Bio-Diversity

Look at the picture and answer the questions that follow

1.what do you see in the first picture? Do you like it? If not.why?

Ans.In the first picture, I find garbage dumped on the banks of stream. I don’t like it. It is unclean, ugly to look at.

2.How is the second picture different from the first? Do you feel good about it? Give reasons for your view.

Ans.The second picture is beautiful to look at. The houses are well designed. They are made of ecofriendly. Indigenous material. The surrounding are clean. The soil is fertile. It is completely different from the picture.

Oral discourse

Debate -"Human beings cannot live on this earth without causing threat to the nature."

A speech in favour of the motion

Mr. Chairman Sir,

   I am Abhilash. I stand to speak in favour of the motion. It is universally acknowledged that human beings cannot live on this earth without causing threat to the nature. Growing pollution is the result of rapid industrialisation, urbanisation, rising population phenomena which cannot be reversed or controlled. Taking into consideration the growing pollution level, it may be well understood that such a problem cannot be completely eliminated. Likewise permanent damage which has been inflicted on the environment in terms of global warming, rising sea level, growing deletion of ozone layer cannot be restored. Excessive deforestation has already effected normal cycling of water and nutrients in the environment that has brought about land degradation which will take generations to repair. Taking into account apathy and intensive attitude of the people we can only be a mute spectators to the destruction caused, waitingfor nature to retaliate in its course of time. Thus Mr. Chairman, permits me to say that man is already adopted to comfortable and luxurious life which in turn causing threat to environment. The topic to save environment is limited to papers and 'speeches as it has reached a peak stage. Though human beings wish to check the threat to the environment they are unable to decrease their comforts and are not ready to change their mode of living. That is why I sayhuman beings cannot live on this earth without causing a threat to the nature.

 Thank you very much.

Against the motion

Mr. Chairman Sir,

    I, Vandana, stand before you to speak against the motion. I beg to disagree with the statement. In fact, it is the result of scientific and technological progress that man has made. Now man reaches to such a stage that he cannot live on this earth without causing threat to the nature. I would like to give some positive measures to reduce the threat to the nature such as growing more trees, implementation of pollution check policies by the government, stress of recycling products, ban of plastic bags, decreasing the amount of deforestation, introducing new lands un-der forests, less use of chemicals that disturb the nature equilibrium, abolishing factories that emit smoke, use of CNG, other gases to reduce pollution, preventive measures to be taken by everyone, increased use of cycles for short distances, using metro instead of personal vehicles, cleaning the river waters, introduction of natural resources for most of the activities such as cooking.

   Finally I want to conclude that threat to nature can be decreased if everybody uses the nature wisely.

Thank you very much.

A.Environment

summary

This is an interview with Wangari Maathai, an environmental activist, and a Nobel Prize winner. She started the Green Belt Movement and fought for equal rights for the women. The interview was conducted by Nippon Hoso Kyokai (NHK) Radio from Japan.

Wangari Maathai says that she knew what environment was only when I started responding to the basic needs of people in rural areas. The basic needs are I clean drinking water, food, energy, building material, and fodder. All these come from land. The people didn't find these because the environment was degraded. So rehabilitating the environment was the urgent need.

Wangari Maathai feels that many wars are fought over natural resources. Some wars are for survival and some are for gaining control over the resources, and keep many people away from the resources. This phenomenon is found at the national level or at the regional level, Good management of resources and equitable distribution of them is important for peace. Good management of resources is not possible if we , don't have democratic space, respect for human beings and human rights and giving other people dignity.

Fifty years ago, when Wangari Maathai was a child, the environment was very',  pristine. At that time, the country was then ruled by the British. The British government cleared the indigenous forests and established commercial plantations such, as pines from northern hemisphere and the eucalyptus from Australia. As a result, all the local flora and fauna disappeared, though they got commercial timber. But, the rain patterns changed, rains became less, and the rivers started drying up. They lost local biological diversity. That was a damage to the environment.

Wangari Maathai started working among the women. They planted trees together. in the beginning, it was difficult. But soon they gained confidence and became skillful foresters. She called. them 'Foresters without Diplomas".

Glossary

Green Belt Movement (n) :

a movement to protect environment

Fodder (n) :

food for farm animals

Forested (adj) :

forested areas are covered in forests (place where trees are densely grown)

Pristine (adj) :

extremely fresh or clean

Indigenous (adj) :

native

Biological diversity (n) :

the variety of plants and animals in a particular place

Exotic species (n) :

unusual plants