Concept of Environmental science

Environmental science is a multidisciplinary field that integrates knowledge from various

scientific disciplines to understand and address environmental issues. It plays a crucial role
in addressing global challenges such as climate change, deforestation, loss of biodiversity,
and pollution. Environmental scientists work on subjects like the understanding of earth
processes, evaluating alternative energy systems, pollution control and mitigation, natural
resource management, and the effects of global climate change. Researchers and
professionals in this field work towards sustainable solutions to ensure the health and well-
being of the planet and its inhabitants.
Scope of Environmental Studies:
• Understanding nature- Nature of environment, its relationship with other sciences, man
and nature, ecology and ecosystems, ecological concepts and principles.
• Use of natural resources- Environment is a treasure of resources. Although due to
population explosion and uncontrolled exploitation, these resources are nearing
exhaustion.
• Study of environmental problems- Increase in industrialization, population, urbanization
and overexploitation of resources and their mismanagement result in creation of several
eco problems. All the aspects of various kinds of pollution as well as natural calamities
like earthquake, volcano, flood, drought, tsunami, cyclones, land sliding, loss of bio
diversity, global warming, acid rain and so many other problems are studied under this
science.
• Environmental management and planning- Natural balance is disturbed due to
unplanned, uncontrolled use of various ecosystems. To avoid all this, a careful utilization
of resources is needed otherwise; they would not be available for next generations. Eco-
planning is an important part of environmental studies.
Environment
Everything which surrounds us may be referred to as the environment. The air, soil, water,
all living and non-living things around us constitute the environment, which influences our
lives. It is from the environment surrounding us that we get food to eat, water to drink, air
to breath and all necessities of our daily lives. The environment around us constitutes a “life
support system”. The environment consists of three segments as under:
1. Atmosphere: The atmosphere implies the protective blanket of gases, surrounding the
earth which saves it from the hostile environment of outer space and absorbs most of
the major portion of the electromagnetic radiation from the sun (including tissue-
damaging lower ultraviolet waves. Atmosphere sustains life on the earth. The
atmosphere is composed mainly of nitrogen and oxygen.
2. Hydrosphere: The Hydrosphere comprises all types of water resources such as oceans,
seas, lakes, rivers, streams, glaciers, and groundwater.
(a) Nature 97% of the earth’s water supply is in the oceans,
(b) About 2% are locked in the polar icecaps and glaciers.
(c) Only about 1% is available as fresh surface water-rivers, lakes streams, and ground
water fit to be used for human consumption.
3. Lithosphere: Lithosphere is the outer mantle of the solid earth. It consists of minerals
occurring in the earth’s crusts and the soil e.g. minerals, organic matter, air and water.
Structure of Environment
(a) Physical Environment
(i) Solid (lithosphere)
(ii) Liquid (hydrosphere)
(iii) Gas (atmosphere)
(b) Biological Environment
(i) Plants (flora)
(ii) Animals (fauna).
Concept of Sustainability
Sustainability can be defined as the capacity to maintain or improve the state and
availability of desirable materials or conditions over the long term. In everyday use,
sustainability often focuses on countering major environmental problems, including climate
change, loss of biodiversity, loss of ecosystem services, land degradation, and air and water
pollution. Scholars usually distinguish three different areas of sustainability. These are the
environmental, the social, and the economic.
 • Environmental sustainability
The environmental dimension is central to the overall concept of sustainability. People
became more and more aware of environmental pollution in the 1960s and 1970s. The
harmful effects and global spread of pesticides like DDT came under scrutiny
scrutiny in the 1960s.
In the 1970s it emerged that chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) were depleting the ozone layer. In
1972, the first UN Conference on the Human Environment took place. The agenda included
natural ecosystems or natural resources and the human en
environment.
vironment. It stated that it is
important to protect and improve the human environment and emphasized the need to
protect wildlife and natural habitats. Climate change due to human activity became an
academic and political topic several decades later. The natural resources of the earth,
including the air, water, land, flora and fauna and natural ecosystems must be safeguarded
for the benefit of present and future generations through careful planning or management,
as appropriate. Other global problems are lloss
oss of ecosystem services, land degradation,
environmental impacts of animal agriculture and air and water pollution, including marine
plastic pollution and ocean acidification. Reducing these negative impacts on the
environment would improve environmental sustainability.
• Economic sustainability
The economic dimension of sustainability is controversial. This is because the term
development within sustainable development can be interpreted in different ways. Some
may take it to mean only economic development and growth. This can promote an
economic system that is bad for the environment. Economic development can certainly
reduce hunger or poverty. This is especially the case in the least developed countries. That
is why Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) calls for economic growth to drive social
progress and well-being. However, the challenge is to expand economic activities while
reducing their environmental impact. The Brundtland report says poverty causes
environmental problems. Poverty also results from them. So addressing environmental
issues requires understanding the factors behind world poverty and inequality. It highlights
that this is a goal for both developing and industrialized nations. UNEP (United Nations
Environment Programme) and UNDP (United Nations Development Programme) launched
the Poverty-Environment Initiative in 2005 which has three goals. These are reducing
extreme poverty, greenhouse gas emissions, and net natural asset loss. This guide to
structural reform will enable countries to achieve the SDGs.
• Social sustainability
One definition states that a society is sustainable in social terms if people do not face
structural obstacles in key areas. These key areas are health, influence, competence,
impartiality and meaning-making. Some scholars suggest that all the domains of
sustainability are social. These include ecological, economic, political, and cultural
sustainability. These domains all depend on the relationship between the social and the
natural. From this perspective, social sustainability encompasses all human activities. There
are many broad strategies for more sustainable social systems. These include improved
education and the political empowerment of women. This is especially the case in
developing countries. This involves equity between rich and poor both within and between
countries. A society with a high degree of social sustainability would lead to liveable
communities with a good quality of life (being fair, diverse, connected and democratic).
Sustainable development
Sustainable development is an organizing principle that aims to meet human development
goals while also enabling natural systems to provide necessary natural resources and
ecosystem services to humans. The Brundtland Report in 1987 defined sustainable
development as "development that meets the needs of the present generation without
compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs". The concept of
sustainable development nowadays has a focus on economic development, social
development and environmental protection for future generations. Sustainable
development was first institutionalized with the Rio Process initiated at the 1992 Earth
Summit in Rio de Janeiro. In 2015 the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) adopted
the Sustainable Development Goals (2015 to 2030) and explained how the goals are
integrated and indivisible to achieve sustainable development at the global level.
• Sustainability vs Sustainable Development
Sustainable development is interlinked with the normative concept of sustainability.
UNESCO formulated a distinction between the two concepts as follows: Sustainability is
often thought of as a long-term goal (i.e. a more sustainable world), while sustainable
development refers to the many processes and pathways to achieve it.
Sustainable development, like sustainability, is regarded to have three dimensions: the
environment, economy and society. The idea is that a good balance between the three
dimensions should be achieved. Countries could develop systems for monitoring and
evaluation of progress towards achieving sustainable development by adopting indicators
that measure changes across economic, social and environmental dimensions.
• Sustainable development goals
The United Nations created 17 world development goals called the Sustainable
Development Goals (SDGs). They were created in 2015 with the aim of "peace and
prosperity for people and the planet, now and into the future." The SDGs emphasize the
interconnected environmental, social and economic aspects of sustainable development by
putting sustainability at their center. The short titles of the 17 SDGs are: No poverty (SDG 1),
Zero hunger (SDG 2), Good health and well-being (SDG 3), Quality education (SDG 4),
Gender equality (SDG 5), Clean water and sanitation (SDG 6), Affordable and clean energy
(SDG 7), Decent work and economic growth (SDG 8), Industry, innovation and infrastructure
(SDG 9), Reduced inequalities (SDG 10), Sustainable cities and communities (SDG 11),
Responsible consumption and production (SDG 12), Climate action (SDG 13), Life below
water (SDG 14), Life on land (SDG 15), Peace, justice, and strong institutions (SDG 16), and
Partnerships for the goals (SDG 17).
 • Education for sustainable development
Education for sustainable development (ESD) is a term officially used by the United Nations
and is defined as education practices that encourage changes in knowledge, skills, values
and attitudes to enable a more sustainable and just society for humanity. ESD aims to
empower and equip current and future generations to meet their needs using a balanced
and integrated approach to the economic, social and environmental dimensions of
sustainable development. Education for climate change adaptation and climate change
mitigation are important elements of education for sustainable development.
For UNESCO, education for sustainable development involves: integrating key sustainable
development issues into teaching and learning. This may include, for example, instruction
about climate change, disaster risk reduction, biodiversity, and poverty reduction and
sustainable consumption. It also requires participatory teaching and learning methods that
motivate and empower learners to change their behaviours and take action for sustainable
development. ESD consequently promotes competencies like critical thinking, imagining
future scenarios and making decisions in a collaborative way.