IREX 2013

Human and Environment

Introduction
Although there are different explanations on the origin of the life and it’s evolution up to human beings on the basis of the philosophical backgrounds, all are agreed on the human and environment has inevitable interrelationship. There is interrelationship but the explanation of this relationship is also highly debated. There are mostly three explanations to describe the human functions and responses created by the Earth. They are named as the determinism, possibilism and interactionism. Determinism is an explanation based on the materialistic nature of the Earth and based more in the bio-physical science. This line believes that humans are modeled by the environment. They believe that the socio-economic activities done are beyond the physical reality of the earth. The explanation limits the human as an inert animal. It doesn’t accept the creative possibility of the human beings. Another explanation named as possibilism believes on the socio-economic explanations as dominant. The possibilism is based on the perceptions and assumptions. This is the explanation developed on the rising demands of humans on the environment. Its debates are around the population, technology, aspirations towards consumptions and attitudes developed in the environment. This idea limits the nature with in human interests and desires. The third and more synthesized idea is called interactionism. This explanation believes on the affects of each on another. It overviews on the assumptions that there is mutual influence of environment on the human beings as well as human influence on the environment also. All socio-economic issues and environment related issues should be seen in the both side approach. It is based on the latest empirical studies and experiences. More advance development in this approach is sanctuary theory seen above approaches in the reductionism approach.
In this article, I’m going to discuss on the different dimensions and dynamics of the human environment relations on the human development race course in history.
Environmental dynamics
Although the factors (biota or abiota) of the environment are distributed and the behaviors of human over the environmental elements are different on time and space but the dependency of the human beings on the environment from the ancient time is true. As we go back to time it was more. A major different of the humans with other animals is culture within which they have developed different ideas and physical assisting technologies they are advancing and taking as traditions also. Environment has different impacts due to human cultures also. Let’s take an example in the Paleolithic era human started to use tools for the hunting and later on for the agriculture purpose. Now, the tools are developed in thousands forms, up to the automatic machines. The environment was not more affected then now we are trying even the reduction of the efficiency for the environment because all our practices are not eco-friendly. Now a days we are discussing about the low emitting engines. Taking this example we can get human perception on the environment. Earlier the pressure on the environment was few, so total concern was on the socio-economic development approaches, now a days the environmental depletion is global problem and the global attempts are started. In the early 20th century bio centrism was supposed to be regressive and anthropocentrism was progressive and now a days anthropocentrism must include environmental issues otherwise it is supposed to be “blind faith”. Similarly individual perceptions are also changing towards the environmentalism. Low or clean energy consuming technologies are going to be popular. Non-governmental or voluntary sectors are activated towards the better environment all over the world. Even the states or local levels are jointly going ahead. All the development projects are assessing the minimum environment terms and conditions. Earlier environmental activities were supposed to be obstacles for the development but now a days environment activities are the major dimension of development themselves. Now the environmental component of every level is welcomed and accepted. In the global level, one of the better examples will be the Kyoto Protocol. It was criticized by the developed nations in the early days now the socio-economic drives of each nation’s are forcing their government towards the ratification of the protocol. Some are doing so as legal binding and some are voluntarily cutting the carbon emission towards the legal binding.
Development dynamics
Development is simply the shifting towards betterment. In the Anthropology only development can be defined as the descent of the generations of the humans towards safer, prosperous, comfortable and peaceful world for all. This descent was very slow in the ancient time. For example, after development of the bipedalism it took about 3.5 million years to develop human their own shelter. But now in the modern world development has very rapid speed. The rapidity has created many adverse impacts on the nature e.g. the population and poverty, natural resources depletion and degradation, global warming and its impacts etc. So, the environmental problems are seen in the dynamics of the development. In this course human civilization was the first attempt for the development. In the civilization stage, population was accumulated in cities, production, services and securities were much better than earlier. It has supported for more population, affluence was grown more. People started arts, economics, politics, education etc. These all had dense adverse impacts on the nature. The aspirations and scarcity created socially brought different social and natural problems also. We can see the surrounding of the pre-historic civilizations now deserted. Power struggles, explorations of new lands, higher technologies applied to get rid of the problems remained then. Modern civilization was erected in the basement of the earlier one. The technological development invented in the west leaped the world towards the industrial revolution. Automatic machines freed humans from agriculture and shifted towards the industries. Agrarian area was led by new machines with more productions. Capital accumulated in a segment of the society and social as well as environmental problems started to react in the human beings. Class struggle was a reaction seen which can be taken as an example of the unjustifiable distribution of wealth and power. The industrialization was supposed to be the solution of all economic problems, so in the name of economic growth, it reached up to the nations where industrialization never happened. Not only the industrial or developed countries but the African and Asian poor nations were also affected highly due to the classical economic theory of development. The third world countries were colonized and the major cause was to grab the natural resources and extension of the market. Adjustment of such problems was the social and environmental efforts done globally. Infrastructure development was supposed to be the way to jump towards a better world. But the power relations of the world are blamed not to be changed in any slogans. For example when different chemical medicines, vaccines were invented all hoped that our world will be free from epidemics and communicable diseases but millions of children in the poor world are dying of such diseases in this 21st century too. Economy is supposed to be the most effective driving agent to continue such power relation. Now a days a developed society is supposed to be a federation of societies and organizations of like minded peoples. All the issues related to economic, social and environmental problems and solutions are supposed to be led by the institutions and organizations based on such institutions.
In this paragraph I would like to reflect how environment was accepted as one of the essential component of any development projects and programs in the modern times. Earlier environment was supposed to be the externality of the economic development and thought to be the obstacle. In the early 20th century, depletion of the natural resources like coal and metals was in high concern and natural issues meant for the wise use of natural resources to continue the economic growth. Over use and exploitation of other resources and adverse impacts of pollution etc started new debates in the academia after the World War II. The UNO was established to debate and decide in the global issues. The Environmentalism was western concept to think about the management of the environment them. They started to establish green organizations and protest against the anti environmental activities. The studies and researches made on it widen and the different relationships were developed like economy of environment, political ecology, ecology and natural disaster etc. People started to think the environment degradation through different lenses. Some found it as a feminist issue, some continuation of world system between rich and poor countries and some even class based discrimination. These studies made some global drafts of development approach called sustainable development. To reach up to this stage human development thinkers have spend several years. The milestone events were “The club of Rome” 1972, Stockholm conference on the human and development 1972, Rio conference on the environment and development in 1992 and World conference on the sustainable development 2002, in the Johannesburg. So, the latest attempt on the development acquires economic development with social and environmental entity. These three components only can promote the sustainable development. Some critiques are there arising for example the sustainable development is again continuing the inhumane capitalism in the third world, the aims listed there are impossible to achieve, continuation of this discriminatory power relations etc. Post structural and post modernist approaches on the development are coming beyond Johannesburg. Global climate change and the global responses on it have attracted the new world towards the Kyoto Protocol and its implications. Different nations have different logics. US America, India and China are cutting carbon dioxide emission voluntarily and most of the developed and LDCs have signed and ratified the Protocol.
Conclusion
In this article I’ve tried the environmental dynamics and impacts on the human beings as well as human dynamics in the development course and its impact on the environment. The most positive thing is that in the modern years people have accepted the causes of the threats on the human civilizations is due to anthropogenic influences and we are the most responsible people for our safe future. For Millions of years people had no such idea believed in some spiritual powers behind such problems and global attempts were impossible. Now all are agreed that we have to correct each others behaviors and protects of nature of well being of the human beings is in main discourse. We can conclude that we are in the right directions although the path is far to be covered. We are delayed but not deluded.

जलवायु परिवर्तन: सामान्य परिचय

(SOLIDARITY FOR SUSTAINABILITY)
दिगो विकास प्रयास, नेपाल

जलवायु परिवर्तन के हो ?
कार्बनडाइअक्साइड (CO2), नाइट्रस अक्साइड(N2O),मिथेन(CH4), ह्यालो कार्बन(HC) आदिलाई हरितगृह ग्यासका रुपमा लिइन्छर वायुमण्डलमा हरितगृह ग्यासको पत्र (LAYER) जति बाक्लो भयो त्यति नै पृथ्वीबाट पर्यावर्तित ताप वायुमण्डलबाट बाहिर निस्कन सक्दैन, फलस्वरुप त्यो पर्यावर्तित ताप पृथ्विमा फर्केर आउनाले पृथ्विको तापक्रम बढ्दै जान्छ। जुन तापक्रम बृध्दीका कारण मौसममा विभिन्न किसिमका परिवर्तन आउनु नै जलवायु परिवर्तन हो।विश्वको विगत १ सय वर्षको (१९०६-२००५)तापक्रम हेर्दा पृथ्वीको औसत तापक्रम ०.७४ डिग्रि सेल्सियसले बृध्दि भएको बैग्यानिक तथ्यहरुले प्रमाणित गरेकाछन्।
कारणहरु
बढदो औद्योगिकरण,अत्यधिक ईन्धनको प्रयोग, सवारी तापक्रम वृ,ध्दि, कृषि क्षेत्रको आधुनिकिकरण, विलासिताका वस्तुहरूको बढ्दो लोकपृयता, वन फडानी, जमिन प्रयोग गर्ने तरिकामा परिवर्तन इत्यादि कारणले गर्दा हरितगृह ग्यासको उत्सर्जनमा वृध्दि भयो जसको कारणले गर्दा पृथ्विको तापक्रम वृध्दिमा तीव्रता आएकोछ।
प्रभाव
तापक्रम वृध्दि हुनु, पानी पर्ने दर,प्रकृया र समयमा परिवर्तन हुनु, पानी पर्ने समय अनुमान गर्न नसक्नु, कहिले अति वृष्टी भई बाढी पहिरोको समस्या हुनु, कहिले लामो समय सम्म सुख्खा हुनु, हिमताल फुटेर बाढि पहिरो आउनु, मानिसको स्वास्थ्यमा प्रतिकूल असर पर्ने केहि नराम्रा प्रभाव हुन भने कहि चिसो स्थानमा तापक्रम बृध्दि भई नया बाली लगाउन सकिने यसका केहि सकारात्मक प्रभाव हुन्।
न्युनिकरण
• हरितगृह ग्यासको कम उत्सर्जन गरेर
• तापक्रम वृध्दिका नकारात्मक प्रभाव घटाउने र सकारात्मक प्रभाव उपयोग गर्ने जसलाई अनुकूलन(ADAPTATION) भनिन्छ।
• जलवायु परिवर्तन बारे अरुलाई बताउने
• हरितगृह ग्यासहरुको उत्सर्जनलाई कम गर्न नविकरणिय उर्जा( सौर्य, जलविद्युत, वायु तथा गोवरग्यास) को प्रयोग गर्ने
• राष्ट्रका सम्बन्धित निकाय, राजनैतिक दलहरू तथा जनसमुदायलाई जलवायु परिवर्तनको विरुध्दमा कार्य गर्न सुझाव, दवाव दिने।

Climate change: a general introduction

Solidarity for sustainability
Sustainable development initiative, Nepal



What is climate change?
Carbon dioxide (CO2), nitrous oxide (N2O), methane (CH4) and other halocarbons (HC) are considered to be green house gases (GHGs) when the layer of these green house gases get thick in the atmosphere, the heat reflected from the earth’s surface can’t penetrate that layer and heat is re-radiated back to the earth causing temperature rise on the earth’s surface. This increase in the temperature changes the different associated components of climate system which is known as “climate change”. The evidences from scientific study for 100 years (1906-2005) temperature data revealed that average temperature increasing is at rate of 0.74 degree Celsius.
Causes:
 Increasing use of fossil fuels in vehicles and industries
 Rapid industrialization
 Modernization of the agricultural sectors
 Deforestation
 Popularity on using luxurious items
 Land use changes
All these actions increase the emission of the GHGs in the atmosphere causing rapid rise in the temperature in the earth.
Effects and Impacts
 Temperature rise changing the monsoon pattern, time frequency and rate.
 Somewhere drought and somewhere over flooded due to heavy rainfall
 Landslides, erosion and flood
 Glacial lake outburst flood (GLOFs)
 Changes in distribution of flora and effects in fauna
 Forest, agriculture and biodiversity adversely effected
 Positive impacts like growth of new plants an colder regions due to temperature rise
What can we do?
• Reducing emissions of Green House Gases (GHGs)
• Reducing negative impacts of temperature rise and utilizing positive impacts called process of “adaptation”
• Telling others about climate change
• Using renewable energy (solar, wind, hydroelectricity, biogas) to reduce GHGs emission
• Giving pressure/ requesting to concerned state authority, political parties and community people to take actions against climate change