June 5- Another World Environment Day comes and goes by. Anything but fruitful. It’s kind of analogous to Labour Day where you find poor wage labourers continuing to toil away, oblivious to the significance of the date. Quite ironical, but life moves on for us doesn’t it? How would it matter if the world is slowly changing for the worse? By the time the situation reaches a head, most of this present generation of supposedly capable-of-bringing-about-change people would be no more; indeed it would be unreasonable to presume that a set of ambitious, go-getting persons would consciously keep aside some of their precious time and invest their energies and thoughts in saving the planet. After all, the return-of-investment is not that enticing. ‘What’s in it for me?’ is one of the first questions that comes to most people’s minds when an attempt is made to convince them of the benefits of helping to save the environment. Ah, there in lies the tragedy of it all – it’s every man for himself. Pessimism clouds the mind as a result; is there any chance at all for escape from imminent disaster? But hope is a strange thing, the eternal ray of light in the darkness, the proverbial light at the end of the tunnel. The fate of the Earth depends on it.
It’s not going to be plain sailing though. One of the main bottlenecks is convincing people. Dogged perseverance is the key here; keep trying till you succeed. Though that is easier said (or typed – written seems to have become obsolete) than done. Resistance to change comes naturally to the human race; a trait that is ingrained in us. I personally have come across it when trying to spread awareness of environmentally-sound habits. You will get downright ignored and will be greeted with nonchalance and stubbornness. Somehow, people don’t fancy doing even the simple things: Switch off computers at work and home when not in use(usually at end of day), reuse plastic bags instead of accepting new ones, avoid throwing garbage onto the road, turn off the water tap while washing clothes, utensils, brushing teeth etc, are just a few examples. How does it help? Nothing earth-shattering, but these small deeds add up. The naysayers will put forth their theories with the intention to contradict, but my opinion is that following these tips takes less effort than it does nitpicking them.
Politics and bureaucracy are demons from higher ‘strata’ in society – the hands that wield power and influence. Governments and heads of state have important roles to play; strict regulations and policies enforced by them can help in curbing pollution. Unfortunately, they often end up passing the buck or playing to the vested-interests gallery. The most prominent case in point is the USA. In spite of being the worlds largest polluter (25% of world emissions from a population that is 5% of the worlds’), President Bush continues to ignore calls from all quarters to introduce legislation that would reduce emission levels. Instead, he seeks to evade the issue by proposing half-baked measures and asking China & India to follow suit. The latter are developing countries and cannot be put in the same bracket. Balancing economic growth and environmental concerns is a tightrope walk for them; therefore they are right to a certain extent in keeping their interests in mind. The same cannot be said about the USA. It’s high time they got their act together. A good way to start would be by complying with the proposals put forward by the UN Climate Change Committee.
Meanwhile, the world’s forest cover is declining at an alarming rate. Species of flora and fauna are going extinct rapidly. Years of human infringement and activity have taken their toll. But we still continue to plead ignorance by saying that natural selection is playing its part, that only the fittest survive and that it would not be wise to interfere or tamper with the changing climate patterns; apparently there’s no cause for worry. Nothing could be farther from the truth. We are largely, if not solely responsible for present conditions. Global warming is a harsh reality (an inconvenient truth as put by Al Gore). Most of the glaciers are melting; extreme climes and erratic weather patterns are being experienced in many parts of the world. So let’s get out of our well ensconced shells and make a beginning. It’s now or never.
(I actually wanted to post this on June 5th and would have done so too but the rain-induced power-cut put paid to that. And the next day I was plagued by poor internet connectivity. It’s been a while since I last posted – a case of writer’s block and ample procrastination being the culprits. A day’s wait wouldn’t hurt then, right? Sigh, whatever….)