Environment: A matter of collective mindset

Witoubou Newmai

Local or ‘identity politics’ have become the bulwarks against making the issues of environment to assume priority in the agenda or policies of our society. That is the reason why there is an absence of the sense of urgency, with regard to issues of environment, reflected in the ‘agenda’ or policies of the society.

Since such is the affair, we are only delineating the environment issue as a non-issue, while forgetting our society’s culture of resorting to knee-jerk reaction, and not beyond, in times of environmental danger.

It is noticed that the ‘burst of concerns’ of the society on the issues of environment will come only in times of calamity. About this area, Professor Michael Sheehan of the University of Swansea (Wales), in his book (International Security), puts it beautifully: “In the absence of dangers that do not produce an immediate sense of threat, environmental problems on the security agenda may receive an initial burst of attention and public concern, followed by a return to complacency when no immediate results are perceived and a consequent failure to sustain the momentum needed for eventual success”. In this book he also argues that the “environmental sector potentially falls clearly within the broader security agenda”.

Discussions about environmental issues only on ‘environment day’ come so much short of the required spirit to yield results. An issue such as on environment requires as much potent spirit our society has for the ‘tribal politics’. 

It is also noticed that, since the environmental issue is considered an isolated one, and having a perception that the danger is too remote, the society is not motivated by the environmental concerns. Unless such perception is corrected nothing may work soon.

As we also noticed today that programmes on environment are reduced to a mere formality of ribbon cutting under colourful giant outing umbrellas, the seriousness about the issue is obviously absent.

Even a vestige of euphoria that we witnessed about environment as recent as last month on World Environment Day (June 5) in our society is no longer there now. The lack of motivation is also due to the absence of convincing policies about the environment. Another reason for such lack of interest on the issue has been that, those few concerned groups or individuals on this mission are considered by the collective mindset of the society as establishing an ‘enduring platform’.

Given the urgency that the environmental issues demand the society requires to change its collective mindset and begin to perceive things in right chord, and be with the tide of the time.