatively affect the environment or violate the rights of nearby communities, including through rigorous environmental and human rights due diligence. They should stop efforts to silence environmental advocates, for example through baseless nuisance lawsuits—known as strategic lawsuits against public participation , or SLAPPs—and align their business models with international environmental and human rights standards.

A blog from the Centre for Research Ethics & Bioethics (CRB)

Why should we care about the environment and climate change?

First , some scholars argue that we should care about nature because we need it and what we get from it. Nature is crucial to us, for example, because it provides us with water and food as well as air to breathe. Without nature and a good climate, we simply cannot live on planet Earth. Unless we make a substantial effort, our lifestyle will lead to flooding, unmanageable migration and many other enormous challenges. Furthermore, it will affect poorer people and poorer regions the most, making it a crucial issue of justice.

Second , some philosophers argue that it is wrong to base our concern for nature and the environment on the needs of, and effects on, human beings. The anthropocentric assumptions are wrong, they argue. Even without human beings, nature has a value. Its value is intrinsic and not merely instrumental. Proponents of this view often claim that animals have values, and possibly even rights, that should be protected. They disagree on whether it is individual animals, species or even ecosystems that should be protected.

Environmental philosophy consists of many different theoretical schools, and the notions they defend underlie societal debate, explicitly or merely implicitly. Some notions are based on consequentialist ethics and others on deontological ethics. In addition to these two schools of thought, virtue ethics has become influential in the philosophical debate.

Environmental Virtue Ethics holds that it is inadequate to focus on consequences, duties and rights. Furthermore, it is inadequate to focus on rules and legislation. Our respect for and reverence for nature is based on the virtues we ought to develop as human beings. In addition, society should encourage such virtues. Virtue ethics focuses on the character traits, on the dispositions to act, and on the attitudes and emotions that are relevant to a certain area, in this case the environment. It is a richer, more complex theory than the other two mentioned. Even though virtues were first discussed during Antiquity, and the concept might seem obsolete, they are highly relevant in our time. Through reflection, experience and role models, we can all develop virtues crucial to environmental protection and sustainability. The idea is not only that society needs these virtuous people, but that virtuous human beings blossom as individuals when they develop these virtues. They argue that it is wrong to see nature as a commodity belonging to us. Instead, it is argued, we are part of nature and have a special relationship with it. This relationship should be the focus of the debate.

Whereas Environmental Virtue Ethics focuses on ethical virtues, that is, how we should relate to nature through our development into virtuous individuals, a related school of thought focuses on the aesthetical value of nature . It is pointed out that not only does nature have ethical value, but an aesthetical value in virtue of its beauty. We should spend time in nature in order to fully appreciate its aesthetical value.

All of the mentioned schools of thought agree that we should care about the environment and climate. They also hold that sustainability is an important national and global goal. Interestingly, what is beneficial from a sustainability perspective is not necessarily beneficial to climate changes. For instance, nuclear energy could be considered good for climate change due to its marginal emissions, but it is doubtful that it is good for sustainability considering the problems of nuclear waste.

Finally , it is important to include the discussion of moral responsibility. If we agree that it is crucial to save the environment, then the question arises who should take responsibility for materializing this goal. One could argue that individuals bear a personal responsibility to, for example, reduce consumption and use sustainable transportation. However, one could also argue that the greatest share of responsibility should be taken by political institutions, primarily states. In addition, a great share of responsibility might be ascribed to private actors and industries.

We could also ask whether, and to what extent, responsibility is about blame for past events, for example, the western world causing too much carbon emissions in the past. Alternatively, we could focus on what needs to be done now, regardless of causation and blame. According to this line of thinking, the most important question to ask is who has the resources and capacity to make the necessary changes. The questions of responsibility could be conceptualized as questions of individual versus collective responsibility and backward-looking versus forward-looking responsibility.

As we can see, there are many philosophically interesting aspects and discussions concerning the question why we should care about the environment. Hopefully, these discussions can contribute to making the challenges more comprehensible and manageable. Ideally, they can assist in the tremendous work done by Greta Thunberg and others like her so that it can lead to agreement on what needs to be done by individuals, nations and the world.

Jessica Nihlén Fahlquist

Nihlén Fahlquist, J. 2018. Moral Responsibility and Risk in Modern Society – Examples from emerging technologies, public health and environment . Routledge Earth Scan Risk in Society series: London.

Van de Poel, I. Nihlén Fahlquist, J, Doorn, N., Zwart, S, Royakkers L, di Lima, T. 2011. The problem of many hands: climate change as an example . Science and Engineering Ethics.

Nihlen Fahlquist J. 2009. Moral responsibility for environmental problems – individual or institutional? Journal of Agricultural and Environmental Ethics, Volume 22(2), pp. 109-124.

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The right to a healthy environment: 6 things you need to know

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On 8 October, loud and unusual applause reverberated around the chamber of the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva. A battle fought for decades by environmental activists and rights’ defenders, had finally borne fruit.

For the first time ever, the United Nations body whose mission is to promote and protect human rights around the world, passed a resolution recognising access to a healthy and sustainable environment as a universal right.

The text also calls on countries to work together, and with other partners, to implement this breakthrough.

“Professionally that was probably the most thrilling experience that I ever have had or that I ever will have. It was a massive team victory. It took literally millions of people, and years and years of work to achieve this resolution”, said David Boyd, UN Special Rapporteur on Human Rights and Environment, who was in the room when President Nazhat Shameem from Fiji, brought down her gavel, announcing the voting results.

43 votes in favour and 4 abstentions counted as a unanimous victory to pass the text that cites the efforts of at least 1,100 civil society, child, youth and indigenous people’s organizations, who have been campaigning for global recognition, implementation and protection of the human right to a safe, clean, healthy and sustainable environment.  

A little bit of joyful emotion at the very staid Human Rights Council , as the UN for the first time recognizes the right to a clean, healthy and sustainable environment! (Mask was only off for a moment!) pic.twitter.com/8rUXJpz9z0 SREnvironment SREnvironment

But why is this recognition important, and what does it mean for climate change-affected communities?

Here are six key things you need to know, compiled by us here at UN News.

1. First, let’s recall what the Human Rights Council does, and what its resolutions mean

The Human Rights Council is an inter-governmental body within the United Nations system, responsible for strengthening the promotion and protection of human rights around the globe and for addressing situations of human rights violations and make recommendations on them.

The Council is made up of 47 UN Member States which are elected by the absolute majority in the General Assembly and represent every region of the world.

Human Rights Council resolutions are “political expressions” that represent the position of the Council’s members (or the majority of them) on particular issues and situations. These documents are drafted and negotiated among States with to advance specific human rights issues.

They usually provoke a debate among States, civil society and intergovernmental organisations; establish new ‘standards’, lines or principles of conduct; or reflect existing rules of conduct.

Resolutions are drafted by a “core group”: Costa Rica, the Maldives, Morocco, Slovenia and Switzerland, were the countries who brought resolution 48/13 for its adoption in the council, recognising for the first time that having a clean, healthy and sustainable environment is indeed a human right.

2. It was a resolution decades in the making

In 1972, the United Nations Conference on the Environment in Stockholm , which ended with a historical declaration, was the first one to place environmental issues at the forefront of international concerns and marked the start of a dialogue between industrialized and developing countries on the link between economic growth, the pollution of the air, water and the ocean, and the well-being of people around the world.

UN Member States back then, declared that people have a fundamental right to "an environment of a quality that permits a life of dignity and well-being," calling for concrete action. They called for both the Human Rights Council and the UN General Assembly to act.

Since 2008, the Maldives, a Small Island Developing State on the frontline of climate change impacts, has been tabling a series of resolutions on human rights and climate change, and in the last decade, on human rights and environment.

In the last few years, the work of the Maldives and its allied States, as well as the UN Special Rapporteur on Human Rights and Environment and different NGOs, have been moving the international community towards the declaration of a new universal right.

Support for UN recognition of this right grew during the COVID-19 pandemic. The idea was endorsed by UN's Secretary-General António Guterres and High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet, as well as more than 1,100 civil society organisations from around the world. Nearly 70 states on the Human Rights Council also added their voices to a call by the council’s core group on human rights and environment for such action, and 15 UN agencies also sent a rare joint declaration advocating for it.

“A surge in emerging zoonotic diseases, the climate emergency, pervasive toxic pollution and a dramatic loss of biodiversity have brought the future of the planet to the top of the international agenda”, a group of UN experts said in a statement released in June this year, on World Environment Day.

3. It was a David vs Goliath story…

To finally reach the vote and decision, the core group lead intensive inter-governmental negotiations, discussions and even experts’ seminars, over the past few years.

Levy Muwana, a Youth Advocate and environmentalist from Zambia, participated in one of the seminars.

“As a young child, I was affected with bilharzia, a parasitic disease, because I was playing in the dirty water near my household.

A few years later, a girl died in my community from cholera. These events are sadly common and occurring more often.

Water-born infectious diseases are increasing worldwide, especially across sub-Saharan Africa, due to the changing climate”, he told Council members last August.

Muwana made clear that his story was not unique, as millions of children worldwide are significantly impacted by the devastating consequences of the environmental crisis. “1.7 million of them die every year from inhaling contaminated air or drinking polluted water”, he said.

The activist, along with over 100.000 children and allies had signed a petition for the right to a healthy environment to be recognised , and they were finally heard.

“There are people who want to continue the process of exploiting the natural world and have no reservations about harming people to do that. So those very powerful opponents have kept this room from going forward for decades.

It's almost like a David and Goliath story that all of these civil society organizations were able to overcome this powerful opposition, and now we have this new tool that we can use to fight for a more just and sustainable world”, says David Boyd, the UN Special Rapporteur on Human Rights and Environment.

4. But what good is a non-legally binding resolution?

Mr. Boyd explains that the resolution should be a catalyst for more ambitious action on every single environmental issue that we face.

“It really is historic, and it really is meaningful for everyone because we know right now that 90% of people in the world are breathing polluted air.

“So right off the bat if we can use this resolution as a catalyst for actions to clean up air quality, then we're going to be improving the lives of billions of people”, he emphasizes.

Human Rights Council resolutions might not be legally binding, but they do contain strong political commitments.

“The best example we have of what kind of a difference these UN resolutions make is if we look back at the resolutions in 2010 that for the first time recognized the right to water . That was a catalyst for governments all over the world who added the right to water to their constitutions, their highest and strongest laws”, Mr. Boyd says.

The Rapporteur cites Mexico, which after adding the right to water in the constitution, has now extended safe drinking water to over 1,000 rural communities.

“There are a billion people who can't just turn on the tap and have clean, safe water coming out, and so you know, for a thousand communities in rural Mexico, that's an absolutely life-changing improvement. Similarly, Slovenia, after they put the right to water in their constitution because of the UN resolutions, they then took action to bring safe drinking water to Roma communities living in informal settlements on city outskirts”.

According to the UN Environment Programme ( UNEP ), the recognition of the right to a healthy environment at the global level will support efforts to address environmental crises in a more coordinated, effective and non-discriminatory manner, help achieve the Sustainable Developing Goals, provide stronger protection of rights and of the people defending the environment, and help create a world where people can live in harmony with nature.

5. The link between human rights and environment is indisputable

Mr. Boyd has witnessed firsthand the devastating impact that climate change has already had on people’s rights.

In his first country mission as a Special Rapporteur, he met the first community in the world that had to be completely relocated due to rising sea levels, coastal erosion and increased intensity of storm surges.

“You know, from this beautiful waterfront paradise on a Fijian island, they had to move their whole village inland about three kilometers. Older persons, people with disabilities, pregnant women, they're now separated from the ocean that has sustained their culture and their livelihoods for many generations”.

These situations are not only seen in developing countries. Mr. Boyd also visited Norway where he met Sami indigenous people also facing the impacts of climate change.

“I heard really sad stories there. For thousands of years their culture and their economy has been based on reindeer herding, but now because of warm weather in the winters, even in Norway, north of the Arctic Circle, sometimes it rains.

“The reindeer who literally for thousands of years had been able to scrape away snow during the winter to get to the lichens and mosses that sustained them, now can't scrape away the ice - and they’re starving”.

The story repeats itself in Kenya, where pastoralists are losing their livestock because of droughts that are being exacerbated by climate change.

“ They have done nothing to cause this global crisis and they’re the ones who are suffering, and that's why it's such a human rights issue .

“That's why it's such an issue of justice. Wealthy countries and wealthy people need to start to pay for the pollution they've created so that we can help these vulnerable communities and these vulnerable peoples to adapt and to rebuild their lives”, Mr. Boyd said.

6. What’s next?

The Council resolution includes an invitation to the UN General Assembly to also consider the matter. The Special Rapporteur says he is “cautiously optimistic” that the body will pass a similar resolution within the next year.

“We need this. We need governments and we need everyone to move with a sense of urgency. I mean, we're living in a climate, biodiversity, and pollution crisis, and also a crisis of these emerging diseases like COVID which have environmental root causes. And so that's why this resolution is critically important because it says to every government in the world ‘you have to put human rights at the centre of climate action, of conservation, of addressing pollution and of preventing future pandemics’”.

For Dr. Maria Neira, the World Health Organization’s ( WHO ) environment chief, the resolution is already having important repercussions and a mobilizing impact.

“The next step will be how we translate that on the right to clean air and whether we can push, for instance, for the recognition of WHO’S Global Air Quality Guidelines and the levels of exposure to certain pollutants at a country level. It will also help us to move certain legislation and standards at the national level”, she explains.

Air pollution, primarily the result of burning fossil fuels, which also drives climate change, causes 13 deaths per minute worldwide. Dr. Neira calls for the end of this “absurd fight” against the ecosystems and environment.

“All the investments need to be on ensuring access to safe water and sanitation, on making sure that electrification is done with renewable energy and that our food systems are sustainable.”

According to WHO, achieving the goals of the Paris Agreement would save millions of lives every year due to improvements in air quality, diet, and physical activity, among other benefits.

“The climate emergency has become a matter of survival for many populations. Only systemic, profound and rapid changes will make it possible to respond to this global ecological crisis", says the Special Rapporteur.

For Mr. Boyd, the approval of the historical resolution in the Human Rights Council was a ‘paradoxical’ moment.

“There was this incredible sense of accomplishment and also at the exact same time a sense of how much work remains to be done to take these beautiful words and translate them into changes that will make people's lives better and make our society more sustainable”.

The newly declared right to a healthy and clean environment will also hopefully influence positively negotiations during the upcoming UN Climate Conference COP26, in Glasgow, which has been described by the UN chief as the last chance to ‘turn the tide’ and end the war on our planet.  

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5 reasons you should care about our ocean

Our ocean is in serious trouble. Heating, pollution, acidification, and oxygen loss pose serious threats to the health of the ocean and to all living beings who call this vast planetary resource their home. Why should you care? Here are 5 reasons:

1. The ocean regulates our climate and provides the air we breathe

Our ocean mitigates non-renewable industry pollution by absorbing 25 per cent of all carbon emission, while generating 50 per cent of the oxygen we need to survive. It not only functions as the lungs of the planet, providing us with the air we breathe, but also as the world’s largest carbon sink helping to combat the negative impacts of climate change. Additionally, the ocean has taken up more than 90 per cent of the excess heat in the climate system helping to regulate temperatures on land. Thus, climate action depends on a healthy ocean, and a healthy ocean requires urgent climate action.

2. The ocean feeds us

The ocean and its biodiversity provide our global community with 15 per cent of the animal protein we eat. In least developed countries, seafood is the primary source of protein to over 50 per cent of the population. It is therefore critical to protect the ocean’s biodiversity and practice sustainable fishing strategies for continued consumption. Currently, more than 10 million tons of fish go to waste every year because of destructive fishing practices. This is enough to fill 4,500 Olympic-sized swimming pools. Without significant change, UNESCO predicts more than 50 per cent of the world’s marine species may face extinction by 2100.

3. It provides jobs and livelihoods

The ocean provides livelihoods to 3 billion people, nearly 50 per cent of the entire global population. Marine fisheries provide 57 million jobs globally. The blue economy is a strong industry that allows many to make their living and provide for their families. However, over 60 per cent of the world’s major marine ecosystems that underpin these livelihoods are being used unsustainably, with a significant portion being completely degraded. Additionally, according to UNEP, pollution from the 11 million tons of plastic that enters the ocean annually, costs an estimated US $13 billion, including clean-up costs and financial losses from fisheries and additional ocean-based industries. It is critical that we stop polluting our ocean.

4. The ocean is a tool for economic development

The ocean is a significant economic tool. Ocean economies are among the most rapidly growing in the world. The market value of marine and coastal resources and the developing industry is estimated by UNDP to be US $3 trillion per year, which is about 5 per cent of total global gross domestic product. Thus, developing countries’ access to the ocean and shorelines allow them to develop and attract foreign direct investments and direct industry production within the state. Additionally, 80 per cent of tourism happens in coastal areas. The ocean-related tourism industry grows an estimated US $134 billion every year. However, for states to utilize their ocean resources, we must work together as a global community to protect the ocean. It is estimated that the loss of tourism due to coral bleaching alone is as much as $12 billion annually. With ocean levels rising as the temperature of our planet increases, coastline-specific tourism and energy industries are at risk along with the 680 million people who live in low-lying coastal areas, a number that is expected to rise to one billion by 2050.

5. We need a healthy ocean to survive

The ocean affects us all in positive ways, no matter if you live on the coastline or in the desert. It provides climate regulation, food, jobs, livelihoods, and economic progress. Thus, we must work together to protect and save the ocean for the sake of our future survival on this planet. To learn more about the state of our ocean and what you can to today to help, visit the  2022 UN Ocean Conference website . Make your voluntary commitments  here  to save our ocean and follow the Conference taking place in Lisbon, Portugal, from 27 June to 1 July 2022, live via  UN Web TV .

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A Long Term Strategy for People and the Planet

The Earth is at a tipping point. Here are 3 actions global leaders must take now.

Last updated January 10, 2024

Our planet faces the interconnected crises of rapid climate change and biodiversity loss. We have years, not decades, to address these existential threats.

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We explore the top sustainability issues and their solutions—in a 5-minute read or less.

In 2023, a new word was born to describe interacting current and future risks with potentially catastrophic consequences: polycrisis.

Another word is about to enter our collective dictionaries: permacrisis. Will this be our fate, or will 2024 be a time for resolution, resilience and recovery? This is a pivotal moment for global leaders attending the World Economic Forum annual meeting in Davos, where they will develop a long-term strategy to prepare for and respond to these risks.

What we do between now and 2030 will determine whether we slow warming to 1.5° Celsius while also conserving enough land and water to fix biodiversity loss. The good news is there is much that global leaders can do now to keep the polycrisis from becoming a permacrisis.

3 Things We Must Do To Save The Planet

Solutions to climate change and biodiversity loss won't come from any one sector: they'll come from governments, finance, business and civil society. We can achieve a nature-positive world by 2050 while providing affordable, secure and inclusive access to energy, food and water.

Here are three ways we need to up-end “business as usual” and act boldly to advance conservation.

1. Produce more food on less land.

Today’s version of large-scale agriculture is the biggest source of land conversion, drives deforestation that worsens climate change, uses 70% of the world’s freshwater supply and relies on fertilizer practices that pollute our waters. As the need to feed a billion more people increases, agricultural expansion could devastate habitats, release even more carbon into the atmosphere, and dry up rivers.

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Our global food system can help us achieve our climate and biodiversity goals.

How to fix it:

Produce food where it’s most likely to thrive, which will use less water and less land.

How we’re taking action right now:

We’re analyzing satellite images and local yield potential to pinpoint where soy farming and cattle ranching can expand without destroying nature. This approach is especially vital in Brazil’s Cerrado region, where half of all natural habitat has already been converted to cropland and pasture. Cooperating with farmers on sustainable practices can help save what’s left of the Cerrado’s rich savanna.

2. Increase clean energy.

Climate change is the single most serious threat facing our planet today. We must reduce carbon emissions to, or below, levels agreed to in the Paris Climate Agreement to prevent catastrophic harm. And with global energy demand expected to increase 56% over the next couple decades, it will be impossible to meet those emissions targets if we stick primarily with traditional fossil fuels.

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There is much that global leaders can do right now to build a better future for people and the planet. Our newsletter explores potential solutions to our top challenges, all in a five-minute read or less.

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Our economies depend on healthy, supportive natural systems. In fact, around half of the gross world product is dependent on nature. Globally, we're already spending up to $143 billion USD each year on activities that benefit nature, but we need more. A lot more. We need to spend at least $722 billion (and as much as $967 billion) USD every year, putting the nature finance gap at $579-824 billion USD.

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Here's how we get $700 billion each year to reverse the biodiversity crisis.

We need to close the funding gap—and spend at least $700 billion USD on nature every year—to reverse the decline in biodiversity by 2030. Fortunately, this number is only 1% of annual gross global product, or about what the world spends on soft drinks.

Through our Nature Bonds program, we’re taking a holistic approach to leverage debt refinancing for effective, durable conservation and climate action. We work with governments to help them refinance debt and generate new funding to invest in conservation, and in climate mitigation and adaptation measures. Like in Barbados, where we worked with the government, partners from the financial and conservation sectors, and local communities to develop a set of commitments for durable conservation that is tailored to meet the country’s specific needs.

We truly do have the power to build a future in which nature and people can thrive together.

A more sustainable path is possible. But we need to rally individuals, governments, companies and communities around the world to take action with us over the next decade. When we’re at the table with leaders around the world, it gives us great strength to show how many people are with us.

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Editorial — Caring for the environment is caring for ourselves

Article Published 21 Jun 2023

Nature is the foundation of our health and well-being. It gives us clean air, water, food, materials and space for recreation. Spending time in nature is good for our mental health. And if we do not take care of the planet, its climate and ecosystems, we undermine how our societies function, worsen our lives and, perhaps most directly, harm our own well-being.   

The EEA Signals 2023 gives an overview of the most immediate links between the environment, climate and health . Air quality in Europe has improved considerably over the past decades, resulting in better health and fewer premature deaths. Most people in Europe can enjoy high quality drinking water straight from the tap, and the vast majority of our bathing sites are of the highest standards, giving us excellent relaxation opportunities. To protect people and the environment, Europe has also put in place the world’s most advanced chemical laws and is pursuing the most ambitious climate commitments. 

Health is both a deeply private matter and a subject of great public importance. When asked about the most important thing in their lives, people around the world name their own health and the health of their loved ones. In politics, healthcare is a topic of fierce debate and consumes a large share of public budgets. 

We can be happy that current generations of Europeans live both longer and healthier than ever before. Some of this positive development can be linked to advances in environmental policy . Reducing air pollution, improving drinking water quality and sanitation, and curbing the use of some of the most harmful substances all have a positive effect on our health. We are learning to better protect citizens from heat waves and other hazards and, with ambitious emission cuts, we can avoid the worst consequences of climate change. 

Yet despite these achievements, we cannot be really satisfied. More than one out of 10 premature deaths in the EU are related to pollution. In addition, many citizens are not able to live full lives as they struggle to cope with pollution-related illnesses such as respiratory and cardiovascular diseases. Poor air quality is still a major health hazard in Europe. Noise pollution is a growing problem that seems difficult to tackle. We continue to produce and consume large amounts of chemicals , some of which harm the environment or our health. And the consequences of climate change are becoming more and more severe, causing water scarcity, heat waves, large forest fires and floods. These hazards disproportionately hit the most vulnerable people in our societies, including children, the elderly and people with little money or ill health.  

The European Green Deal and its zero pollution agenda set ambitious goals to safeguard nature, the climate and people’s health. Reducing and preventing pollution improves quality of life and prevents illness. Some would argue that  this is too costly. But it is done to protect ecosystems that our societies depend on and to protect our own health. Both in the case of ecosystem health and people’s health, it is far cheaper and much more effective to prevent damage than to repair it. It is simply a good investment for the future – and something that the polluters should pay for. 

To support these efforts, there is growing momentum around the so-called ‘ one health’ approach . Traditionally, we have focused on individual hazards, such as specific types of pollution in air, water or soil. The ‘one health’ approach recognises that our own health is connected to the health of domestic and wild animals, plants and the wider environment, and that our actions to improve health must consider all these dimensions. Indeed, actions to safeguard nature and the climate are actions to safeguard our own health. 

The EEA integrates knowledge about the environment, climate and society. Together with our expert network, the Eionet , we connect the dots between data and information on nature, the climate and the societal systems of energy, food, mobility and the built environment. One example of such work is the ‘ European environment and health atlas ’, which allows users to check the quality of their local environment and explore individual and combined health risks. 

Such analysis makes the link between environment and well-being very clear. Improving the state of our environment and mitigating climate change delivers both direct and indirect benefits for everyone in Europe. Solutions that make the most of nature, such as parks in urban areas, often offer triple benefits by mitigating pollution, enhancing biodiversity, and improving our health and well-being, including mental health. 

We see more and more assessments highlighting the ‘ polycrisis’ of climate change, biodiversity loss and pollution , and the need to take urgent action. To put it simply, everything that we need to survive and thrive depends on nature. In continuing to harm nature, we are damaging the very systems that underpin our own health and well-being — and compromising future generations. 

This editorial is part of EEA Signals 2023 — Environment and health in Europe.

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The Role of Individual Responsibility in the Transition to Environmental Sustainability

Steve Cohen

We New Yorkers live in a city that is on a gradual transition toward environmental sustainability, but we are a long way from the place we need to end up. A circular economy where there is no waste and where all material outputs become inputs is well beyond our technological and organizational capacity today. But that does not mean we shouldn’t think about how to get from here to there. Much of the work in building environmental sustainability requires the development of systems that enable us to live our lives as we wish while damaging the planet as little as possible. Large-scale institutions are needed to manage sewage treatment and drinking water, to develop renewable energy and build a modern energy grid. Government policy is needed to ensure the conservation of forests, oceans, and biodiversity. Pandemic avoidance requires global, national and local systems of public health. Climate change mitigation and adaptation also require collective action. What then can individuals do?

As individuals, we make choices about our own activities and inevitably, they involve choices about resource consumption. I see little value in criticizing people who fly on airplanes to travel to global climate conferences. (I assume you do remember airplanes and conferences, don’t you?) But I see great value in considering the importance of your attendance at the conference and asking if the trip is an indulgence or if you will have an important opportunity to learn and teach. This year has taught us how to attend events virtually. There is little question that live presence at an event enables a type of communication that can’t be achieved virtually. Many times, you will judge that the financial and environmental cost of the trip is far outweighed by the benefits. Those are the times you should travel. My argument here is that it is the thought process, the analysis of environmental costs and benefits, that is at the heart of an individual’s responsibility for environmental sustainability. Individuals are responsible for thinking about their impact on the environment and, when possible, minimize the damage they do to the planet.

Everyone needs to turn on the lights at night, start the shower in the morning, turn on the air conditioning and possibly drive somewhere on Mother’s Day. I would never argue that you should give up these forms of consumption. Instead, I believe we should all pay attention to the resources we use and the impact it has. We are responsible for that thought process and the related analysis of how we, as individuals, might accomplish the same ends with less environmentally damaging means.

Some say that the fixation on individual responsibility is a distraction from the more important task of compelling government and major institutions to implement systemic change. This perspective was forcefully argued in 2019 in The Guardian by Professor Anders Levermann of the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research. According to Professor Levermann:

“Personal sacrifice alone cannot be the solution to tackling the climate crisis. There’s no other area in which the individual is held so responsible for what’s going wrong. And it’s true: people drive too much, eat too much meat, and fly too often. But reaching zero emissions requires very fundamental changes. Individual sacrifice alone will not bring us to zero. It can be achieved only by real structural change; by a new industrial revolution.   Looking for solutions to the climate crisis in individual responsibilities and actions risks obstructing this. It suggests that all we have to do is pull ourselves together over the next 30 years and save energy, walk, skip holidays abroad, and simply ‘do without.’ But these demands for individual action paralyse people, thereby preventing the large-scale change we so urgently need.”

Perhaps, but I do not see it that way. I consider individual responsibility and the thought process and value shift that stimulates individual action as the foundation of the social learning process required for effective collective action. In other words, individual change and collective system-level change are interconnected. The fact is that on a planet of nearly 8 billion people, it is too late for many of us to get back to the land and live as one with nature. There’s too many of us and not enough nature. There is an absolute limit to our ability as individuals to reduce our impact on the planet. Therefore, system-level change is absolutely needed. But system change requires individuals to understand the need for change along with a well-understood definition of the problem. The cognitive dissonance of identifying a problem but never acting on it is difficult to live with. If you see a poor child on the street begging for food, you can provide that child with food and money while continuing to support public policy that addresses the child poverty issue at the systems level. In fact, the emotional impact of that child’s face may well provide the drive that leads you to fight harder for the policy that would prevent that child from needing to beg. We learn by example, and vivid experiences and cases can lead to transformative systemic change.

While I consider individual and collective responsibility connected, without collective systems and infrastructure supporting environmental sustainability, there are distinct limits to what individual action can achieve. That is why I see no value in shaming individuals for consuming fossil fuels, eating meat, or buying a child a Mylar birthday balloon. I believe an attitude of moral superiority is particularly destructive in any effort to build the political support needed for systemic change.

As my mentor, the late Professor Lester Milbrath, often argued, the only way to save the planet is through social learning that would enable us to “learn our way to a sustainable society.” He made this argument in his pathbreaking work: Envisioning a Sustainable Society: Learning Our Way Out . In Milbrath’s view, the key was to understand environmental perceptions and values and to build on those values and perceptions to change both individual behavior and the institutions their politics generated. To Milbrath, the human effort to dominate nature had worked too well, and a new approach was needed. As he observed in Envisioning a Sustainable Society :

“Learning how to reason together about values is crucial to saving our species. As a society we have to learn better how to learn, I call it social learning; it is the dynamic for change that could lead us to a new kind of society that will not destroy itself from its own excess.”

My view is that one method to pursue social learning is learning by doing — in other words by encouraging the individual behaviors we might each take to reduce our environmental impact. Those behaviors remind us to think about the planet’s wellbeing along with our own. They reinforce and remind us and as they become habit, they impact our values and our shared understanding of how the world works.

There is, therefore, no tradeoff between individual and collective responsibility for protecting the environment unless we insist on creating one. Additionally, in a world of extreme levels of income inequality, wealthy people who have given up eating meat have the resources to consume alternative sources of nourishment. They do not occupy the moral high ground criticizing an impoverished parent proudly serving meat to their hungry child. In our complex world, we should mistrust simple answers and instead work hard to understand the varied cultures, values and perceptions that can contribute to the transition to an environmentally sustainable global economy. The path to environmental sustainability is long and winding and will require decades of listening and learning from each other.

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Steve, I appreciate your perspective on individual responsibility. I am developing a similar position and submitted an “OpEd” piece to Times about a month ago but alas it didn’t get published. I would like to share and develop the conversation with you so please reach out.

What are the responsibilities of individuals, governments and the international community in helping people have access to water?

While this highly educated society continues the GDP rat race and decimating all other patterns that create balance in the world we live in, here’s a little story of obvious stupidity for fun and profit. In 1975 my wife and I after several years of college chose to listen to scientists’ warnings about continued expansionism economically. We simplified our lives and did without things like electricity, fancy new vehicles and useless bling. We did without as a plausible direction for a template of living lightly and securing a viable future for more than just humans. We endured countless slurs ( tree huggers, eco-terrorists, hippies,) and were subjected to verbal and realistic abuse . Now at 72 and 68 we are wondering where the hell were the rest of you? Read the book “Small is Beautiful ” to see the wrongheaded direction your politicians and some clergy and certainly all greedy vulture capitalist have led the general public. I have no patience for obvious stupidity .Yeah, we were WOKE long before most people and feel no compulsion to be apologetic as all of you are to blame if you help continue the narrative of GDP unlimited growth and the population explosion. nats remark

“perhaps, but i do not see it that way” sorry but that kinda just means your guile is weak and you’re extremely credulous and succeptable to propeganda, dunno what to tell ya bud but this perspective is a total nothingburger. Of Course we must needs rely on some great measure of personal choice here, but if my choices are: Waste, Waste, Out of my Budget well i dont REALLY have a choice then Do I? which means that for the majority of americans there is no ethical choice list they can follow to fix the problem, only by compelling legislation can those choices be made available to them.

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• Article On Environment

Article on Environment

Environment, in the literal sense, means the space or situation that surrounds a being. It also refers to the conditions and circumstances in which something or someone’s growth is influenced. The article discusses the main aspects of the environment and the importance of preserving the environment. Go through the topics below to have a better understanding.

Table of Contents

• The Environment And Its Impact On Life
• 200 Words Article On Environment
• Detailed Article On Environment And The Need To Preserve It
• FAQs On Environment

The Environment and Its Impact on Life

The environment is the basic life support system for all living things on planet Earth. It is a combination of natural and human-made components. Natural components include air, water, land and living organisms. Roads, industries, buildings, etc., are human-made components. The natural environment can be differentiated into four main components – Biosphere, Lithosphere, Hydrosphere and Atmosphere. The topmost layer of the Earth is called the Lithosphere, which is a thin layer of soil made of rocks and minerals. The hydrosphere consists of various types of water bodies like seas, oceans, rivers, lakes, ponds, etc. Atmosphere, consisting of water vapour, gases and dust particles, is the layer of air that surrounds the Earth. The living world consisting of human beings, plants and animals constitute the biosphere.

The environment is dependent on the interaction between all the different components. However, human beings play a huge role in the making and breaking of the environment. Being the supreme most intellectual power on Earth, human beings influence the wellness of the environment to a great extent. The impact of the environment on all living beings is directly proportional to the way human beings treat the environment. Any kind of existence would not be possible without air, water or land. Nothing to eat, not a drop to drink and nowhere to go is not what we or our future generations should expect to have. Every living thing depends largely on the environment for survival, and having a clean and safe environment is solely in the hands of the human beings.

200 Words Article on Environment

The Earth’s environment makes Earth the only planet on the solar system where life and sustainability is possible. From the beginning of time, the Earth has provided all the inhabitants of the planet with everything they need for their survival. On the other hand, human beings have exploited all the natural resources for their own selfish needs and have rendered the planet like a barren and ramshackle land.

Human beings are an integral part of the environment and hold a huge responsibility to upkeep the living conditions for their own sake and for the sake of all the inhabitants of the planet, including plants and animals. The balanced management of natural resources and the environment as a whole is crucial for the well-being of all living beings and for the economic growth of the entire world. Managing the use of resources (both renewable and non-renewable) effectively, can help solve the many disputes between countries, states and people for the power to claim at least a part of the resources as their own. It is high time people understand that the health of the environment is vital, and only if the environment is healthy will all living beings have a chance of survival.

Detailed Article on Environment and the Need to Preserve It

The environment is the fundamental source of all possible existence on planet Earth. However, over the recent years, the environment has been exploited excessively because of which the environmental conditions are becoming worse day by day. Pollution of air, water and land, mining, industrialisation, modern urbanisation, deforestation, release of chemical effluents and landfills are some of the major factors that cause the gradual deterioration of the environment.

It is necessary to conserve the environment in order to protect wildlife and to preserve the different species. With the disastrous pace of climate change, a result of pollution and exploitation of the environment, finding out ways to protect the environment from any further damage should be the first priority. Bringing back the environment to its original state is critically important and is the only solution.

Working towards a common goal will be the easiest and fastest way to keep the environment from any more harm. According to Ban Ki-moon, “Saving our planet, lifting people out of poverty, advancing economic growth… these are one and the same fight. We must connect the dots between climate change, water scarcity, energy shortages, global health, food security and women’s empowerment. Solutions to one problem must be solutions for all”. This is what we have to act on and look forward to – finding the dots, connecting them and providing solutions.

The leaders of the world are working to reduce the rapid degradation of the environment, and there are organizations like the United Nations who come up with initiatives to create awareness and get people to take actions to curb the problems of the environment. Some of these initiatives include the 2019 Sustainable Development Summit, 2019 Climate Action Summit, 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, Paris Agreement and many other programs that include river conservation, afforestation, coastal management, wetland conservation and so on. While all these measures are in action, individuals are also obliged to take steps to preserve the environment that everyone is a part of. With everyone’s efforts, we can be sure that all of it will definitely make a difference and help the environment in becoming healthy and sustainable.

FAQs on Environment

What is the environment.

Environment basically refers to the surroundings you are in. It is the most fundamental support system for all forms of life on planet Earth. The environment provides us with the basic necessities of life such as food, water, air and shelter.

How do we protect the environment?

Protecting the environment depends on every individual’s attitude towards it. In order to protect the environment, we can start conserving water, using all resources effectively, educating oneself and others about the urgent need to preserve the environment, planting trees and so on

What are the initiatives taken by the Government to protect the environment?

The Indian Government has taken various measures with a view of protecting the environment and preserving it for our future generations. Some of them are Project Tiger, Swachh Bharat Abhiyan, Green Skill Development Programme, Special Purpose Vehicle for Afforestation, Clean Development Mechanism, Fly Ash Utilisation Action Plan, etc.

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How Can We All Help Conserve Nature?

When we speak about conserving nature, we are really talking about taking care of our future, because nature provides essential resources for our survival and enjoyment. We asked an international group of scientists working on different environmental issues worldwide to identify important practical actions that we can all do to help conserve nature. We obtained nearly 100 responses and grouped them into three main categories: (1) Actions to reduce our ecological footprint; (2) Actions to conserve nature; and (3) Actions that help us connect with nature. We briefly explain actions that can be performed daily to reduce our impact on nature, and provide some useful links for further reading.

Protecting Nature to Ensure Our Future

We often forget how much humans depend on nature . Even city-dwellers living in modern skyscrapers need air to breathe, water to drink, and food to eat, all of which are provided by nature. True, you can buy bottled water and ready-to-eat meals in supermarkets, but they were not produced there. Some fruits and vegetables, for example, only grow in tropical countries and cross the globe in refrigerated ship containers, to arrive just ripe to your local supermarket. All drinking water ultimately comes from a natural source, since we still do not have the technology to manufacture large amounts of water in the laboratory [ 1 ]. The same applies to the air we breathe, which is purified and oxygenated by plants [ 2 ]. So, when we speak about preserving nature, we are really also talking about preserving ourselves.

Whereas nature encompasses the natural environment as a whole, the term biodiversity [ 3 ] is used to refer to all living organisms. Biodiversity is ultimately responsible for the services we receive from nature, which are also called Ecosystem Services [ 4 ] or Nature's Contribution to People [ 5 ]. For example, forests containing many different bee species provide pollination services to nearby crop fields. In places where natural forests have been cut down, beekeepers must bring in artificial beehives to guarantee that enough pollinators visit crop flowers to produce fruit [ 6 ]. Other wild organisms, like wasps and birds, act as pest-control agents for agricultural crops, reducing the population of pests that damage those crops, and resulting in higher crop yields.

You are probably thinking that you already knew about this, and that there is not much you can do to preserve air, water, or fruit trees. But even if you live in a big city, far away from oxygen-producing forests, natural water springs, or crop fields, your daily actions can have a strong impact on these natural resources. Spilling a single drop of cooking oil while cleaning the dishes contaminates a million drops of water. Traveling in a vehicle powered by fossil fuels contributes to air pollution and global climate change [ 7 ]. Buying certain processed food ingredients, like palm oil, can contribute to massive deforestation in the tropics, as farmers clear land to grow these crops for money. All these impacts together make up what is called our ecological footprint on nature [ 8 ], which is a measure to quantify our daily life's impact on nature.

We will now share with you some important practical actions that we can all do to help conserve nature, to preserve our own well-being, and to guarantee that natural resources are available for future generations.

What Actions Can We Take to Help Conserve Nature?

We asked an international group of scientists, working on various environmental issues, to provide ideas on what young people can do to help conserve nature. We obtained nearly 100 responses and then organized all of the ideas by grouping them into three main categories: (1) Actions to reduce our ecological footprint ( Figure 1 ); (2) Actions to conserve nature ( Figure 2 ); and (3) Actions to connect with nature ( Figure 3 ). Below we explain each.

• Figure 1 - Word cloud showing the key actions that can be taken to reduce our ecological footprint.

• Figure 2 - Word cloud showing the key actions that can be taken to conserve nature.

• Figure 3 - Word cloud showing the key actions that can be taken to connect with nature.

Reduce our ecological footprint: Reducing our ecological footprint means placing less demand on nature (read here about the 3Rs—reduce, reuse and recycle; and get some ideas here on how you can help nature). Here are some ways that you can do this:

• Recycle your rubbish and participate in or help organize recycling campaigns.
• Avoid littering and participate in or help organize litter clean-ups ( here you can link to a website for volunteering or starting your own beach clean-up).
• Use less plastic by, for example, carrying a reusable water bottle, saying no to disposable straws and cutlery, avoiding plastic toys, and bringing your own shopping bags (for further ideas on a plastic-free life take a look here ).
• Swap toys, movies, and books instead of buying new ones.
• Donate, recycle, and repair electronic devices (see how here ).
• Use less water when brushing teeth, taking a shower, or washing the dishes.
• Use less electricity by turning off lights and electronic devices when not in use, using energy-saving light bulbs, and hanging clothes to dry.
• Use public transport, share a journey with friends (e.g., car-sharing), cycle, or walk when possible.
• Use less paper by not printing unnecessary things and reading e-books.
• Turn down the air conditioning when it is hot and use fans if you are still hot-they use much less power.
• Turn down the heat when it is cold and use sweaters, blankets, and socks to keep warm.
• Do not waste food and try to buy food that is grown locally and in season.
• Eat more non-meat proteins (like beans), less dairy, more vegetables, and more organic food when possible.
• Buy products that do not cause damage to the environment and that have certified labels (such as Rainforest Alliance and Animal Welfare ).
• Refuse to buy what you do not need, because every item you do not buy reduces the demand for the production of that item. For example, if everyone stopped buying plastic bags, super markets would stop selling them.

Conserve nature: Conserving nature means to protect, preserve and restore biodiversity. Here are some ways that you can do this:

• Try to prevent your pets from killing/harming wildlife (for some specific advice to help your local birds, see this ).
• Do not touch or take home wild animals or plants (see some advice here ).
• Plant native wildflowers, fruit trees, and pollinator-friendly plants in your garden or yard (for some related gardening tips, check out this ).
• Make compost to improve soil quality and to help insects (check out a guide to composting here ).
• Build and place bat houses, bird houses, and “bee hotels” in your garden, school grounds, and local green spaces ( here you can learn how make and manage a Bee hotel).
• Do not buy/keep wild pets at home (such as parrots, song birds, wild cats, or reptiles), in order to avoid supporting illegal trafficking of animals ( here you can find more info about illegal wildlife trade).
• Be aware of wild animals crossing the road and respect their paths ( here is some further information about the importance of wildlife crossings).

Connect with nature: Connecting with nature means setting aside time to interact with the natural environment. Here are some ways that you can do this:

• Play outside and spend more time in nature (read this link to find out why this is so important).
• Organize trips to explore the national parks/nature reserves close to you.
• Join conservation programs or eco-clubs (see how here ).
• Participate in nature-focused citizen science initiatives (learn more about citizen science here and see actual projects you can join here and here ).
• Use books or apps to identify the plants and animals around you (check out a cool app here ).
• Play games to learn more about nature (check out some fun examples here and here ).
• Use websites, blogs or social media to help raise awareness on the importance of conserving nature and share all these ideas).

Understanding the importance of nature and biodiversity for our own well-being can really help us to help nature. In this article, we have provided some practical ideas that we can all try to reduce our ecological footprint, conserve nature, and connect with nature. We encourage you to put these ideas into practice and share these actions with your family and friends.

Nature : ↑ The term that encompasses living organisms and the forces responsible for the physical world, such as the weather, mountains, oceans, and landscapes.

Biodiversity : ↑ The word biodiversity means the variety of all living organisms on Earth, and includes different levels of organization—from genes, species, and communities through to entire ecosystems.

Ecosystem Services : ↑ The many benefits that people get from natural ecosystems. These services can be broken down into provisioning (e.g., food and wood), supporting (e.g., soil formation and nutrient cycling), regulating (e.g., clean air and water purification), and cultural (e.g., recreation and eco-tourism).

Climate Change : ↑ Change in global or regional climate patterns, most due to increased levels of greenhouse gases produced by the burning of fossil fuels. Greenhouse gases, like carbon dioxide, act like a blanket, trapping heat near the Earth's surface, and raising the temperature.

Ecological Footprint : ↑ This is a measure of how much people take from nature, which is then compared to what natural resources are available to provide for people.

Conflict of Interest Statement

The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.

[1] ↑ Ernst, C., Gullick, R., and Nixon, K. 2004. Conserving forests to protect water. Opflow 30:1–7. doi: 10.1002/j.1551-8701.2004.tb01752.x

[2] ↑ Nowak, D. J., Hirabayashi, S., Bodine, A., and Greenfield, E. 2014. Tree and forest effects on air quality and human health in the United States. Environ. Pollut. 193:119–29. doi: 10.1016/j.envpol.2014.05.028

[3] ↑ Carrington, D. 2018. What is Biodiversity and Why Does it Matter to Us? Guard. Available online at: https://www.theguardian.com/news/2018/mar/12/what-is-biodiversity-and-why-does-it-matter-to-us

[4] ↑ Millennium Ecosystem Assessment 2005. Ecosystems and Human Well-being: Synthesis . Washington, DC: Island Press. Available online at: http://www.millenniumassessment.org/documents/document.356.aspx.pdf

[5] ↑ Daz, S., Pascual, U., Stenseke, M., Martn-López, B., Watson, R. T., Molnár, Z., et al. 2018. Assessing nature's contributions to people. Science 359:270–2. doi: 10.1126/science.aap8826

[6] ↑ Potts, S. G., Imperatriz-Fonseca, V. L., and Thompson, H. M. (Eds.). 2016. The Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services on Pollinators, Pollination and Food Production . Bonn: Secretariat of the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services. Available online at: https://www.ipbes.net/assessment-reports/pollinators

[7] ↑ Center for Climate and Energy Solutions. Climate Basics for Kids . Available online at: https://www.c2es.org/content/climate-basics-for-kids/ (accessed June, 2019).

[8] ↑ Global Footprint Network. Ecological Footprint . Available online at: https://www.footprintnetwork.org/our-work/ecological-footprint/ (accessed June, 2019).

Essay on Environment for Students and Children

500+ words essay on environment.

Essay on Environment – All living things that live on this earth comes under the environment. Whether they live on land or water they are part of the environment. The environment also includes air, water, sunlight, plants, animals, etc.

Moreover, the earth is considered the only planet in the universe that supports life. The environment can be understood as a blanket that keeps life on the planet sage and sound.

Importance of Environment

We truly cannot understand the real worth of the environment. But we can estimate some of its importance that can help us understand its importance. It plays a vital role in keeping living things healthy in the environment.

Likewise, it maintains the ecological balance that will keep check of life on earth. It provides food, shelter, air, and fulfills all the human needs whether big or small.

Moreover, the entire life support of humans depends wholly on the environmental factors. In addition, it also helps in maintaining various life cycles on earth.

Most importantly, our environment is the source of natural beauty and is necessary for maintaining physical and mental health.

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Benefits of the Environment

The environment gives us countless benefits that we can’t repay our entire life. As they are connected with the forest, trees, animals, water, and air. The forest and trees filter the air and absorb harmful gases. Plants purify water, reduce the chances of flood maintain natural balance and many others.

Moreover, the environment keeps a close check on the environment and its functioning, It regulates the vital systems that are essential for the ecosystem. Besides, it maintains the culture and quality of life on earth.

The environment regulates various natural cycles that happen daily. These cycles help in maintaining the natural balance between living things and the environment. Disturbance of these things can ultimately affect the life cycle of humans and other living beings.

The environment has helped us and other living beings to flourish and grow from thousands of years. The environment provides us fertile land, water, air, livestock and many essential things for survival.

Cause of Environmental Degradation

Human activities are the major cause of environmental degradation because most of the activities humans do harm the environment in some way. The activities of humans that causes environmental degradation is pollution, defective environmental policies, chemicals, greenhouse gases, global warming, ozone depletion, etc.

All these affect the environment badly. Besides, these the overuse of natural resources will create a situation in the future there will be no resources for consumption. And the most basic necessity of living air will get so polluted that humans have to use bottled oxygen for breathing.

Above all, increasing human activity is exerting more pressure on the surface of the earth which is causing many disasters in an unnatural form. Also, we are using the natural resources at a pace that within a few years they will vanish from the earth. To conclude, we can say that it is the environment that is keeping us alive. Without the blanket of environment, we won’t be able to survive.

Moreover, the environment’s contribution to life cannot be repaid. Besides, still what the environment has done for us, in return we only have damaged and degraded it.

FAQs about Essay on Environment

Q.1 What is the true meaning of the environment?

A.1 The ecosystem that includes all the plants, animals, birds, reptiles, insects, water bodies, fishes, human beings, trees, microorganisms and many more are part of the environment. Besides, all these constitute the environment.

Q.2 What is the three types of the environment?

A.2 The three types of environment includes the physical, social, and cultural environment. Besides, various scientists have defined different types and numbers of environment.

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