By Barnes Mawrie
It is 5th June and the World Environment Day is here again. This is a day to reflect and see what is happening to our planet; what is the cause of its ailing and how can we come to its aid. The planet Earth is everyone of us, so it is a reflection on our own survival. It is so unfortunate that the US president, Donald Trump has refused to sign the agreement of the Paris Earth Summit, to cut down pollution and adopt clean energy production.
When all other nations of the world including India and China have joined hands in this noble endeavour, the US has played turncoat once again. It is a clear example of how selfishness and personal greed is dominating political decisions. It is a fact that this deplorable decision has been influenced by the self interest of rich entrepreneurs and corporate groups who care a hoot for the rest of the world provided their interests are furthered. However, it is a great consolation that 98% of the world’s nations have realized the urgent need to change their destructive behaviour and start thinking green and acting clean. India for example, has vouched to increase production of clean energy to 40% by the next decade and China has already become the greatest manufacturer of solar and wind energy mechanisms. Mankind is reeling under the growing temperature due to global warming and we are witnessing erratic climatic conditions all over the globe. Cutting down emission of CO2 is one great step in checking the advance of global warming and if most countries in the world have agreed to do this, it is good news indeed for the planet.
Coming back home to our own state of Meghalaya, we still need to do a lot a work to resolve our own ecological problems. We are seeing a worsening condition of our own beloved city. People have lost all sense of hygiene and so they dump garbage on roadsides without any prick of conscience. It is no more an exaggeration to say that Shillong is turning into massive dumping ground. The manner people, young and old, litter the roads and public places with plastic wrappings and water bottles, is a sickening sight to say the least. It looks as if the more educated we are the more irresponsible we become. I have often observed youngsters shamelessly throwing empty water bottles on the road from moving cars. If our young people who are the future of our state behave in such a manner, what a bleak future we have? Improvement will come not by any external force, but through a change of mentality and attitude. It is time that we begin to “think green”, namely, to realize the importance of nature and the natural environment, therefore, to start planting trees rather than cut them down, to preserve our rivers and streams and not turn them into sewages. It is also time to “act clean” meaning to say, that we have to stop our littering habit because it damages the health of our planet, to learn to keep clean not merely our homes but our public spaces as well. The notion that public places are not my responsibility is a false notion that has to be overcome. We all need to convince ourselves that the whole planet is ours no matter where we live and so it is everyone’s obligation to refrain from any act that can harm it and do something positive to enhance its beauty and health.
I hope that we in Meghalaya will adopt this slogan “Think Green, Act Clean” and gradually begin to change our thought patterns, our attitudes and consequently our behaviour. I am fully convinced that the only saving factor left for us is to implement this philosophy in our personal lives, in our families, in our schools and colleges and in our society at large. This year’s WED theme is “connecting people to nature.” This reminds us that the present deplorable state in which we are in, is the consequence of our estrangement from our natural environment. Human beings have behaved not like fellow creatures but like masters and lords over creation with the self assumed right to exploit and destroy nature. The more disconnected we are from nature, the more vicious and perverse we become. This is what Pope John Paul II has termed as “ecological sin” of man for which we need to repent and change.
Therefore, human beings like the prodigal children, need to return to mother Nature and re-establish that original covenant on which we were founded since the beginning of creation. Tribal communities of the past have a lot to teach us on this. I hope we have already learnt enough from our mistakes. Let us make our state an inspiration for the rest of India. Let us take Shillong back to her former glory as the “Scotland of the East.” Let us all “Think Green and Act Clean.”