Shishir Reza :
Nature based education is a learning process that enhances people’s knowledge and augments alertness about the environment and its surroundings challenges, develops the necessary skills and expertise to address the challenges and fosters attitudes, motivations and commitments to make informed decisions and take responsible action. It means the capacity of an individual to understand the complex environmental issues to enable mass people for analysis, synthesis, evaluation, and ultimately sound decision making at a citizen’s level. It makes people conscious about the environment both scientifically and socially.
Own in general three main educational systems in Bangladesh are: General Education System; Madrasha Education System, and Technical – Vocational/Professional Education Systems. In Bangladesh, EE is taught formally at 3 levels under General Education Systems: School comprising of Primary, Junior High and Secondary; College (Higher Secondary/Intermediate) and University (Post-secondary or Tertiary). Each of these three main systems is divided into four levels: Primary Level (years 1- 5); Junior High (years 6-8) and Secondary Level (years 9-10); Higher Secondary Level (years 11-12), and Tertiary Level. However, this paper focuses on EE at school level since they are largely supported by the Government, and share the same National Curriculum and Textbooks approved by the Textbook Board, Dhaka.
Clarifying global context, Bangladesh faces a number of interconnected environmental and resource problems. Of all, the challenge of climate change due to global warming is undoubtedly the single most pressing environmental issue of our time.
In the past three decades, concern has grown over the trend in global warming; the general trend of a persistent warmer world has given rise to this concern. However, this important topic has been missing from the school text books of Bangladesh. There is ample scope in the text books for the inclusion of climate change topic with human adaptation measures. Bangladesh has frequently been cited as one of the most climate vulnerable countries in the world, and will be even more so as a consequence of climate change. There are predictions that natural extreme events such as floods, tropical cyclones, storm surges and droughts will become more frequent and severe in the coming years. The impacts are multi-dimensional; many of the anticipated adverse effects of climate change such as higher temperature induced monsoon precipitation, increase in cyclone intensity, saline intrusion, and sea level rise and so on will further aggravate existing ecological stresses. The affected sectors which have been identified so far are: (i) agriculture and fisheries; (ii) forestry and biodiversity; (iii) hydrology and water resources; (iv) coastal zones; (v) urban areas; (vi) human health; and (vii) particularly vulnerable groups.
The impacts could be detrimental to the people of Bangladesh.
These phenomena will not only threaten the achievements Bangladesh has made (in increasing income and reducing poverty) over the last 35 years, but also will make it more difficult to achieve the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). The core elements of Bangladesh’s vulnerability to climate change are, however, contextual: disadvantageous geographic location, high population density, scarce natural resources, poor socio-economic conditions, extreme poverty, reliance of many rural livelihoods on climate sensitive sectors and inefficient institutional aspects. It is, therefore, essential that Bangladesh now prepares to adapt herself with the changing circumstances, and safeguard the well-being of its citizens.
The Government of Bangladesh is fully committed to deal with the threats of global climate change. In 2005, the Government launched its National Adaptation Program for Action (NAPA). In 2008, the Government prepared and adopted the Bangladesh Climate Change Strategy and Action Plan (BCCSAP). The document is expected to reflect among other things the changing needs and the development priorities of the country.
To this end, the Government has already made climate change an integral part of the Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper (PRSP), which outlines its short-run strategies, and lays the foundation for continuing efforts to achieve MDCs, and build a fair, equitable and just society. The six pillars of action that are added by BCCSAP in line with the priorities of the Government are: (i) Food security, social protection and health; (ii) comprehensive disaster management; (iii) infrastructure; (iv) research and knowledge management; (v) mitigation and low carbon development; and (vi) capacity building and institutional strengthening.
Apart from the government, mass people have to own the responsibility to protect nature the ecology-nature-environment’ based education for sustainable development.
(The writer is an Environmental Analyst and Associate Member, Bangladesh Economic Association).
