The state of Uttarakhand is blessed with natural breathtaking beauty. But this naturally beautiful state is facing major threats from unsustainable practises, pollution and deforestation. To ensure sustainable development and growth in the state it is important to foster environmental consciousness among young people. Education is the most crucial social instrument which helps in improving different aspects of knowledge, life, skill, awareness, attitude, and values acquired throughout life. With the help of education, one can easily live the best-desired life. Knowledge about the protection and conservation of the environment can be given through environmental education. Environmental education involves an organised way of teaching about the functions of the natural environment and how humans can adapt their behaviour to foster sustainability. Education related to the environment should be given from the pre-school level. In this way, it can help to educate the audience and the public including websites, media campaigns, print materials, etc. In this article, we will see how environmental awareness is promoted amongst the youth of Uttarakhand.

What is environmental consciousness?

It is a sense of responsibility and awareness among people to protect and safeguard the environment. Environmental consciousness includes collective action taken by individuals to protect the environment. For example, reducing the amount of energy consumption to protect natural resources. Educating the youth is more important for long-term efforts to improve the health of the environment. It is the type of learning process that enhances awareness and knowledge among people about the environment as well as the challenges associated with it. This will help to develop expertise and skills to address environmental-related challenges. Moreover, environmental consciousness helps to improve attitudes and motivate people to make informed decisions.

Need for providing environmental education

With the increasing rate of environmental hazards, it has become important to necessitate environmental education among youth. Environmental hazards are mainly caused by global rapid development and climatic change. Therefore, it has become important to manage and handle such environmental hazards. To face such challenges, it is essential to raise awareness amongst people at every level in the community. To handle such issues, it is important to provide appropriate knowledge to all individuals, professionals and officials. These kinds of problems are always solved at ground level. Therefore, it is important to impart knowledge about the environment to youth. Education can be provided in many ways either it could be included in the curriculum or through experimental programs. For example, schools can conduct plantation drives to increase awareness among children about the environment. The fundraising for plantation drive is also done by various government agencies and NGOs.

Almost every single state of India is facing environmental challenges. One of these states which has seen drastic changes in environmental conditions over the past few years is Uttarakhand. Human encroachment and climate change in Uttarakhand are largely affecting the Nachiketa Tal and Dodi Tal wetlands in Uttarakhand. These regions have seen catastrophic landslides and floods. Moreover, all these wetlands are present at very high altitudes in the state, and they also have a religious importance. A few days back many environmental activists, concerned citizens and writers came together in the Doon Library and Research Centre of Dehradun to discuss climate change, environmental concerns, government policies, and sustainable development practices in Uttarakhand. They have made plans for imparting knowledge among the youth through education. Learning during early stages aids in shaping perspectives, understanding and children’s values about the environment.

Environmental challenges faced by Uttarakhand

Uttarakhand encompasses a geographical area of approximately 53,483 sq km. Out of which forest covers around 65% of the land whereas mountainous area makes up to 86%. But the northern state of India, Uttarakhand is facing a lot of environmental challenges. Some of them include:

Climate change

One of the biggest challenges faced by the state of Uttarakhand is sudden changes in climatic conditions. Uttarakhand is currently facing many challenges because of wildfires happening in different regions of this state. The main reason for the increasing rate of forest fire is the higher temperature of Uttarakhand which has resulted in massive deforestation in certain regions of the state. Due to climate change, the temperature of Uttarakhand has increased by nearly 0.2 degrees. Apart from this, the Himalayan region contains more than 1200 glacial lakes which range from 500 square metres and go up to 2,44,742 square kilometres. There is so much evidence which revealed that the flood which happened in the state of Uttarakhand in 2013 was caused by an outburst of glacial lake present over Kedarnath shrine. Apart from this, Himalayan dams also have a very high chance of flooding in a few years. Still, there hasn’t been any monitoring of glacial lakes. Therefore, there needs to be a system or mechanism which can help to monitor glacial lakes to prevent any major mis-happening in the future.

Ganga pollution

High Court of Uttarakhand has banned construction activities near rivers in Uttarakhand, including Bhagirathi, Alaknanda and Ganga. However, Haridwar is the only place which has failed to obey the rules set by the NGT (National Green Tribunal) which mainly aims to prohibit the utilisation of polythene-based materials near the Ganga River. To protect the river Ganga environmental awareness can be raised by the government among people to protect it.

Water crisis

Shortage of water is one of the prominent problems in Uttarakhand. Nowadays perineal rivers of Uttarakhand are converting into non-perineal rivers. There have been reports which suggest that Kosi River base flow water level is reduced to 75 litres which was earlier 790 ltr/sec. in the year 2012. Apart from this, most of the ponds in Uttarakhand have dried up in the past few years. There have been several claims that forest fires have depleted the level of groundwater causing a water crisis. Wildfires can cause massive destruction. Plants are very important as they not only provide oxygen but are also responsible for holding and absorbing water. Thus, it helps to replenish groundwater. If there is no plant available to absorb the water, then water would drain away very easily. Apart from this many road construction projects have disrupted fissures. This results in the drying of lakes and springs.

Illegal mining

PM Modi has recently decided to completely stop and reduce illegal mining in certain areas of Uttarakhand. Illegal mining is largely seen in the Jakh Pant Village located in Pithoragarh. People of Jakh Pant have faced various issues related to drinking water, land and forests which are mainly caused due to illegal mining activities. As per the locals both the BJP and Congress government have promised to ban mining near the Ganga River, but still, there haven’t been any actions taken by the government. Illegal mining activities are also seen in the Haridwar region with stones and sand being removed near the Ganga River. This can result in increased chances of floods during heavy rainfall season.

Hydropower projects

These projects are largely run in the state of Uttarakhand, because of the presence of a large number of rivers in the state. Moreover, the increasing number of dams constructed is also responsible for the destruction of the rich biodiversity of the area. Even the central government has admitted that such type of projects can have indirect and direct impacts in increasing cases of floods which have killed thousands of people in Uttarakhand.

How does environmental education help in facing these challenges?

So far, we know that environmental education is important at all levels. There are several ways through which it can be given to today’s youth. Some of these ways include:

1.      Integrated with curriculum

The school curriculum should include environmental education at all levels. Environmental education can be imparted to students in many different ways. It involves providing learning related to the local ecosystem, the need for sustainable practices and the impact of changing climate conditions in the Himalayan region. Moreover, by integrating environmental studies into different subjects’ students can gain an understanding of the need to protect the natural world. The Centre for Environmental Education in Uttarakhand has especially worked for the past few years to provide environmental awareness in schools, and natural resource awareness & management systems and biodiversity conservation.

2.      Leveraging technology to impart education to youth

Music, storytelling and art are very powerful tools to raise awareness about the environment. Several events and competitions help students to find solutions and express their issues related to the environment which has proven to be quite impactful. Many online courses., documentaries and educational apps on environmental crisis are also available which could be integrated into the curriculum. Moreover, social media platforms like Instagram and Facebook are mostly used by youth and are also good ways through which awareness can be spread among people.

3.      Experiential learning

Teaching in the classroom can sometimes become very boring to students. Therefore, experiential learning can be used to impart awareness among people. This includes organising field trips to different locations where environmental projects are going on. Plantation drives can be conducted by universities and schools to increase environmental awareness amongst the youth.

To sum up

Environmental awareness and environmental education are essential for youth as they help to make a bright future where every person is aware of their impact on the environment. This can help them to make decisions which help to protect the environment. Society and schools are the best places to impart knowledge about environmental and ethical responsibilities to youth. It is important to impart knowledge among youth who have proper awareness about their nature and surroundings so that at an early stage their knowledge can be shaped