Environmental Degradation
Psychological Perspectives

ENVIRONMENTAL degradation has been a global concern in recent years. Most of the environmental hazards are the outcome of human activities. It is, therefore, necessary to understand the human behavior patterns in the course of environmental degradation. Basically, researchers perceive environment in various modes. Psychologists consider environment in the context of surroundings. Accordingly, those scientists deal environment on the bases of physical, social and biological parameters respectively. Human beings represent as a part and parcel of the environment .The existence of man cannot be imagined without the environment. A harmonious relationship with environment may create psychological pleasure and satisfaction within individual. Psychologists observe environment from a global perspective and study how human lives are evolved and affected by the environment.

The environmental study covers a model of human nature in broad way as related to multidisciplinary focus. It explores such a divergent issues as common property resource management, the effect of environmental stress on human performance, the characteristics of restorative environments, human information processing, and the promotion of durable conservation behaviour. The environmental research has a close relationship with sociology, anthropology, biology and ecology. In the context of environmental conservation, Environmental Design Research Association (EDRA), publishes journals including Environment and Behavior and the Journal of Environmental Psychology, and was reviewed several times in the Annual Review of Psychology.

Environment is a broad term .In a greater sense; it encompasses the entire cosmos, which include rivers, oceans, mountains, lands, forests, animal kingdoms etc. In psychology, environment represents wider fields of study. Basically, psychology deals environment in a macro approach. It is true that man is a prime source in establishing sound environment in this global world. As having met this challenge, environmental psychologists at present are indulging in diversified areas of research, that is, environment and stress, crowd behaviour, coping with earthquake, noise and environment, people and environment, environment and health, population growth and environment etc. Basically, people in developed and developing countries are differently aware and concerned on various environmental issues. Due to its vast covering areas of study, environmental psychology emerges as a separate discipline in understanding and offering solution for the environmental problems.

Human beings represent a highly sophisticated, delicate and intelligent creature in the this modern world. As a social animal, he or she interacts within environment successfully. Basically, human beings are the product of environment. A harmonious relationship and balance existed between mankind and its environment since time immemorial. But this balance has reached a critical point at the commencement of the 21st century. The delicate balance between living beings and the environment fast moving towards a breaking point. Today the environment has been polluted and nature is behaving irregularly.

The Nepalese people and HIS Majesty’s Government of Nepal have felt the importance of the conserving the forestry and agricultural sectors. So, the people are encouraged to implement preventive and rehabilitative measures for the conservation of forest, wild life, soil, and water through the implementation of inter alias, the Master Plan of Foresty Sector, the Agricultural perspective plan and the National Conservation. Nepal’s environmental problems in the rural and urban areas are of different nature. Fragile slopes, cultivation in the marginal land, and deforestation has accelerated soil erosion and landslide in the mountains, while riverbank cutting, sedimentation and forest encroachment are common in Terai areas. Human activities such as use of agro-chemicals, landfilling practices, and farming steep slopes resulted in the decline of production. In recognition of the existing environmental issues, His Majesty’s Government of Nepal has formulated policies, legislations, standards and guidelines, and implemented several activities since the beginning of planned economic development in the mid-1950s.

Recently, Tribhuvan University, Institute of Forestry has launched M. Sc. Forestry course in Pokhara. The institute has covered a multidimensional course of study pertaining to environmental conservation. Basically, when the students come to the field, it may certainly help the nation for building awareness in diversified areas like ecosystem approach to conservation, landslide and eco-region approach, eco-tourism and bio-diversity, community forestry ideology, energy conservation, alternative energy, environmental pollution, natural resources pollution, bio-geography of Nepal, and concepts of sustainable development.

United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED), held the Earth Summit, at Rio de Janeiro, Brazil (June 3-4, 1992), to reconcile worldwide economic development with protection of the environment. The Earth Summit was the largest gathering of world leaders in history, with 117 heads of state and representatives of 178 nations the conference attending. By means of treaties and other documents signed at the conference, most of the world’s nation committed themselves to the pursuit of economic development in ways that would protect the Earth’s environment and nonrenewable resources.

Ecologically, many forms of noise in the urban environment, including traffic and airplane noise, industrial may contribute to hearing damage. Research on environmental stressors continues to receive attention. Noise, crowding, pollutants as well as natural and technological disasters have psycho- physiologic, health, and cognitive implications. The actual behaviors of people during emergencies have also provided critical insights into human behavior that inform emergency planning policies as well as the design of spaces to minimize harm when disasters do occur.

Environmental psychologists have planned series of studies to link environment like crowding and noise to human cognition. They have attempted to demonstrate the independent and combined effects of crowding and noise on cognitive task performance. In Nepalese context, researcher has highlighted noise level of 15 different locations in Kathmandu metropolis .The findings reveal–that monitoring of noise pollution produce in the metropolitan areas are essential for management and objective study .So the impact of noise on human health and behavior should be taught at school for raising the awareness of environmental pollution.

Environmental researcher highlights the role of chronic, economic and environmental strains as stressors in urban poor people. Chronic exposure to residential crowding is found to be associated with increased level of psychological distress. Environmental researches have stated that the less crowded residents in comparison to crowded residents express greater non- specific psychological distress. Human beings are subject to challenges posed by environment and react to environmental challenges in order to survive. Contemporary environmentalists recognize that physical surroundings are only part of a total environment that includes social and economic factors, cultural tradition, and reciprocal influences between societies and their environment. Especially, psychologist refers environment as a complex stimulus properties that are determined by the social surroundings. The person does not respond to an object in isolation. Psychologically, the behavior and experience of individuals can be understood and judged only through their reactions toward environment. Basically, the internal environment or the psychological environment of an individual influences his or her perception toward physical surroundings.

Thus, it can be easily observed that environment is more than just physical surroundings. In its totality it comprises of the whole set of natural and man made or socio- cultural systems in which man and other organisms live and interact together. The extent of human intervention has developed to a point where it has produced vast and disruptive changes in the environment. Deforestation, soil erosion, industrialization, urbanization, depletion of natural resources, extinction of several living species and growing pollution are some of the instances of environmental degradation leading to the present day environmental crises. Finally, psychological counseling, planning, resource allocations, response mechanisms, imparting educational awareness programmes and trainings are the basic strategies for coping with environmental degradation. Also in such burning problems, diversified fields of experts i.e. environmental psychologists, ecologists, sociologists, geologists, naturalists, geographers, legal experts and journalists must work jointly in resolving environmental issues.

Vietnam Battles Copyright Piracy

THE merchandise - piles of counterfeit CDs, DVDs and computer software - was back in the shop in Hanoi’s tourist-heavy Old Quarter just a few hours after it was seised in a police raid.

"We paid a bribe to a person I know in the police station, and they let us have it back," said Tuan, the shop owner.

An estimated 97 per cent of the software on the market in Vietnam is pirated, the highest rate in the world, according to the industry trade group Business Software Alliance. Yet the country has taken only hesitant steps to address the issue, and its anti-piracy agency has no enforcement powers.

Pressure for change is likely to grow under a new U.S. trade pact, signed Oct. 17 by U.S. President George W. Bush, which guarantees protection of intellectual property and copyrights.

Tuan, who declined to give his full name, shrugged off the police raid as a routine inconvenience that’s part of doing business.

The widespread attitude that counterfeiting is a business, not a crime, is at the heart of the difficulties facing Vu Manh Chu. As head of the Ministry of Culture and Information’s copyright department, he is charged with curbing Vietnam’s piracy rate.

Chu is the first to admit that the magnitude of the problem dwarfs the country’s ability to confront it.

"Vietnam has been flooded with pirated goods of every kind," he said. "We have some responsibilities in this. But Vietnam has a long border and we can’t patrol it closely. It allows for easy smuggling into the country."

Misdemeanor fines for pirating intellectual property can run from dlrs 15 to dlrs 5,000 while criminal charges bring one to three years in prison and up to dlrs 13,000 in fines. Still, only a handful of cases are prosecuted each year because the laws are unclear, Chu said.

With no actual enforcement powers, Chu’s copyright department is relegated to sending out warning letters to violators. This year, his department has handled about 500 letters of complaint. A separate ministry is responsible for patents and trademarks.

When raids are conducted by other agencies, violators are usually back in business within days, if not hours, Chu said.

Copyright infringement is a sore point for software giant Microsoft, whose popular Windows and Office programmes, retailing for several hundred dollars, are sold on the street for one or two dollars.

"We’re pirated at all levels - by multinational companies, government agencies, state-owned enterprises and retail shops," said Ngo Phuc Cuong, Microsoft’s chief representative in Hanoi. "They perceive that copying software is an acceptable practice. It’s an education problem."

Though Vietnam is not the sole offender, at least in countries like Singapore or Malaysia, some efforts are made at enforcement, he said. "Here we don’t feel protected by the law."

That, in turn, can have a chilling effect on Vietnam’s own domestic technology industry, said Ahmed Chami, Microsoft’s South Asia business development director. "If bright young Vietnamese software entrepreneurs aren’t sure that their work will be sold instead of copied, then they won’t do it."

Indeed, local software makers have complained bitterly about the widespread use of pirated software and called on the government to take a stronger stand.

Pham Tang Cuong, director of the SCC software company, said he is being driven into the ground by domestic pirating. The use of pirated software by state-owned enterprises is widespread, while violations among government agencies are even worse, Cuong said.

It costs his company dlrs 5 to manufacture a CD-ROM, while a state-run bookstore sells a fake copy for one dollar, he said.

The message seems to be getting across. Earlier this month, Vietnam’s largest Internet company, state-owned FPT, signed its first copyright licensing agreement with Microsoft, paying an undisclosed amount to have the software legally installed on company computers.

For CEO Truong Gia Binh, it’s a matter of self-interest. Respecting international software copyrights is the key to insuring Vietnam’s own fledgling software development growth, he said.

"If you don’t respect the intellectual property of others, it won’t be possible to have a software industry here," he said.

Chu said he hopes the trade agreement will force Vietnam to rework its rules on copyrights to improve compliance. But he said there are no plans at present for the National Assembly to revise laws regulating enforcement.

U.S. officials have promised to provide Vietnam with training and technical help to fight piracy, but so far the FBI has held only one training session, he said. (AP)

Fun In Politics

POLITICS is a dirty game if you play it fair, courtesy Sir Winston Churchill. And it is equally true if you take it the other way round. The twist and tangle, the tricks and the subtle strategies are not a cup of tea for everyone. Many educated people say so and hesitate to jump into it. They view that this game is mired in conspiracies, immoralities and corruption.

Do you also hold similar views? If you think so, you are true only partially. Please don’t think politics is always a game of dirt. Sometimes it is creative, emotional and entertaining one. You could refresh your minds and keep yourself happy if you give a slight interest into it.

For this you must mix up the masala such as fun, jokes and a sense of friendship. Then this will no longer be dirty business. You may be surprised and say: Politics too can be interesting!

You know that there are many characters, who make politics a lively and creative field and save it from being a monotonous one.

For example, look at Krishna Prasad Bhattarai. He is not only a veteran politician but is equally famous for inventing jests and jokes at any function, regardless of its nature. Not only Kishunji, even sober leaders like Girijababu and Madhav Nepal throw jests at informal functions and help keep away the sour relations among them.

For keeping a gay mood, the political parties for some time have been organising tea receptions. It has become one of the popular functions to hold informal talks, share greetings, jokes and to renew friendship in a relaxed atmosphere among the politicians from various opposing parties. For a while, the rival leaders forget their acrimonious relations and pass the moment with frolic and fun.

You may be reminded of Kisunji’s usual joke: "I am unmarried but not a bachelor." However, these days this remark is not heard from the mouth of septuagenarian leader. I can’t tell you the reason. Perhaps our old statesman is tired of repeating the same joke. Don’t be worried. Kishuji is still famous for cracking jokes.

Just recently, Kishunji drew the attention of a lot of people through his jokes at the tea reception organised by the CPN-UML. As he was exchanging the greetings and wished for the success of the opposition leader and UML general secretary Madhav Kumar Nepal, Bhattarai quipped: "You shall always remain an opposition leader." This resulted in a peal of laughter. But the opposition leader could not resist himself and nudged, "May the Goddess Durga Bhawani never offer the strength to the Nepali Congress to go to power in future."

However, Nepal wished for the good health and longevity of Bhattarai and desired that he might again succeed to be the Prime Minister of the country. Then a tempted Bhattarai became happy at the opposition leader’s greeting and said that he was an optimistic person and his wishes had been fulfilled by the grace of the God. "I regret that I was ousted from the office of the Prime Minister but I have hope that I would again be the PM if the circumstances favour me."

Meanwhile, Girijababu, with a cheerful look, unlike Bhattarai did not make specific any joke. He complained that the media people twisted his remarks. So he said to Nepal,"Please don’t mind I have not said ‘so and so’. It is the press that twisted my statement." He was hinting at his remark that had hurt the opposition leader.

The chat between the chiefs of the two largest parties in the country was certainly a happy one. It seemed that there was not bitterness between them.

Likewise, the presence of CPN-ML General Secretary Bamdev Gautam at the tea reception was pleasant and an emotional one for the UML leaders and cadres.

Welcoming the former UML strongman, the UML leader K.P.Oli invited Gautam to come back to his old home (Balkhu). With a soft smile on his face, Gautam was emotionally charged and said, "This house is also mine."

A pleasant scene was when UML leader Pradeep Nepal shook hands with Gautam. Nepal had sworn that he would never shake hands with Gautam as the latter is alleged to have led the UML to a split some fours years ago. So Gautam did not miss the opportunity and said," Pradeepji, you are shaking hands with me at your own place."