Is Environmental Stewardship the Answer to all our Woes? – Shayantani Mitra

shayantani“We stopped checking for monsters under our beds when we realized they were inside us.”

Global warming, soil erosion, deforestation, environment degradation, population explosion, resource depletion. . Are all words which have very quickly made it to our vocabulary. Children around the world are ‘forced’ to learn and study about the environment today. Organizations- both governmental and non-governmental across the globe are talking about the severity of the present environmental scenario. Earth Summits and International Conferences have also gained prominence over the last decade. Concepts of Environmental Stewardship have also emerged.

What is Environmental Stewardship? Who is an Environmental Steward?

On the afternoon of Wednesday, August 28, 1963, 200,000 civilians witnessed MLK Jr.’s ‘I have a dream’ speech which triggered off the American Civil Rights Movement. Although Martin Luther King was the founding father of the movement, there is no doubt that without those 200,000 civilians supporting him and dreaming his dream and believing in his vision, the civil rights movement would not have proved to be such a success. We need an Environmental Steward to guide us from our present state of darkness to light.

An Environmental Steward is not a separate and/or specific individual or designated group who’s appointed to look after the environment, like a neighbourhood super hero. He isn’t someone who wears a cape, flies around and has super powers. He is one of us. He is EACH and EVERY one of US. It is OUR environment. Hence, it is our duty to protect it.

We live in a Tropical country where we don’t really need to use air conditioners. YET, look at us here today. We’re sitting here in our air conditioned rooms, making lofty speeches and talking about our hopes and dreams of a secure future with a perfect ecological balance. But while we are hoping, praying and dreaming, we’re living in a nightmare.

When was the last time we reused something old? When was the last time we took a public bus to go somewhere?  When was the last time we switched off the lights before leaving the room? When was the last time we left the water running? When was the last time we checked our cars for pollution emission? When was the last time we littered?

WE are Environmental stewards. It is OUR responsibility to use OUR resources wisely. Alternate sources of energy have been discovered like- hydel power, wind energy.. solar energy which have proved to be far more efficient than conventional sources of energy. Then why do WE still use petroleum and coal? Use of eco-friendly products in our every day life is also something we can take to.

The question is, are we too far gone in our effort to save the environment?

No. We are not. It’s never too late to do the right thing. We believe that it all starts at the individual level. If each and every one of us makes that extra effort to save the environment, there WILL be change. The whole idea of environmental stewardship is sustainable development. Let us, for once, keep our selfish motives and interests aside and strive to make the planet a better place, not only for us, but also for our children and generations to come.

So, let us adopt the 6Rs in out everyday life-

  • Rethink-Is it made using fair trade practices? Think about the energy used. Do we really need it?
  • Reuse- let us not outright reject items which are old.
  • Recycle- re-making and re-designing the product into something else.
  • Repair- fix items if they are torn or broken instead of outright rejecting them
  • Reduce- cut down on the number of things we buy. We live in a time where we need instant gratification. At any cost. So much so that we are unable to differentiate between our wants and our needs.
  • Refuse-to buy items which are not sustainably designed and are harmful to the environment.

Let us be the change we want to see in the world.

The onus is on US. And the time is NOW.

Sayantani Mitra

2nd Year, Sociology Honours, St. Xavier’s College, Kolkata. An avid reader, music lover, writer and aspiring social anthropologist. Interests: Black Nationalism. Gabriel Garcia Marquez. Movies. Art. Travel. 
This speech was delivered by Sayantani at the 3rd. SXC Global Earth Summit, 2013 on 22nd February, 2013 at the St. Xavier’s College Auditorium, Kolkata.