UNIT 1:

The Multidisciplinary Nature of

Environmental Studies
DEFINITION, SCOPE AND
IMPORTANCE
 Definition
• Environmental studies deals with every issue
that affects an organism.
• A multidisciplinary approach that brings about
an appreciation of our natural world and
human impacts on its integrity.
• Its components include biology, geology,
chemistry, physics, engineering, sociology,
health, anthropology, economics, statistics,
computers and philosophy.
 Scope
• Everything around us forms our environment
and our lives depend on keeping its vital
systems as intact as possible.
• Most traditions refer to our environment as
‘Mother Nature’.
• Traditional societies have learned that
respecting nature is vital for their livelihoods.
• Rapid economic growth, has led to
environmental degradation.
 Scope
• The industrial development and intensive
agriculture that provides the goods for our
increasingly consumer oriented society uses
up large amounts of natural resources.
• These will be depleted if we continue to use
them faster than nature can replace them.
• Sustainable utilisation or development : using
limited resources that we really need.
 Scope
For every resource we use we must ask ourselves the
following questions:
• What is the rarity of the resource and where does it
originate?
• Who uses it most intensively and how?
• How is it being overused or misused?
• Who is responsible for its improper use –the resource
collector, the middleman or the end user?
• How can we help to conserve it and prevent its
unsustainable use?
 Importance
1. Productive value of nature:
The flowering plants and insects that form the most species
rich groups of living organisms are thus vital for the future
development of man. If we degrade their habitat these
species will become extinct.
• The urgent need to protect all living species is a concept that
we need to understand and act upon.
• Creating a strong public opinion to protect the National Parks
and Wildlife Sanctuaries in which wild species live is an
importance aspect of sustainable living.
• There is a close link between agriculture and the forest, which
illustrates its productive value. For crops to be successful, the
flowers of fruit trees and vegetables must be pollinated by
insects, bats and birds. Their life cycles however frequently
require intact forests.
2. Aesthetic/Recreational value of nature
• The beauty of nature encompasses every aspect of the
living and non-living part of our earth.
• One can appreciate the magnificence of a mountain, the
power of the sea, the beauty of a forest, and the vast
expanse of the desert.
• It is these natural vistas and their incredible diversity of
plant and animal life that has led to the development of
several philosophies of life.
• It has also inspired artists to develop visual arts and writers
and poets to create their works that vitalize our lives.
• A wilderness experience has exceptional recreational value.
 3. The option values of nature
Our present generation has developed its economies and
lifestyles on unsustainable patterns of life.
However, nature provides us with various options on how
we utilize its goods and services. This is its option
value.
We can use up goods and services greedily and destroy its
integrity and long term values, or we can use its
resources sustainably and reduce our impacts on the
environment.
The option value allows us to use its resources
sustainably and preserve its goods and services for the
future.
 NEED FOR PUBLIC AWARENESS
• We can reduce wasting natural resources and we
can act as watchdogs that inform the
Government about sources that lead to pollution
and degradation of our environment.
• This can only be made possible through mass
public awareness. Mass media such as
newspapers, radio, television, strongly influence
public opinion.
• If you join an NGO that supports conservation,
politicians will make green policies.
 PUBLIC AWARENESS
• Join a group to study nature, such as WWFI
or BNHS, or another environmental group.
• Begin reading newspaper articles and periodicals
such as ‘Down to Earth’, WWF-I, newsletter, BNHS
Hornbill, Sanctuary magazine, etc. that will tell
you more about our environment. There are also
several environmental websites.
• Lobby for conserving resources by taking up the
cause of environmental issues during discussions
with friends and relatives.
 PUBLIC AWARENESS
• Practice and promote issues such as saving
paper, saving water, reducing use of plastics,
practicing the 3Rs principle of reduce, reuse,
recycle, and proper waste disposal.
• Join local movements that support activities
such as saving trees in your area, go on nature
treks, recycle waste, buy environmentally
friendly products.
 PUBLIC AWARENESS
• Practice and promote good civic sense such as no
spitting or tobacco chewing, no throwing garbage
on the road, no smoking in public places, no
urinating or defecating in public places.
• Take part in events organised on World
Environment Day, Wildlife Week, etc.
• Visit a National Park or Sanctuary, or spend time
in whatever nature you have near your home.
 Institutions in Environment
1. Bombay Natural History Society (BNHS), Mumbai:
• It began as a small society of six members in 1883.
• Currently a major research organization on Wildlife.
• It is India’s oldest conservation research based NGO.
• The BNHS publishes a popular magazine called Hornbill and also an
internationally well-known Journal on Natural History.
• Its other publications include the Salim Ali Handbook on birds, JC
Daniel’s book of Indian Reptiles, SH Prater’s book of Indian
Mammals and PV Bole’s book of Indian Trees.
• One of its greatest scientists was Dr. Salim Ali whose ornithological
work on the birds of the Indian subcontinent is world famous.
• The BNHS has over the years helped Government to frame wildlife
related laws and has taken up battles such as the ‘Save the Silent
Valley’ campaign.
 2. World Wide Fund for Nature
(WWF-I), New Delhi
• The WWF-I was initiated in 1969 in Mumbai
after which the headquarters were shifted to
Delhi with several branch offices all over India.
• The early years focused attention on wildlife
education and awareness.
• It runs several programs including the Nature
Clubs of India program for school children.
• Works as a think tank and lobby force for
environment and development issues.
Centre for Science and Environment (CSE),
New Delhi
• Organising campaigns, holding workshops and
conferences, and producing environment related
publications.
• It published a major document on the ‘State of India’s
Environment’, the first of its kind to be produced as a
Citizen’s Report on the Environment.
• The CSE also publishes a popular magazine, ‘Down to
Earth’.
• publication of material in the form of books, posters,
video films.
• Conducts workshops and seminars on biodiversity
related issues.
 CPR Environmental Education Centre,
Madras
• The CPR EEC was set up in 1988.
• It conducts a variety of programs to spread
environmental awareness and creates an interest
in conservation among the general public.
• It focussed attention on NGOs, teachers, women,
youth and children to generally promote
conservation of nature and natural resources.
• Its programs include components on wildlife and
biodiversity issues. CPR EEC also produces a large
number of publications.
 Centre for Environment Education
(CEE), Ahmedabad
• It was initiated in 1989.
• It has a wide range of programs on the
environment and produces a variety of
educational material.
• CEE’s Training in Environment Education {TEE}
program has trained many environment
educators.
 Bharati Vidyapeeth Institute of Environment
Education and Research (BVIEER), Pune

• This is part of the Bharati Vidyapeeth Deemed University.

• The Institute has a PhD, a Masters and Bachelors and
Diploma programs in Environmental Sciences.
• It implements a large outreach programme that has
covered over 135 schools in which it trains teachers and
conducts fortnightly Environment Education Programs.
• Biodiversity Conservation is a major focus of its research
initiatives.
• It has developed a teacher’s handbook linked to school
curriculum, a textbook for UGC for its undergraduate
course on environment.
 Uttarkhand Seva Nidhi (UKSN), Almora

• The Organisation is a Nodal Agency which

supports NGOs in need of funds for their
environment related activities.
• Its major program is organising and training
school teachers to use its locale specific
Environment Education Workbook Program.
• The main targets are linked with sustainable
resource use at the village level through training
school children.
• Its environment education program covers about
500 schools
 Kalpavriksh, Pune
• Kalpavriksh, an NGO works on a variety of fronts:
education and awareness; investigation and research;
and litigation with regard to environment and
development issues.
• Its activities include talks and audio-visuals in schools
and colleges, nature walks and outstation camps,
organising student participation in ongoing campaigns
including street demonstrations, pushing for consumer
awareness regarding organic food, press statements,
etc.
• Kalpavriksh was responsible for developing India’s
National Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan in 2003.
 Salim Ali Center for Ornithology and Natural History
(SACON), Coimbatore

• This was Dr. Salim Ali’s dream that became a

reality only after his demise.
• He wished to support a group of committed
conservation scientists on a permanent basis.
• Initially conceived as being a wing of the Bombay
Natural History Society (BNHS) it later evolved as
an independent organisation based at
Coimbatore in 1990.
• It has instituted a variety of field programs that
have added to the country’s information on our
threatened biodiversity.
 Wildlife Institute of India (WII),
Dehradun
• This Institution was established in 1982, as a
major training establishment for Forest Officials
and Research in Wildlife Management.
• Its most significant publication has been ‘Planning
A Wildlife Protected Area Network for India’
(Rodgers and Panwar, 1988).
• Its M.Sc. Program has trained excellent wildlife
scientists.
• It also has an Environment Impact Assessment
(EIA) cell.
 Botanical Survey of India (BSI)
• BSI was established in 1890 at the Royal Botanic
Gardens, Calcutta. However it closed down for several
years after 1939 and was reopened in 1954.
• By 1955 the BSI had its headquarters in Calcutta with
Circle Offices at Coimbatore, Shillong, Pune and Dehra
Dun.
• Between 1962 and 1979, offices were established in
Allahbad, Jodhpur, Port Blair, Itanagar and Gangtok.
• The BSI currently has nine regional centres. It carries
out surveys of plant resources in different regions.
 Zoological Survey of India (ZSI)
• The ZSI was established in1916.
• Its mandate was to do a systematic survey of fauna in India.
• It has over the years collected ‘type specimens’ on the bases of
which our animal life has been studied over the years.
• Its origins were collections based at the Indian Museum at Calcutta,
which was established in 1875.
• Older collections of the Asiatic Society of Bengal, which were made
between 1814 and 1875, as well as those of the Indian Museum
made between 1875 and 1916 were then transferred to the ZSI.
• Today it has over a million specimens! This makes it one of the
largest collections in Asia.
• It has done an enormous amount of work on taxonomy and
ecology. It currently operates from 16 regional centers.
 People in Environment
• Charles Darwin wrote the ‘Origin of Species’
• Ralph Emerson (1840) spoke of the dangers of
commerce to our environment.
• John Muir is remembered as having saved the
great ancient sequoia trees in California’s forests.
• In the 1960s Rachel Carson published several
articles that caused immediate worldwide
concern on the effects of pesticides on nature
and mankind. She wrote a well known book
called ‘Silent Spring’
 People in Environment
• EO Wilson is an entomologist who envisioned that
biological diversity was a key to human survival on earth.
He wrote ‘Diversity of Life’ in 1993.
• Salim Ali’s name is synonymous with ornithology in India
and with the Bombay Natural History Society (BNHS).
• Indira Gandhi as PM has played a highly significant role in
the preservation of India’s wildlife. The Wildlife Protection
Act was formulated during her regime.
• S P Godrej was one of India’s greatest supporters of
wildlife conservation and nature awareness programs.
• M S Swaminathan is one of India’s foremost agricultural
scientists and has also been concerned with various aspects
of biodiversity conservation.
 People in Environment
• Anil Agarwal was a journalist who wrote the first
report on the ‘State of India’s Environment’ in 1982.
• Medha Patkar is known as one of India’s champions
who has supported the cause of downtrodden tribal
people whose environment is being affected by the
dams on the Narmada river.
• Sunderlal Bahugna - Chipko Movement.
• Madhav Gadgil is a well known ecologist in India.
• M C Mehta - India’s most famous environmental
lawyer.