'Protecting our own enclosure'​- WORLD ENVIRONMENT DAY

The environment is ‘an enclosure that gives our lives an opening.’ Human beings depend heavily on environment as it supports vital areas of life. From fulfilling our daily needs to acting as a pillar for the success of economies, life and environment are interlinked. However, in the present scenario, human ‘wants’, not ‘needs’, weigh far heavily on the quality and sustainability of the environment. Situations are getting worse over the years, especially over the last few decades. From the poor quality of air, depleting forest cover, loss of groundwater to millions of tons of plastics in the world’s oceans, its reasons are wide-ranging. Mere campaigns plans or even celebrating a day won’t lead us anywhere until we have a clear objective for ourselves to be achieved over a few coming years. Thus, let us pledge to ourselves to work on a ‘Vision 2030’ that empowers us in both ways, environmentally and economically. I would like to put forward a few key strategies that might be a help to us.

1.      Use of Vertical Farming:

According to the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations, the world population will grow from more than 7.5 billion today to over 8.3 billion people in 2030. This means that we will need much more food than what we use presently. Yes, the growth rate of demand of agricultural products will be lower but the problem lies in producing more from an even lesser amount of land as more land will be used for residential and industrial purposes. Vertical farming stands out as a solution for this problem. Producing crops in vertically stacked layers or on the elevated platforms is called vertical farming. It is very effective in use of land and productivity patterns. Concept came up strongly in 2009 but now there are private ventures working on it to bring down the costs involved and make it more lucrative for even small farmers. Vertical farms have grown in leaps and bounds. Productivity lies is generally 30-100 times the produce of normal agriculture. So it answers the question, “How will we feed the rising numbers?”.

2.      Development of eco-friendly transportation:

The environmental impact of transport is significant because transport is a major user of energy, and burns most of the world's petroleum. This creates air pollution, including nitrogenous oxides and particulates, and is a significant contributor to global warming through emission of carbon dioxide. To put forward an example, planes remain among the most polluting means of transport, together with cars. On a journey of, for example, 500 hundred kilometres, a plane pollutes 10 to 50 times more than a high-speed electric train and 5 to 10 times more than a bus. In all, transportation contributes to approx. 25 percent of total greenhouse gases. So, if we are able to use solar energy in transportation, that might reduce pollution levels drastically. Presently, it is gaining popularity in developed nations as cost of vehicles is still much higher compared to diesel variants. Use of electric trains has already brought about a drastic change. It needs funds for research and customers need financial support from governments to opt for it in spite of its benefits. According to a report published on the website ‘liveMINT’ (by the Wall Street Journal), there are new start ups that offer solar electricity at a cost cheaper than conventional sources. Acme sells the electricity to distributors for 2.44 rupees (3.4 cents) a kilowatt-hour, a record low for solar power in India, a country that data trackers say has the world’s cheapest solar energy.  That’s an amazing development and surely deserves an applaud.

3.      Engaging everyone in the sphere of businesses world on climate:

The impacts of changes in environment are looming large and have far-reaching effects. They need measures stronger than ever to overcome them. This implies need for a proper system and workforce acting in this direction. That further requires large sums of capital that make it a business of businessmen as they can play more actively than a commoner. A dangerously changing climate is the biggest threat humanity has ever faced. But it’s not all set in stone … yet. Companies have an economic incentive and moral responsibility to work hard to reduce the damage as much as possible. Engage employees (stamp out climate denial), talk to consumers and customers about climate issues through your products, and change internal rules on corporate finance to make investment decisions with flexible hurdle rates that favor pro-climate spending. Most importantly, lobbying power and influence of these groups can be of extensive use.

 These are of course not all, but some, solutions to the problem that has the capacity to engulf all the developments made by us in one go. All have the responsibility to take care of Mother Nature. So, governments and organisations across the globe should take lead in funding researches in these areas and empower our scientists who have infinite potential to give optimum results. Proper steps taken in the initial stages can save us. I hope a better world in coming years.