how can we help environment essay

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Essay on Save Environment

• Updated on  
• Apr 24, 2020

Essay writing is an important part of the school curriculum, competitive exams like GRE , IELTS , TOEFL , etc. and higher education as well. One must know how to precisely select arguments, collect the data based on them and put it all together in their write-up. Usually, the essay topics given to students are based on the latest political, social and environmental issues. Due to the changes occurring in our surroundings, essays based on saving the Environment are becoming very popular. Keeping that in mind, this blog presents you some sample essays on Save Environment. 

Sample Essay 1 on Save Environment

This essay on save environment can help you in the PTE Writing Essay, TOEFL Essay Topics and TOEFL Sample Essays !

Sample Essay 2

Sample essay 3 on save environment.

[Bonus] Apart from these sample essays on Save Environment, check out other trending topics for essay writing!

We hope our sample essay on Save Environment have given you some great ideas. If you are preparing for exams like GMAT, GRE, IELTS or SAT and need guidance for the writing session? Book you one on one session with Leverage Edu experts to get a divisive strategy and preparation tips to crack these examinations!

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Conserving Earth

Earth’s natural resources include air, water, soil, minerals, plants, and animals. Conservation is the practice of caring for these resources so all living things can benefit from them now and in the future.

Biology, Ecology, Earth Science, Geography, Geology, Conservation

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Earth ’s natural resources include air , water , soil , minerals , fuels , plants, and animals. Conservation is the practice of caring for these resources so all living things can benefit from them now and in the future. All the things we need to survive , such as food , water, air, and shelter , come from natural resources. Some of these resources, like small plants, can be replaced quickly after they are used. Others, like large trees, take a long time to replace. These are renewable resources . Other resources, such as fossil fuels , cannot be replaced at all. Once they are used up, they are gone f orever . These are nonrenewable resources . People often waste natural resources. Animals are overhunted . Forests are cleared, exposing land to wind and water damage. Fertile soil is exhausted and lost to erosion because of poor farming practices. Fuel supplies are depleted . Water and air are polluted . If resources are carelessly managed, many will be used up. If used wisely and efficiently , however, renewable resources will last much longer. Through conservation, people can reduce waste and manage natural resources wisely. The population of human beings has grown enormously in the past two centuries. Billions of people use up resources quickly as they eat food, build houses, produce goods, and burn fuel for transportation and electricity . The continuation of life as we know it depends on the careful use of natural resources. The need to conserve resources often conflicts with other needs. For some people, a wooded area may be a good place to put a farm. A timber company may want to harvest the area’s trees for construction materials. A business may want to build a factory or shopping mall on the land. All these needs are valid, but sometimes the plants and animals that live in the area are forgotten. The benefits of development need to be weighed against the harm to animals that may be forced to find new habitats , the depletion of resources we may want in the future (such as water or timber), or damage to resources we use today. Development and conservation can coexist in harmony. When we use the environment in ways that ensure we have resources for the future, it is called sustainable development . There are many different resources we need to conserve in order to live sustainably. Forests A forest is a large area covered with trees grouped so their foliage shades the ground. Every continent except Antarctica has forests, from the evergreen -filled boreal forests of the north to mangrove forests in tropical wetlands . Forests are home to more than two-thirds of all known land species . Tropical rainforests are especially rich in biodiversity . Forests provide habitats for animals and plants. They store carbon , helping reduce global warming . They protect soil by reducing runoff . They add nutrients to the soil through leaf litter . They provide people with lumber and firewood. Deforestation is the process of clearing away forests by cutting them down or burning them. People clear forests to use the wood, or to make way for farming or development. Each year, Earth loses about 14.6 million hectares (36 million acres) of forest to deforestation—an area about the size of the U.S. state of New York. Deforestation destroys wildlife habitats and increases soil erosion. It also releases greenhouse gases into the atmosphere , contributing to global warming. Deforestation accounts for 15 percent of the world’s greenhouse gas emissions. Deforestation also harms the people who rely on forests for their survival, hunting and gathering, harvesting forest products, or using the timber for firewood. About half of all the forests on Earth are in the tropics —an area that circles the globe near the Equator . Although tropical forests cover fewer than 6 percent of the world’s land area, they are home to about 80 percent of the world’s documented species. For example, more than 500 different species of trees live in the forests on the small U.S. island of Puerto Rico in the Caribbean Sea. Tropical forests give us many valuable products, including woods like mahogany and teak , rubber , fruits, nuts, and flowers. Many of the medicines we use today come from plants found only in tropical rainforests. These include quinine , a malaria drug; curare , an anesthetic used in surgery; and rosy periwinkle , which is used to treat certain types of cancer . Sustainable forestry practices are critical for ensuring we have these resources well into the future. One of these practices is leaving some trees to die and decay naturally in the forest. This “ deadwood ” builds up soil. Other sustainable forestry methods include using low-impact logging practices, harvesting with natural regeneration in mind, and avoiding certain logging techniques , such as removing all the high-value trees or all the largest trees from a forest. Trees can also be conserved if consumers recycle . People in China and Mexico, for example, reuse much of their wastepaper, including writing paper, wrapping paper, and cardboard. If half the world’s paper were recycled, much of the worldwide demand for new paper would be fulfilled, saving many of Earth’s trees. We can also replace some wood products with alternatives like bamboo , which is actually a type of grass. Soil Soil is vital to food production. We need high-quality soil to grow the crops that we eat and feed to livestock . Soil is also important to plants that grow in the wild. Many other types of conservation efforts, such as plant conservation and animal conservation, depend on soil conservation. Poor farming methods, such as repeatedly planting the same crop in the same place, called monoculture , deplete nutrients in the soil. Soil erosion by water and wind increases when farmers plow up and down hills. One soil conservation method is called contour strip cropping . Several crops, such as corn, wheat, and clover , are planted in alternating strips across a slope or across the path of the prevailing wind . Different crops, with different root systems and leaves, help slow erosion.

Harvesting all the trees from a large area, a practice called clearcutting , increases the chances of losing productive topsoil to wind and water erosion. Selective harvesting —the practice of removing individual trees or small groups of trees—leaves other trees standing to anchor the soil. Biodiversity Biodiversity is the variety of living things that populate Earth. The products and benefits we get from nature rely on biodiversity. We need a rich mixture of living things to provide foods, building materials, and medicines, as well as to maintain a clean and healthy landscape . When a species becomes extinct , it is lost to the world forever. Scientists estimate that the current rate of extinction is 1,000 times the natural rate. Through hunting, pollution , habitat destruction, and contribution to global warming, people are speeding up the loss of biodiversity at an alarming rate. It’s hard to know how many species are going extinct because the total number of species is unknown. Scientists discover thousands of new species every year. For example, after looking at just 19 trees in Panama, scientists found 1,200 different species of beetles—80 percent of them unknown to science at the time. Based on various estimates of the number of species on Earth, we could be losing anywhere from 200 to 100,000 species each year. We need to protect biodiversity to ensure we have plentiful and varied food sources. This is true even if we don’t eat a species threatened with extinction because something we do eat may depend on that species for survival. Some predators are useful for keeping the populations of other animals at manageable levels. The extinction of a major predator might mean there are more herbivores looking for food in people’s gardens and farms. Biodiversity is important for more than just food. For instance, we use between 50,000 to 70,000 plant species for medicines worldwide. The Great Barrier Reef , a coral reef off the coast of northeastern Australia, contributes about $6 billion to the nation’s economy through commercial fishing , tourism , and other recreational activities. If the coral reef dies, many of the fish, shellfish , marine mammals , and plants will die, too. Some governments have established parks and preserves to protect wildlife and their habitats. They are also working to abolish hunting and fishing practices that may cause the extinction of some species. Fossil Fuels Fossil fuels are fuels produced from the remains of ancient plants and animals. They include coal , petroleum (oil), and natural gas . People rely on fossil fuels to power vehicles like cars and airplanes, to produce electricity, and to cook and provide heat. In addition, many of the products we use today are made from petroleum. These include plastics , synthetic rubber, fabrics like nylon , medicines, cosmetics , waxes, cleaning products, medical devices, and even bubblegum.

Fossil fuels formed over millions of years. Once we use them up, we cannot replace them. Fossil fuels are a nonrenewable resource. We need to conserve fossil fuels so we don’t run out. However, there are other good reasons to limit our fossil fuel use. These fuels pollute the air when they are burned. Burning fossil fuels also releases carbon dioxide into the atmosphere, contributing to global warming. Global warming is changing ecosystems . The oceans are becoming warmer and more acidic , which threatens sea life. Sea levels are rising, posing risks to coastal communities. Many areas are experiencing more droughts , while others suffer from flooding . Scientists are exploring alternatives to fossil fuels. They are trying to produce renewable biofuels to power cars and trucks. They are looking to produce electricity using the sun, wind, water, and geothermal energy — Earth’s natural heat. Everyone can help conserve fossil fuels by using them carefully. Turn off lights and other electronics when you are not using them. Purchase energy-efficient appliances and weatherproof your home. Walk, ride a bike, carpool , and use public transportation whenever possible. Minerals Earth’s supply of raw mineral resources is in danger. Many mineral deposits that have been located and mapped have been depleted. As the ores for minerals like aluminum and iron become harder to find and extract , their prices skyrocket . This makes tools and machinery more expensive to purchase and operate. Many mining methods, such as mountaintop removal mining (MTR) , devastate the environment. They destroy soil, plants, and animal habitats. Many mining methods also pollute water and air, as toxic chemicals leak into the surrounding ecosystem. Conservation efforts in areas like Chile and the Appalachian Mountains in the eastern United States often promote more sustainable mining methods. Less wasteful mining methods and the recycling of materials will help conserve mineral resources. In Japan, for example, car manufacturers recycle many raw materials used in making automobiles. In the United States, nearly one-third of the iron produced comes from recycled automobiles. Electronic devices present a big problem for conservation because technology changes so quickly. For example, consumers typically replace their cell phones every 18 months. Computers, televisions, and mp3 players are other products contributing to “ e-waste .” The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) estimates that Americans generated more than three million tons of e-waste in 2007. Electronic products contain minerals as well as petroleum-based plastics. Many of them also contain hazardous materials that can leach out of landfills into the soil and water supply. Many governments are passing laws requiring manufacturers to recycle used electronics. Recycling not only keeps materials out of landfills, but it also reduces the energy used to produce new products. For instance, recycling aluminum saves 90 percent of the energy that would be required to mine new aluminum.

Water Water is a renewable resource. We will not run out of water the way we might run out of fossil fuels. The amount of water on Earth always remains the same. However, most of the planet’s water is unavailable for human use. While more than 70 percent of Earth’s surface is covered by water, only 2.5 percent of it is freshwater . Out of that freshwater, almost 70 percent is permanently frozen in the ice caps covering Antarctica and Greenland. Only about 1 percent of the freshwater on Earth is available for people to use for drinking, bathing, and irrigating crops. People in many regions of the world suffer water shortages . These are caused by depletion of underground water sources known as aquifers , a lack of rainfall due to drought, or pollution of water supplies. The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that 2.6 billion people lack adequate water sanitation . More than five million people die each year from diseases caused by using polluted water for drinking, cooking, or washing. About one-third of Earth’s population lives in areas that are experiencing water stress . Most of these areas are in developing countries. Polluted water hurts the environment as well as people. For instance, agricultural runoff—the water that runs off of farmland—can contain fertilizers and pesticides . When this water gets into streams , rivers , and oceans, it can harm the organisms that live in or drink from those water sources. People can conserve and protect water supplies in many ways. Individuals can limit water use by fixing leaky faucets, taking shorter showers, planting drought-resistant plants, and buying low-water-use appliances. Governments, businesses, and nonprofit organizations can help developing countries build sanitation facilities. Farmers can change some of their practices to reduce polluted runoff. This includes limiting overgrazing , avoiding over-irrigation, and using alternatives to chemical pesticides whenever possible. Conservation Groups Businesses, international organizations , and some governments are involved in conservation efforts. The United Nations (UN) encourages the creation of national parks around the world. The UN also established World Water Day, an event to raise awareness and promote water conservation. Governments enact laws defining how land should be used and which areas should be set aside as parks and wildlife preserves. Governments also enforce laws designed to protect the environment from pollution, such as requiring factories to install pollution-control devices. Finally, governments often provide incentives for conserving resources, using clean technologies, and recycling used goods. Many international organizations are dedicated to conservation. Members support causes such as saving rain forests, protecting threatened animals, and cleaning up the air. The International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) is an alliance of governments and private groups founded in 1948. The IUCN works to protect wildlife and habitats. In 1980, the group proposed a world conservation strategy . Many governments have used the IUCN model to develop their own conservation plans. In addition, the IUCN monitors the status of endangered wildlife, threatened national parks and preserves, and other environments around the world. Zoos and botanical gardens also work to protect wildlife. Many zoos raise and breed endangered animals to increase their populations. They conduct research and help educate the public about endangered species . For instance, the San Diego Zoo in the U.S. state of California runs a variety of research programs on topics ranging from disease control in amphibians to heart-healthy diets for gorillas. Scientists at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, in London, England, work to protect plant life around the world. Kew’s Millennium Seed Bank , for example, works with partners in 54 countries to protect biodiversity through seed collection. Kew researchers are also exploring how DNA technology can help restore damaged habitats. Individuals can do many things to help conserve resources. Turning off lights, repairing leaky faucets, and recycling paper, aluminum cans, glass, and plastic are just a few examples. Riding bikes, walking, carpooling, and using public transportation all help conserve fuel and reduce the amount of pollutants released into the environment. Individuals can plant trees to create homes for birds and squirrels. At grocery stores, people can bring their own reusable bags. And people can carry reusable water bottles and coffee mugs rather than using disposable containers. If each of us would conserve in small ways, the result would be a major conservation effort.

Tree Huggers The Chipko Movement, which is dedicated to saving trees, was started by villagers in Uttar Pradesh, India. Chipko means hold fast or embrace. The villagers flung their arms around trees to keep loggers from cutting them down. The villagers won, and Uttar Pradesh banned the felling of trees in the Himalayan foothills. The movement has since expanded to other parts of India.

Thirsty Food People require about 2 to 4 liters of drinking water each day. However, a day's worth of food requires 2,000 to 5,000 liters of water to produce. It takes more water to produce meat than to produce plant-based foods.

Tiger, Tiger Tigers are dangerous animals, but they have more to fear from us than we have to fear from them. Today there are only about 3,200 tigers living in the wild. Three tiger subspecies the Bali, Caspian, and Javan tigers have gone extinct in the past century. Many organizations are working hard to protect the remaining tigers from illegal hunting and habitat loss.

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Human Impact on Environment Essay

Ecological problem is one of the most important issues nowadays. Human activities have a negative impact on the environment. Humanity currently faces problems with air, water, and lands pollution, unreasonable agricultural systems, deforestation, and others. As a result, the number of available natural resources is decreasing. Another negative consequence of human activities is the process of global warming and global climate changes. These changes affect the whole Earth and might result in adverse consequences for people and wild nature (“The Consequences of Climate Change”). Therefore, it is obvious that the situation should be improved.

Probably, everybody asks oneself what he or she personally could do to improve the ecological situation. After all, the main source of pollution is the industry sector. However, we all belong to humanity and make our small impact on the environment. And we all could make the situation slightly better. Our daily habits have both positive and negative long-term consequences for the world we live in. It is important to understand to plan our life and our activities.

As far as my family and I are concerned, we performed several steps to reduce the negative impact on the environment. First of all, we all try to save clean water. We always remember to turn off our taps. We do not keep the water running when we brush teeth or wash something. Saving clean water is very important for the environment. The problem of clean water availability, probably, is one of the most pressing. No living creature can survive without clean water. Fewer sources we use, more of them remain for the future generation.

Another important action we perform to improve the situation with water is avoiding water pollution. Our family refused to use cleaning detergents with phosphates as it is known that these substances are harmful to human health. Moreover, it is difficult to eliminate these compounds from water. Therefore, phosphates in the water get to nature and poison living organisms. Thus, it is better to use detergents without phosphates. It helps to keep the healthy and to reduce water pollution.

Except for water pollution, there are a lot of other problems that need to be solved. One of them is waste deposits. These deposits occupy a large area. Different wastes need different (however, always significant) times to decompose. Besides, while decomposing, a lot of harmful compounds appear. These compounds poison the land and can get to the water. In the last decades, a lot of programs of waste separation appeared. People are asked to separate the waste: to combine plastic with plastic, organic with organic, and paper with paper. Different wastes are treated in different ways, which allows cutting pollution. For example, plastic can be remolded and used again, while it requires hundreds of years for its degradation in nature. Moreover, during this process, a lot of harmful products release (Law and Thompson 144). Thus, it is better to separate plastic material and recycle it. It would be even better not to use plastic at all, and when it is possible, try to use biopolymers instead.

It is important to understand that small steps are better than nothing. If we want to improve the ecological situation, we should start with ourselves, analyze our daily activities, and make improvements where it is possible. Carrying about our environment is our responsibility as citizens. Finally, the small effects of such actions might summarize positive global changes.

Works Cited

“The Consequences of Climate Change.” NASA . 2017, Web.

Law, Kara Lavender, and Richard C. Thompson. “Microplastics in the Seas.” Science, vol. 345, no. 6193, 2014, pp. 144-145.

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IvyPanda. (2023, October 29). Human Impact on Environment. https://ivypanda.com/essays/human-impact-on-environment/

"Human Impact on Environment." IvyPanda , 29 Oct. 2023, ivypanda.com/essays/human-impact-on-environment/.

IvyPanda . (2023) 'Human Impact on Environment'. 29 October.

IvyPanda . 2023. "Human Impact on Environment." October 29, 2023. https://ivypanda.com/essays/human-impact-on-environment/.

1. IvyPanda . "Human Impact on Environment." October 29, 2023. https://ivypanda.com/essays/human-impact-on-environment/.

Bibliography

IvyPanda . "Human Impact on Environment." October 29, 2023. https://ivypanda.com/essays/human-impact-on-environment/.

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How Can We All Help Conserve Nature?

When we speak about conserving nature, we are really talking about taking care of our future, because nature provides essential resources for our survival and enjoyment. We asked an international group of scientists working on different environmental issues worldwide to identify important practical actions that we can all do to help conserve nature. We obtained nearly 100 responses and grouped them into three main categories: (1) Actions to reduce our ecological footprint; (2) Actions to conserve nature; and (3) Actions that help us connect with nature. We briefly explain actions that can be performed daily to reduce our impact on nature, and provide some useful links for further reading.

Protecting Nature to Ensure Our Future

We often forget how much humans depend on nature . Even city-dwellers living in modern skyscrapers need air to breathe, water to drink, and food to eat, all of which are provided by nature. True, you can buy bottled water and ready-to-eat meals in supermarkets, but they were not produced there. Some fruits and vegetables, for example, only grow in tropical countries and cross the globe in refrigerated ship containers, to arrive just ripe to your local supermarket. All drinking water ultimately comes from a natural source, since we still do not have the technology to manufacture large amounts of water in the laboratory [ 1 ]. The same applies to the air we breathe, which is purified and oxygenated by plants [ 2 ]. So, when we speak about preserving nature, we are really also talking about preserving ourselves.

Whereas nature encompasses the natural environment as a whole, the term biodiversity [ 3 ] is used to refer to all living organisms. Biodiversity is ultimately responsible for the services we receive from nature, which are also called Ecosystem Services [ 4 ] or Nature's Contribution to People [ 5 ]. For example, forests containing many different bee species provide pollination services to nearby crop fields. In places where natural forests have been cut down, beekeepers must bring in artificial beehives to guarantee that enough pollinators visit crop flowers to produce fruit [ 6 ]. Other wild organisms, like wasps and birds, act as pest-control agents for agricultural crops, reducing the population of pests that damage those crops, and resulting in higher crop yields.

You are probably thinking that you already knew about this, and that there is not much you can do to preserve air, water, or fruit trees. But even if you live in a big city, far away from oxygen-producing forests, natural water springs, or crop fields, your daily actions can have a strong impact on these natural resources. Spilling a single drop of cooking oil while cleaning the dishes contaminates a million drops of water. Traveling in a vehicle powered by fossil fuels contributes to air pollution and global climate change [ 7 ]. Buying certain processed food ingredients, like palm oil, can contribute to massive deforestation in the tropics, as farmers clear land to grow these crops for money. All these impacts together make up what is called our ecological footprint on nature [ 8 ], which is a measure to quantify our daily life's impact on nature.

We will now share with you some important practical actions that we can all do to help conserve nature, to preserve our own well-being, and to guarantee that natural resources are available for future generations.

What Actions Can We Take to Help Conserve Nature?

We asked an international group of scientists, working on various environmental issues, to provide ideas on what young people can do to help conserve nature. We obtained nearly 100 responses and then organized all of the ideas by grouping them into three main categories: (1) Actions to reduce our ecological footprint ( Figure 1 ); (2) Actions to conserve nature ( Figure 2 ); and (3) Actions to connect with nature ( Figure 3 ). Below we explain each.

• Figure 1 - Word cloud showing the key actions that can be taken to reduce our ecological footprint.

• Figure 2 - Word cloud showing the key actions that can be taken to conserve nature.

• Figure 3 - Word cloud showing the key actions that can be taken to connect with nature.

Reduce our ecological footprint: Reducing our ecological footprint means placing less demand on nature (read here about the 3Rs—reduce, reuse and recycle; and get some ideas here on how you can help nature). Here are some ways that you can do this:

• Recycle your rubbish and participate in or help organize recycling campaigns.
• Avoid littering and participate in or help organize litter clean-ups ( here you can link to a website for volunteering or starting your own beach clean-up).
• Use less plastic by, for example, carrying a reusable water bottle, saying no to disposable straws and cutlery, avoiding plastic toys, and bringing your own shopping bags (for further ideas on a plastic-free life take a look here ).
• Swap toys, movies, and books instead of buying new ones.
• Donate, recycle, and repair electronic devices (see how here ).
• Use less water when brushing teeth, taking a shower, or washing the dishes.
• Use less electricity by turning off lights and electronic devices when not in use, using energy-saving light bulbs, and hanging clothes to dry.
• Use public transport, share a journey with friends (e.g., car-sharing), cycle, or walk when possible.
• Use less paper by not printing unnecessary things and reading e-books.
• Turn down the air conditioning when it is hot and use fans if you are still hot-they use much less power.
• Turn down the heat when it is cold and use sweaters, blankets, and socks to keep warm.
• Do not waste food and try to buy food that is grown locally and in season.
• Eat more non-meat proteins (like beans), less dairy, more vegetables, and more organic food when possible.
• Buy products that do not cause damage to the environment and that have certified labels (such as Rainforest Alliance and Animal Welfare ).
• Refuse to buy what you do not need, because every item you do not buy reduces the demand for the production of that item. For example, if everyone stopped buying plastic bags, super markets would stop selling them.

Conserve nature: Conserving nature means to protect, preserve and restore biodiversity. Here are some ways that you can do this:

• Try to prevent your pets from killing/harming wildlife (for some specific advice to help your local birds, see this ).
• Do not touch or take home wild animals or plants (see some advice here ).
• Plant native wildflowers, fruit trees, and pollinator-friendly plants in your garden or yard (for some related gardening tips, check out this ).
• Make compost to improve soil quality and to help insects (check out a guide to composting here ).
• Build and place bat houses, bird houses, and “bee hotels” in your garden, school grounds, and local green spaces ( here you can learn how make and manage a Bee hotel).
• Do not buy/keep wild pets at home (such as parrots, song birds, wild cats, or reptiles), in order to avoid supporting illegal trafficking of animals ( here you can find more info about illegal wildlife trade).
• Be aware of wild animals crossing the road and respect their paths ( here is some further information about the importance of wildlife crossings).

Connect with nature: Connecting with nature means setting aside time to interact with the natural environment. Here are some ways that you can do this:

• Play outside and spend more time in nature (read this link to find out why this is so important).
• Organize trips to explore the national parks/nature reserves close to you.
• Join conservation programs or eco-clubs (see how here ).
• Participate in nature-focused citizen science initiatives (learn more about citizen science here and see actual projects you can join here and here ).
• Use books or apps to identify the plants and animals around you (check out a cool app here ).
• Play games to learn more about nature (check out some fun examples here and here ).
• Use websites, blogs or social media to help raise awareness on the importance of conserving nature and share all these ideas).

Understanding the importance of nature and biodiversity for our own well-being can really help us to help nature. In this article, we have provided some practical ideas that we can all try to reduce our ecological footprint, conserve nature, and connect with nature. We encourage you to put these ideas into practice and share these actions with your family and friends.

Nature : ↑ The term that encompasses living organisms and the forces responsible for the physical world, such as the weather, mountains, oceans, and landscapes.

Biodiversity : ↑ The word biodiversity means the variety of all living organisms on Earth, and includes different levels of organization—from genes, species, and communities through to entire ecosystems.

Ecosystem Services : ↑ The many benefits that people get from natural ecosystems. These services can be broken down into provisioning (e.g., food and wood), supporting (e.g., soil formation and nutrient cycling), regulating (e.g., clean air and water purification), and cultural (e.g., recreation and eco-tourism).

Climate Change : ↑ Change in global or regional climate patterns, most due to increased levels of greenhouse gases produced by the burning of fossil fuels. Greenhouse gases, like carbon dioxide, act like a blanket, trapping heat near the Earth's surface, and raising the temperature.

Ecological Footprint : ↑ This is a measure of how much people take from nature, which is then compared to what natural resources are available to provide for people.

Conflict of Interest Statement

The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.

[1] ↑ Ernst, C., Gullick, R., and Nixon, K. 2004. Conserving forests to protect water. Opflow 30:1–7. doi: 10.1002/j.1551-8701.2004.tb01752.x

[2] ↑ Nowak, D. J., Hirabayashi, S., Bodine, A., and Greenfield, E. 2014. Tree and forest effects on air quality and human health in the United States. Environ. Pollut. 193:119–29. doi: 10.1016/j.envpol.2014.05.028

[3] ↑ Carrington, D. 2018. What is Biodiversity and Why Does it Matter to Us? Guard. Available online at: https://www.theguardian.com/news/2018/mar/12/what-is-biodiversity-and-why-does-it-matter-to-us

[4] ↑ Millennium Ecosystem Assessment 2005. Ecosystems and Human Well-being: Synthesis . Washington, DC: Island Press. Available online at: http://www.millenniumassessment.org/documents/document.356.aspx.pdf

[5] ↑ Daz, S., Pascual, U., Stenseke, M., Martn-López, B., Watson, R. T., Molnár, Z., et al. 2018. Assessing nature's contributions to people. Science 359:270–2. doi: 10.1126/science.aap8826

[6] ↑ Potts, S. G., Imperatriz-Fonseca, V. L., and Thompson, H. M. (Eds.). 2016. The Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services on Pollinators, Pollination and Food Production . Bonn: Secretariat of the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services. Available online at: https://www.ipbes.net/assessment-reports/pollinators

[7] ↑ Center for Climate and Energy Solutions. Climate Basics for Kids . Available online at: https://www.c2es.org/content/climate-basics-for-kids/ (accessed June, 2019).

[8] ↑ Global Footprint Network. Ecological Footprint . Available online at: https://www.footprintnetwork.org/our-work/ecological-footprint/ (accessed June, 2019).

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• Environmental Protection Essay

Essay on Environmental Protection

Environmental protection is improving, defending, and maintaining the quality of the environment. The main methods of environmental protection are recycling, reusing, and reducing; however, some other methods such as Green Energy production, green transportation development, and eco-friendly industrialization also exist. Not only residents but also businesses and industries should play their basic roles to improve the environment.

The History of Environmental Protection  

Humankind has always been concerned about the environment. The ancient Greeks were the first to develop environmental philosophy, and they were followed by other major civilizations such as India and China. In more recent times, the concern for the environment has increased because of growing awareness of the ecological crisis. The Club of Rome, a think tank, was among the first to warn the world about the dangers of overpopulation and pollution in its report "The Limits to Growth" (1972).

In the early days of environmentalism, people thought that the best way to protect nature was to set aside areas where humans would not disturb the environment. This approach, which is known as preservation, was given a major boost in the United States with the establishment of the National Park Service in 1916.

The modern environmental movement began in the 1960s when concerns about the negative impact of humans on the environment began to increase. In response to these concerns, governments around the world began to pass legislation to protect the environment. In the United States, for example, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) was established in 1970.

The Principles of Environmental Protection

There are three fundamental principles of environmental protection:

The precautionary principle: This principle states that if an activity has the potential to cause harm to the environment, then steps should be taken to prevent that harm even if there is no clear evidence that the activity is damaging.

The polluter pays principle: This states that the party responsible for causing pollution should be held responsible for cleaning it up.

The public right to know the principle: This principle states that the public has a right to know about any potential threats to the environment and what is being done to address them.

The goals of Environmental Protection

There are three main goals of environmental protection:

To protect human health: This is the most important goal of environmental protection because humans cannot survive without a healthy environment.

To protect ecosystems: Ecosystems are the foundation of life on Earth, and they provide many benefits to humans, such as clean air and water, food, and fiber.

To promote sustainable development: Sustainable development is a development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.

Environmental protection is a practice that aims to protect the natural environment from the hands of individuals, organizations, and governments. It is the need of the hour because the Earth's environment is deteriorating every day, and the reasons are human beings. They are mishandling the Earth's environment to fulfill their needs. If it goes like this, then it is difficult to say that the future generation will have a safer environment to live in. Through this essay, you will learn the importance of environmental protection.

A Long Essay on Environmental Protection

It is imperative to protect our natural environment from deteriorating, and the only way to do that is through environmental protection. This process should be adopted by every country as soon as possible before it is too late. The objective of this process is to conserve all the natural resources and try to repair some parts of the environment that are possible to get repaired. The biophysical environment is getting degraded permanently because of overconsumption, population growth, and the rapid development of technology. This can be stopped if the government plan strategies to restrict these activities to perform in a controlled way. This environmental protection essay can be a great help for the students to understand the environment they are living in.

Voluntary Environmental Agreements

Voluntary environmental agreements are getting popular in most industrial countries. Through this free essay on environmental protection, one will learn more about this type of agreement. These agreements provide the companies with a platform where they are recognized if they are moving beyond the minimum regulatory standards for protecting the environment. These agreements support the development of one of the best environmental practices. For example, the India Environment Improvement Trust (EIT) has been working in this environment field since the year 1998. Through this environmental protection essay, one is getting so much to learn.

Ecosystems Approach

An ecosystem approach to environmental protection aims to consider the complex interrelationships of the ecosystem as a whole to the process of decision making rather than just focusing on specific issues and challenges. The environmental protection essay writing will give a more precise overview of this approach. The ecosystems approach aims to support the better transferring of information, develop strategies that can resolve conflicts, and improve regional conservation. This approach has played a major role in protecting the environment. This approach also says that religions also play an important role in the conservation of the environment.

International Environmental Agreements

In the present scenario, many of the Earth's natural resources have become vulnerable because of humans and their carelessness towards the environment across different countries. As a result of this, many countries and their governments have come into different agreements to reduce the human impact on the natural environment and protect it from getting deterioration. Through this environmental protection essay in English, one will get a much clearer view on this matter particularly.

The agreements made between different governments of various countries are known as International Environmental Agreements. This agreement includes factors such as climate, oceans, rivers, and air pollution. These agreements are sometimes legally bound, and in case they are not followed, it may lead to some legal implications. These agreements have a long history with some multinational agreements that were made in the year 1910 in Europe, America, and Africa. Some of the most well-known international agreements are the Kyoto Protocol and the Paris Agreement. Through this environmental protection essay, it is clear that governments are taking steps to solve the environmental issue, but it is not enough.

A Short Paragraph on Environmental Protection in English

Earth is a beautiful place to live in, with the most favorable environmental conditions for living beings. But we humans are making it vulnerable and are destroying our own homes with activities that are causing pollution at an increased rate. In this protecting the environment essay, 200 words will be explained properly on how to save the environment.

Environmental protection has become the need of the hour as it is getting destroyed each day. So, governments are making policies and are coming into agreements with other countries to come up with strategies that can protect the environment. Some companies also have the same aim of protecting the environment from the activities of humans.

In this short article on environmental protection, it is clear that if sudden steps are not taken then, our future generation will have to live in a polluted environment that is conserved very conserve difficult. Environmental protection is the key to a safe and secure future with a beautiful environment to live in. 

With pollution increasing each year and causing deterioration of the natural environment, it has become necessary to take steps to protect the natural environment. As we know that the reason for all these problems is humans, governments should make policies to restrict their activities that are causing harm to the environment. If they are not stopped urgently, then the world might see some catastrophic destruction in the coming years. For example, climate change has been a huge problem, and this is one of the causes of increased pollution. A secured future depends on the environment as a whole.

FAQs on Environmental Protection Essay

1. What are International Environmental Agreements?

International environmental agreements are legal contracts between countries that discuss the protection of the environment to provide better living to present and future generations. These include issues such as climate, oceans, rivers, air pollution, etc. we should always consider that if we harm our environment, then it can affect us as well, and we will become more vulnerable. If we do not take action now, it might get a lot worse. We need to be the generation that starts taking care of our planet and future generations!

2. What is the Kyoto Protocol?

The Kyoto Protocol is one of the most well-known and successful international environmental agreements that has been made in the past to protect the environment. This agreement between countries was made to reduce the emission of greenhouse gases which are causing damage to the ozone layer and climate change. With the help of Kyoto, protocol countries have reduced emission rates by 8% and are planning to reduce them more so that future generations can live in a healthy environment in which they can flourish.

3. What is the Paris Agreement?

The Paris Agreement was made in 2015 to reduce the emission of greenhouse gases and to stop climate change. This agreement is very important as it includes every country in the world, and all have agreed to work together to stop climate change. This is a huge step forward as it means that everyone is now working together to try to save our planet. If we try to solve these problems together, then we will have a chance to save our planet.

4. What is the Green Climate Fund?

The Green Climate Fund comes from an agreement made in 2010 to provide money for developing countries that are going through issues such as deforestation and air pollution by making them more sustainable. This fund has a goal of collecting 100 billion dollars by 2020 for supporting developing countries. If this can happen, then many lives can be saved, and we will be able to see a lot of positive changes in the coming years and decades so that we can see an improved environment.

5. What are some activities that harm the Environment?

Some activities that harm the environment include burning fossil fuels, deforestation, air pollution, and wastewater discharge. These activities harm not only the environment but also humans, and we must take action now to reduce the impact which we are causing. For example, the burning of fossil fuels is one of the main reasons for climate change and air pollution, which both have a huge impact on humans. If we stop these activities, then it will be a lot better for everyone!

6. How can we protect the Environment?

Environmental protection is very much required in today's time. Some of the ways to protect the environment are to reduce, reuse, recycle, conserve water, save electricity, clean up the community, educate people on pollution, conserve water, preserve soil, tree plantation, use long-lasting bulbs, and plant trees. Heaven these are the ways which help us to protect the environment from getting polluted.

7.  Why is Environmental Protection Important?

The ecosystem in which we live provides the natural services that are very much important to humans and other species for health, quality of life, and survival. So to protect that, environmental protection is very important. Hence, governments of various countries should make strategies to protect our natural environment from getting polluted.

Environmental Protection Essay

The environmental protection essay is a great way to assist the little ones in understanding how to protect the environment. Environmental protection has emerged as one of the major challenges in the world for centuries and has always been important to humans. As of late, it has seen a dramatic change in environmental policy, primarily through the use of the law. One way that law is used to protect the environment is by enacting government regulations on pollution and preventing environmental degradation.

Environmental protection is an integral part of today’s society, but many people lack even basic knowledge on what they can do to help protect our environment. The destruction of the environment and the depletion of natural resources are significant issues that are ever-present. In this essay, there will be a list of ideas for participating in the fight against these problems. This essay on environmental protection describes the meaning and importance of environmental protection and also teaches the right method to preserve the environment.

How to Protect the Environment Essay

Environmental protection is the practice of protecting the natural environment against various human activities that degrade, destroy, or otherwise reduce its quality for future generations. Environmental protection has become a widespread issue in recent decades as human pressures on the environment have increased exponentially.

There are many ways to protect the environment. One way to protect the environment is by recycling – a way to reduce the carbon footprint and conserve natural resources. It also decreases the amount of waste that goes into landfills, which causes less pollution to water bodies. Another way is to use eco-friendly products in your life. This can contribute to a healthier environment by reducing the number of harmful chemicals and toxins in the air, ground, and water.

To protect the environment, we should be conscious of what we consume and how we consume it. Many factors affect the quality of our air, water, and land, but it is best to start small by always considering its impact on the environment.

Afforestation and tree plantation help protect our environment by reducing global warming, soil erosion, etc. We can reduce our carbon footprint through carpooling instead of driving, which is cheaper and reduces our energy usage and emissions.

For more essays similar to the environmental protection essay, visit BYJU’S website. You can also find more exciting kids’ learning resources, such as poems, stories, worksheets, etc., on the website.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is environmental protection.

Environmental protection is the practice of protecting the natural environment by maintaining the quality of air, water, land or ecosystem. The effects that humans have on their environment create issues for the natural environment. This can include air pollution, water pollution, and degradation of land. Governments and people are involved with environmental protection through policies and regulations.

How to protect the environment?

Environmental protection has seen a dramatic change, especially through environmental laws. These laws call for reducing pollution and environmental degradation.

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A Long Term Strategy for People and the Planet

The Earth is at a tipping point. Here are 3 actions global leaders must take now.

Last updated January 10, 2024

Our planet faces the interconnected crises of rapid climate change and biodiversity loss. We have years, not decades, to address these existential threats.

Global Insights Newsletter

We explore the top sustainability issues and their solutions—in a 5-minute read or less.

In 2023, a new word was born to describe interacting current and future risks with potentially catastrophic consequences: polycrisis.

Another word is about to enter our collective dictionaries: permacrisis. Will this be our fate, or will 2024 be a time for resolution, resilience and recovery? This is a pivotal moment for global leaders attending the World Economic Forum annual meeting in Davos, where they will develop a long-term strategy to prepare for and respond to these risks.

What we do between now and 2030 will determine whether we slow warming to 1.5° Celsius while also conserving enough land and water to fix biodiversity loss. The good news is there is much that global leaders can do now to keep the polycrisis from becoming a permacrisis.

3 Things We Must Do To Save The Planet

Solutions to climate change and biodiversity loss won't come from any one sector: they'll come from governments, finance, business and civil society. We can achieve a nature-positive world by 2050 while providing affordable, secure and inclusive access to energy, food and water.

Here are three ways we need to up-end “business as usual” and act boldly to advance conservation.

1. Produce more food on less land.

Today’s version of large-scale agriculture is the biggest source of land conversion, drives deforestation that worsens climate change, uses 70% of the world’s freshwater supply and relies on fertilizer practices that pollute our waters. As the need to feed a billion more people increases, agricultural expansion could devastate habitats, release even more carbon into the atmosphere, and dry up rivers.

Transitioning to Regenerative Food Systems

Our global food system can help us achieve our climate and biodiversity goals.

How to fix it:

Produce food where it’s most likely to thrive, which will use less water and less land.

How we’re taking action right now:

We’re analyzing satellite images and local yield potential to pinpoint where soy farming and cattle ranching can expand without destroying nature. This approach is especially vital in Brazil’s Cerrado region, where half of all natural habitat has already been converted to cropland and pasture. Cooperating with farmers on sustainable practices can help save what’s left of the Cerrado’s rich savanna.

2. Increase clean energy.

Climate change is the single most serious threat facing our planet today. We must reduce carbon emissions to, or below, levels agreed to in the Paris Climate Agreement to prevent catastrophic harm. And with global energy demand expected to increase 56% over the next couple decades, it will be impossible to meet those emissions targets if we stick primarily with traditional fossil fuels.

Benefits of Solar Energy on Former Mine Sites

An affordable path to repurposing former mines into clean energy hubs.

Shift 85% of the world’s energy supply to non-fossil fuel sources and invest in strategies like reforestation that capture carbon dioxide.

We’re championing regulations that allow former mining lands to be repurposed for solar and wind energy. Tens of thousands of acres of degraded mine sites in Nevada’s Great Basin are now available for renewable energy development. By targeting already-disturbed land, new turbines and solar panels won’t need to destroy more natural habitat.

There is much that global leaders can do right now to build a better future for people and the planet. Our newsletter explores potential solutions to our top challenges, all in a five-minute read or less.

3. Get $700 billion to finance nature.

Our economies depend on healthy, supportive natural systems. In fact, around half of the gross world product is dependent on nature. Globally, we're already spending up to $143 billion USD each year on activities that benefit nature, but we need more. A lot more. We need to spend at least $722 billion (and as much as $967 billion) USD every year, putting the nature finance gap at $579-824 billion USD.

A Finance Plan for the Planet

Here's how we get $700 billion each year to reverse the biodiversity crisis.

We need to close the funding gap—and spend at least $700 billion USD on nature every year—to reverse the decline in biodiversity by 2030. Fortunately, this number is only 1% of annual gross global product, or about what the world spends on soft drinks.

Through our Nature Bonds program, we’re taking a holistic approach to leverage debt refinancing for effective, durable conservation and climate action. We work with governments to help them refinance debt and generate new funding to invest in conservation, and in climate mitigation and adaptation measures. Like in Barbados, where we worked with the government, partners from the financial and conservation sectors, and local communities to develop a set of commitments for durable conservation that is tailored to meet the country’s specific needs.

We truly do have the power to build a future in which nature and people can thrive together.

A more sustainable path is possible. But we need to rally individuals, governments, companies and communities around the world to take action with us over the next decade. When we’re at the table with leaders around the world, it gives us great strength to show how many people are with us.

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TNC’s Nature Bonds Program combines debt refinancing, science, planning and policy to help countries protect ecosystems and support communities.

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How to Save the Environment: 17 Easy & Helpful Things You Can Do at Home

Last Updated: March 13, 2024 Fact Checked

This article was co-authored by One Tree Planted and by wikiHow staff writer, Glenn Carreau . One Tree Planted is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit on a mission to make it simple for anyone to help the environment by planting trees. Their projects span the globe and are done in partnership with local communities and knowledgeable experts to benefit nature, people, and wildlife. Since 2014, One Tree Planted has planted over 40 million trees across the globe. There are 13 references cited in this article, which can be found at the bottom of the page. This article has been fact-checked, ensuring the accuracy of any cited facts and confirming the authority of its sources. This article has been viewed 2,857,876 times.

Saving the environment might seem like a tall order, but living an environmentally friendly life is actually quite easy. With just a few small lifestyle changes, you can protect the planet while creating a healthier life for yourself and future generations. A single household or individual can make a big difference: the more people become environmentally conscious, the healthier our planet will be. Read on for a comprehensive list of tips on how you can save the environment at home.

Things You Should Know

• Follow the 3 Rs: reduce, reuse, and recycle! Upcycle things you don’t need in fun creative projects, shop secondhand, and compost scraps too.
• Eat locally-grown foods, cut back on meat and dairy, and shop at farmer’s markets. Make an effort to conserve water and electricity around the house.
• Walk or bike rather than drive a car when possible. Volunteer your time to clean up the community and advocate for environmental awareness.

Plant a tree in your yard.

• You can also plant other plants in your yard that are native to your area in order to support local ecosystems and wildlife.
• If you don’t have a yard of your own, you could always support organizations that aim to plant more trees, like the Nature Conservancy’s Plant a Billion Trees campaign, or One Tree Planted .

Cut back on driving.

• Combine multiple errands into one trip to minimize the distance traveled and fuel consumed.
• If you need to use a car, choose fuel-efficient models or hybrid/electric vehicles. Regularly maintain your vehicle to ensure optimal fuel efficiency.#*Carpooling will also enable you to take a highway's High Occupancy Vehicle (HOV) lane, usually saving time and money on gasoline.
• Many bus systems in major cities operate diesel-electric hybrid buses, reducing harmful emissions.

Volunteer to clean up your community.

• If you prefer to be part of a group, volunteer with friends, your class, a church group, or anyone else.

Recycle items properly.

• Check the rules and regulations in your area to ensure you recycle properly. For instance, some places may not accept glass, while others might require you to separate the different materials.
• It’s important to know what is and is not recyclable in your area because if you dispose of something improperly, the whole load will likely be rejected and end up in a landfill.

Upcycle items.

• You might turn glass jars into windchimes or create lanterns with them. You could turn an old metal dish rack into hanging wall storage or use old newspapers to line a garden path before covering it with pebbles.
• Upcycling can be as simple as refinishing or repainting a piece of furniture rather than replacing it outright!
• If you aren’t going to reuse something yourself, donate it. This ensures that nothing is wasted, and someone in need can use your old items.

Compost your food scraps and yard waste.

• Food scraps that can go in the compost pile include fruits and veggies, egg shells, coffee grounds, nut shells, and tea bags.
• You can compost plant matter like yard trimmings, grass clippings, leaves, houseplants, sawdust, and wood chips.
• Other biodegradable materials include shredded newspapers, cardboard, hair and fur, and even fireplace ashes.
• If you don’t plan to use your compost, check and see if garbage removal services in your area can pick up organic waste as well as trash and recycling.

Cut back on product consumption.

• Avoid purchasing products with excess packaging. Often, food companies spend just as much energy creating the packaging for food products as they do producing the actual food.
• When you do buy something, look for durable products that will last you a long time.
• Borrow or rent items you need only for brief or occasional use.

Shop at second-hand stores.

• This philosophy also applies to bigger purchases, like cars. Buying a secondhand car can help the environment and impacts your wallet less.
• If you have family members or friends looking to give away some clothing, consider doing a swap with them. You can refresh your wardrobe without buying anything at all.

Choose reusable items over single-use plastic.

• Next time you need batteries, consider investing in rechargeable ones. Most batteries can now be thrown out with the regular trash—thanks to reduced chemical use—but they still take up space in landfills.

Reduce the amount of paper you print and use.

• Try using a washable cloth or sponge for most of your cleanup if possible.

Buy locally-sourced foods.

• If you’re in the US, look for CSAs using the Department of Agriculture’s directory . Otherwise, do an online search for CSA produce boxes. Local foods are fresher, so they’re higher in nutrient value!
• Avoid waste by planning your meals ahead of time so you don’t cook more than you’ll eat. Store leftovers and use them for one of your meals over the next few days.
• Buy from local artisans, clothing makers, and retailers too. Avoid ordering things online to be shipped to you whenever possible. The more locally-sourced products you buy, the better.

Cut back on eating meat and dairy.

• You don’t have to go fully vegetarian or vegan, especially if you have dietary restrictions that would make it difficult. The most important thing is to cut back on meat and dairy as much as your dietary needs allow.
• Meat and dairy are also typically more expensive, so cutting back and eating vegetarian meals can help your wallet!
• Eat more seafood as well. Seafood (and seafood fishing) is much more sustainable than producing vast amounts of meat and dairy, and it’s a great source of protein in your diet.

Conserve water around the house.

• Consider investing in a high-efficiency washing machine in the future.
• Fix leaky faucets and pipes as soon as possible to avoid wasting water.
• Install efficient shower heads and low-flow faucets in your kitchen and bathrooms to reduce water consumption further.
• Use a pool cover if you have an outdoor swimming pool. This will prevent water from evaporating, so you don’t need to refill the pool as often.

Use fewer chemicals in your daily life.

• When you have hazardous materials to throw away—like fluorescent light bulbs, cleaning products, pharmaceuticals, pesticides, automotive fluids, and paint—be sure you dispose of it properly .
• Harmful chemicals and materials should never end up in a landfill, sanitary sewer, or storm drain! Contact your local waste management office for proper disposal options.
• Avoid blowing up helium balloons, too. Fill them up with regular air instead.

Conserve electricity at home.

• When you buy new appliances, be sure to choose Energy Star-certified products.
• Air-dry your clothes on a clothesline rather than turning on a dryer.
• Cut back on your heating and air conditioning use by ensuring your home is properly insulated and sealing air leaks around doors and windows.
• If nothing else, you can always throw on a sweater when it’s cold or turn on a fan when it’s hot, rather than using energy-consuming air conditioning or heating.

Donate to environmental causes.

• For example, you could host a Facebook fundraiser on your birthday and ask people to donate to an organization you support.
• Check out organizations working to save the environment like the Rainforest Alliance , Earthjustice , the Ocean Conservancy , or the World Wildlife Fund .

Encourage others to help save the environment.

• Visit https://www.usa.gov/elected-officials to find local representatives in the United States.
• If a friend or family member asks for tips, be sure to educate them about what they can do to save the environment and encourage them to get involved, too!
• It's a good idea to stay up-to-date on environmental issues, using reliable sources of information. This way, you'll be able to share helpful information if someone asks for tips on how they can save the environment.

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• ↑ https://www.nature.org/en-us/what-we-do/our-priorities/build-healthy-cities/cities-stories/benefits-of-trees-forests/
• ↑ https://www.onegreenplanet.org/environment/awesome-hands-on-ways-you-can-volunteer-to-help-the-environment/
• ↑ https://www.epa.gov/recycle/frequent-questions-recycling
• ↑ https://upcyclemystuff.com/what-is-upcycling/
• ↑ https://www.epa.gov/recycle/composting-home
• ↑ https://habitatbroward.org/blog/benefits-of-buying-things-second-hand/
• ↑ https://www.epa.gov/recycle/reducing-and-reusing-basics
• ↑ https://sustainability.uic.edu/green-campus/recycling/paper-waste-reduction/
• ↑ http://www.gogreen.org/blog/the-environmental-benefits-of-buying-locally
• ↑ https://www.epa.gov/watersense/start-saving
• ↑ https://www.epa.gov/greenchemistry/benefits-green-chemistry
• ↑ https://www.electricalsafetyfirst.org.uk//guidance/safety-around-the-home/energy-saving-tips/
• ↑ https://www.nrdc.org/stories/how-call-congress

About This Article

You can help save the environment by turning off things that use electricity when you're not using them and unplugging devices when they're not in use. You can conserve water by taking shorter showers, turning off the faucet when you're brushing your teeth, and doing laundry less frequently. Also, try walking or riding your bike instead of driving, which will help reduce carbon emissions. Buying your food locally also helps lower carbon emissions since the food doesn't have to be shipped from far away! If you want to learn more, like how to recycle or reuse materials, keep reading the article! Did this summary help you? Yes No

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Essay on Children’s Role in Protecting the Environment

Students are often asked to write an essay on Children’s Role in Protecting the Environment in their schools and colleges. And if you’re also looking for the same, we have created 100-word, 250-word, and 500-word essays on the topic.

Let’s take a look…

100 Words Essay on Children’s Role in Protecting the Environment

Importance of children in environmental protection.

Children are the future of our planet. They have a crucial role in protecting the environment. By learning about the environment, they can understand its importance and the need to preserve it.

Ways Children Can Help

Children can contribute in many ways. They can save water, recycle waste, plant trees, and reduce energy use. These small actions can make a big difference.

In conclusion, children should be encouraged to protect the environment. Their actions today will determine the future of our planet.

250 Words Essay on Children’s Role in Protecting the Environment

The importance of children in environmental protection.

Children, the future custodians of our planet, play an indispensable role in environmental protection. Their active participation is crucial in creating a sustainable world. They are not just passive beneficiaries, but active agents of change.

Education and Awareness

Environmental education is the cornerstone of children’s involvement. By integrating environmental topics into their curriculum, we can raise their awareness about the importance of the environment. This knowledge empowers them to make informed decisions, leading to responsible behaviors towards nature.

Practical Initiatives

Children can engage in practical initiatives such as recycling, tree planting, and waste management. These actions not only contribute to environmental conservation but also instill a sense of responsibility and ownership. They learn that their actions, however small, can make a significant difference.

Advocacy and Influence

Children can also play a role in advocacy. Through social media, school clubs, and community groups, they can influence their peers, families, and communities to adopt environmentally friendly practices. Their fresh perspectives and innovative ideas can drive change in environmental policies and practices.

In conclusion, children’s role in protecting the environment is multifaceted and significant. By educating them and encouraging their participation in environmental initiatives, we can ensure a greener and more sustainable future. Their advocacy and influence can drive societal change towards more sustainable practices. It is imperative that we nurture this potential and guide them in becoming responsible stewards of our planet.

500 Words Essay on Children’s Role in Protecting the Environment

The imperative of environmental protection.

The environment is a shared responsibility, and its protection is crucial for the survival and prosperity of all life forms on Earth. In this context, children, as the future stewards of our planet, play a critical role in safeguarding the environment. They are not just passive beneficiaries of this initiative but active participants, capable of making significant contributions.

Children as Agents of Change

Children are naturally curious and have an innate sense of justice. They are often more receptive to new ideas and are quick to adopt and promote environmentally friendly practices. They can act as catalysts for change within their families and communities, influencing adults to adopt sustainable practices. For instance, children can encourage their families to recycle, conserve water, reduce energy consumption, and make more sustainable choices in their daily lives.

Education: The Foundation of Environmental Stewardship

Education plays a pivotal role in children’s environmental responsibility. Schools and educational institutions must integrate environmental education into their curricula. This can include lessons on climate change, biodiversity, renewable energy, and waste management. By understanding these concepts, children can make informed decisions that positively impact the environment. Furthermore, hands-on activities such as tree planting, clean-up drives, and recycling projects can help children appreciate the importance of their actions.

Children’s Role in Policy Advocacy

Children can also play a significant role in advocating for environmental policies. They can use their voices to draw attention to environmental issues and influence policy decisions. This has been demonstrated by young activists like Greta Thunberg, who has mobilized millions of people globally to address climate change. Children can participate in peaceful protests, write to their local representatives, or use social media to raise awareness about environmental issues.

Empowering Children for a Sustainable Future

To fully harness the potential of children in environmental protection, it is essential to empower them. This involves providing them with the necessary knowledge, skills, and tools to act. It also means creating spaces for children to voice their concerns and ideas. Children should be included in decision-making processes related to the environment, whether at a family, school, or community level.

In conclusion, children have a significant role to play in protecting the environment. Their energy, creativity, and passion make them powerful agents of change. By empowering them through education and giving them a platform to express their views, we can ensure a more sustainable future. The task of environmental protection is a collective responsibility, and children are an integral part of this mission. Their active participation is not just desirable but necessary for the long-term health and sustainability of our planet.

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Desalination: What is it and how can it help tackle water scarcity?

A natural resources crisis like water scarcity is listed in the World Economic Forum’s 2024 Global Risks Report, as one of the top-10 threats facing the world in the next decade. Image:  Unsplash/Nathan Dumlao

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Stay up to date:, food and water.

This article was originally published on 12 March 2024 and updated on 15 April 2024

• Desalination increases access to safe, clean drinking water, but the process is energy-intensive and costly.
• Innovations are harnessing wave power and other forms of energy capture to reduce reliance on fossil fuels and curb emissions from desalination.
• A natural resources crisis is one of the leading global long-term threats, according to the World Economic Forum’s 2024 Global Risks Report.

Billions of people turn on a tap and expect clean drinking water to flow out, but this is not the reality for billions of others.

Rapid population growth, urbanization and increased global water consumption by agriculture, industry and energy have left a growing number of countries facing the threat of water scarcity.

One solution to meet the growing demand for freshwater is desalination, which involves removing the salt from seawater to produce drinking water. While this process alone can’t prevent a global water crisis, it can play a vital role in providing more people around the world with access to clean, safe drinking water.

Have you read?

25 countries face extremely high water stress, study finds, this new desalination system is inspired by the ocean and powered by the sun, how technology and entrepreneurship can quench our parched world, a future water crisis.

Water scarcity occurs when water demand outstrips available supply during a specific period – when water infrastructure is inadequate or institutions fail to balance people’s needs.

In 2022, 2.2 billion people lacked safely managed drinking water , including more than 700 million people living without a basic water service, according to the United Nations.

By 2030, there could be a 40% global shortfall in freshwater resources, which combined with world population growth that’s set to increase from 8 billion today to 9.7 billion by 2050 , would leave the world facing an extreme water crisis.

Sub-Saharan Africa is expected to see the biggest change in water demand, with a projected 163% increase by mid-century, World Resources Institute data shows. This is four times the expected rate of change in Latin America, the second-highest region.

Almost two-thirds of the planet’s surface is covered with water, and our oceans hold 96.5% of all water on Earth . However, its salt content makes this water unsuitable for humans to drink. This is where desalination comes in.

Types of desalination

There are a number of different methods of desalination, but most work either by a process of reverse osmosis or multistage flash to remove the salt from seawater .

Reverse osmosis is the more efficient of these two methods. The process uses a special membrane acting as a filter, which blocks and removes salt from seawater as it passes through. Here, powerful pumps generate enough pressure to ensure pure water is extracted.

Multistage flash desalination doesn't use a filter. Instead, saltwater is exposed to steam heat and pressure variations, which causes a portion of the water to evaporate – or "flash" – into water vapour or freshwater, leaving behind salty brine as a by-product.

Water security – both sustainable supply and clean quality – is a critical aspect in ensuring healthy communities. Yet, our world’s water resources are being compromised.

Today, 80% of our wastewater flows untreated back into the environment, while 780 million people still do not have access to an improved water source. By 2030, we may face a 40% global gap between water supply and demand.

The World Economic Forum’s Water Possible Platform is supporting innovative ideas to address the global water challenge.

The Forum supports innovative multi-stakeholder partnerships including the 2030 Water Resources Group , which helps close the gap between global water demand and supply by 2030 and has since helped facilitate $1Billion of investments into water.

Other emerging partnerships include the 50L Home Coalition , which aims to solve the urban water crisis , tackling both water security and climate change; and the Mobilizing Hand Hygiene for All Initiative , formed in response to close the 40% gap of the global population not having access to handwashing services during COVID-19.

Want to join our mission to address the global water challenge? Read more in our impact story .

Both desalination processes create brine containing high salt levels, which can pose a threat to marine ecosystems when released back into natural bodies of water. The output of both methods is clean drinking water. But, in addition to removing salt, the desalination process also removes organic or biological chemical compounds so the water produced doesn’t transmit diarrhoea or other diseases.

Wave-powered innovation

While reverse osmosis plants are more efficient than multistage flash plants, large-scale desalination plants require a lot of energy and maintenance, and are expensive to build and operate.

A number of innovative desalination systems are being developed to try and reduce the energy required to operate them and related emissions.

Oneka, a wave-powered desalination technology, is one such innovation . Floating buoys tethered to the ocean floor use wave power to drive a pump that forces seawater through filters and reverse osmosis membranes. The fresh water is then piped ashore again powered solely by the natural motion of waves, explains Canadian desalination company Oneka Technologies.

The system has several advantages over large-scale shore-based desalination plants that are mostly powered by combusting fossil fuels, but it does require high waves to work.

The small floating units require 90% less coastal land compared with a typical desalination plant, for example, the company says. Relying on emissions-free wave power rather than electricity demands less energy and generates fewer emissions than traditional desalination plants.

" Desalination facilities are conventionally powered by fossil fuels ," Susan Hunt, Chief Innovation Officer at Oneka Technologies, told the BBC. "But the world has certainly reached a pivot point. We want to move away from fossil fuel-powered desalination."

Dragan Tutic, Founder and CEO of Oneka Technologies, added that "our mission is to make the oceans an affordable and sustainable source of water."

Solar – low-cost water purification

Solar power has been used to convert saltwater into fresh drinking water , by researchers from King's College in London in collaboration with MIT and the Helmholtz Institute of Renewable Energy Systems.

A set of specialized membranes channel salt ions into a stream of brine, leaving fresh drinkable water. The system adjusts to variable sunlight without compromising the volume of drinking water produced. The process is 20% cheaper than traditional desalination methods, which could boost efforts to provide drinking water in developing countries, the researchers say.

Dutch start-up Desolenator – supported by Uplink, the innovation platform of the World Economic Forum – is also using solar power for its low-cost water-as-a-service model for communities and businesses .

The technology avoids the use of membranes or harmful chemicals, the company says, and customers can choose specific water types to meet their needs: ultra-pure water, pure potable water or customized re-mineralized water.

Each modular plant can produce up to 250,000 litres of freshwater daily, helping boost water security in water-scarce regions.

" We operate with 100% solar power, no harmful chemicals, and now we're building zero liquid discharge, which will make us the first fully circular solar desalination technology in the world," said Desolenator co-founder Alexei Levene.

"We take our waste brine and turn it into salt, so nothing goes back into the environment. It's a distributed technology that we can deploy and it's going to be the most sustainable desalination approach that there is," he said.

Averting a natural resources crisis

A natural resources crisis like water scarcity is listed in the World Economic Forum’s Global Risks Report 2024 , as one of the top 10 threats facing the world in the next decade.

Currently, desalination plants are used in regions like the Middle East, which has a hot climate alongside a buoyant and technologically able economy. But the energy-intensive nature and high costs of conventional desalination plants act as barriers to widespread take-up, the report says.

However, innovations that reduce the energy needed to operate desalination plants and reduce greenhouse emissions from their operations could change the situation and increase access to fresh drinking water for communities facing water challenges.

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License and Republishing

World Economic Forum articles may be republished in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International Public License, and in accordance with our Terms of Use.

The views expressed in this article are those of the author alone and not the World Economic Forum.

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Environmental Issues Essay for Students and Children

500+ words essay on environmental issues.

The environment plays a significant role to support life on earth. But there are some issues that are causing damages to life and the ecosystem of the earth. It is related to the not only environment but with everyone that lives on the planet. Besides, its main source is pollution , global warming, greenhouse gas , and many others. The everyday activities of human are constantly degrading the quality of the environment which ultimately results in the loss of survival condition from the earth.

Source of Environment Issue

There are hundreds of issue that causing damage to the environment. But in this, we are going to discuss the main causes of environmental issues because they are very dangerous to life and the ecosystem.

Pollution – It is one of the main causes of an environmental issue because it poisons the air , water , soil , and noise. As we know that in the past few decades the numbers of industries have rapidly increased. Moreover, these industries discharge their untreated waste into the water bodies, on soil, and in air. Most of these wastes contain harmful and poisonous materials that spread very easily because of the movement of water bodies and wind.

Greenhouse Gases – These are the gases which are responsible for the increase in the temperature of the earth surface. This gases directly relates to air pollution because of the pollution produced by the vehicle and factories which contains a toxic chemical that harms the life and environment of earth.

Climate Changes – Due to environmental issue the climate is changing rapidly and things like smog, acid rains are getting common. Also, the number of natural calamities is also increasing and almost every year there is flood, famine, drought , landslides, earthquakes, and many more calamities are increasing.

Above all, human being and their greed for more is the ultimate cause of all the environmental issue.

Get the huge list of more than 500 Essay Topics and Ideas

How to Minimize Environment Issue?

Now we know the major issues which are causing damage to the environment. So, now we can discuss the ways by which we can save our environment. For doing so we have to take some measures that will help us in fighting environmental issues .

Moreover, these issues will not only save the environment but also save the life and ecosystem of the planet. Some of the ways of minimizing environmental threat are discussed below:

Reforestation – It will not only help in maintaining the balance of the ecosystem but also help in restoring the natural cycles that work with it. Also, it will help in recharge of groundwater, maintaining the monsoon cycle , decreasing the number of carbons from the air, and many more.

The 3 R’s principle – For contributing to the environment one should have to use the 3 R’s principle that is Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle. Moreover, it helps the environment in a lot of ways.

To conclude, we can say that humans are a major source of environmental issues. Likewise, our activities are the major reason that the level of harmful gases and pollutants have increased in the environment. But now the humans have taken this problem seriously and now working to eradicate it. Above all, if all humans contribute equally to the environment then this issue can be fight backed. The natural balance can once again be restored.

FAQs about Environmental Issue

Q.1 Name the major environmental issues. A.1 The major environmental issues are pollution, environmental degradation, resource depletion, and climate change. Besides, there are several other environmental issues that also need attention.

Q.2 What is the cause of environmental change? A.2 Human activities are the main cause of environmental change. Moreover, due to our activities, the amount of greenhouse gases has rapidly increased over the past few decades.

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When is Earth Day? What to know about the upcoming day that celebrates protecting our home

The annual celebration of our planet is next week, but do you know why we celebrate?

Here's what to know about Earth Day.

When is Earth Day 2024?

Earth Day is on April 22 every year in the United States, but other parts of the world celebrate on the day of the spring equinox, according to National Geographic .

Why do we celebrate Earth Day?

Earth Day is about celebrating the progress of the environmental movement and it's efforts to help the planet.

"Earth Day is an annual celebration that honors the achievements of the environmental movement and raises awareness of the need to protect Earth’s natural resources for future generations," National Geographic said.

When was the first Earth Day?

The first Earth Day was April 22, 1970, and essentially founded the environmental movement. It was organized by politicians and students worried about conservation of the environment.

"Earth Day inspired 20 million Americans — at the time, 10% of the total population of the United States — to take to the streets, parks and auditoriums to demonstrate against the impacts of 150 years of industrial development which had left a growing legacy of serious human health impacts," according to EarthDay.org .

The first Earth Day also led to the creation of the United States Environmental Protection Agency which were responsible for passing the first major environmental laws including the National Environmental Education Act, the Occupational Safety and Health Act, the Clean Air Act, and only two years later, the Clean Water Act.

How do we celebrate Earth Day today?

Earth Day is still celebrated through activism and individuals doing their part by volunteering in their communities and educating themselves on environmental issues.

In Indianapolis, you can celebrate Earth Day at Garfield Park , the Indianapolis Zoo , the JCC , Tarkington Park and more.

Katie Wiseman is a trending news intern at IndyStar. Contact her at [email protected]. Follow her on Twitter @itskatiewiseman .

8 years into America’s e-scooter experiment, what have we learned?

The climate benefits of shared e-scooters depend upon how companies deploy and manage them, and what steps are taken to keep riders safe..

When the sharing economy took off in the 2010s and upended entire industries, the firmest proponents of the model heralded it as an economic revolution that would help slash emissions. Of all the ideas that emerged and dissolved over the years, shareable electric scooters seemed to possess the most promise for climate. Almost anyone with a smartphone and a credit card could grab one and ride it down the block or across town, eschewing automobiles.

Yet, as the industry matures and Lime — which, with operations in 280 cities worldwide, is the biggest player — moves further into its eighth year, researchers have shown that the eco-friendly dreams of shared micromobility have not materialized without problems. The true climate benefits of these fleets depends upon how companies deploy and manage them, and safety remains a concern as injuries climb. But industry leaders appear intent on ensuring their scooters are as sustainable and safe as possible.

“It’s really important as a company that has set a net-zero target by 2030,” said Andrew Savage, Lime’s head of sustainability, “that we walk the walk, and that we do everything we can to inspire the industries around us to decarbonize as well.”

The sustainability of shared micromobility is an active area of research in a fast-changing industry. Ultimately, researchers see two factors that determine the overall climate impact of e-scooters: how users ride them, and how operators manage them from manufacturing to disposal.

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A recent survey of the latest research questioned whether the sharing economy is inherently sustainable , including a particular look at e-scooters. The survey found many researchers were repeatedly concerned with the question: “If riders hadn’t rented a scooter, how would they have gotten to their destination?” If someone would have walked instead of ridden, that person increased the emissions associated with that trip. But several studies , including one by the Portland Bureau of Transportation and another, funded by Lime, by a German research institute , have found that though anywhere from a third to well over half of scooter users would have walked instead, enough other trips that would have been taken by car were not. Shared scooters, on the whole, help reduce overall transportation emissions — often preventing 20 grams of CO2 emissions per mile ridden on a scooter.

The picture in urban landscapes, however, can get slightly more complicated when researchers consider how those providing the scooters retrieve them to charge, repair, or redistribute them to where people are likely to use them. Colin Murphy, director of research and consulting at the Shared Use Mobility Center, said that when operators use big cargo vans to manage their fleets, they can negate some of the emissions savings from users.

To address this, Savage said the company is improving its fleet logistics to reduce overall emissions. Lime’s scooters and bikes are now equipped with larger, swappable battery packs, which means they need to be charged less often, and when they do, fleet workers can drive around with a trunk full of battery packs rather than taking the scooter back to a warehouse, effectively cutting logistics emissions in half while ensuring scooters are available more often. Savage said the company has also bought over 140 electric vans to support those operations. Though that’s 10 times the number Lime had a few years ago, it’s still only one van for every two cities it operates in.

Savage said Lime is also working to reduce its impacts in other ways. For instance, in North America, “once vehicles arrive at port,” Savage said, “we are now using emissions-free trucking to get those to our distribution centers.” Beyond that, the company has designed a modular bike that makes it easier to swap out damaged parts, and parts that are beyond repair are often sent for recycling. And it has worked with one company, Gomi, to salvage cells from partially damaged batteries for use in what it says are zero-waste Bluetooth speakers .

But perhaps the most concerning hurdle the industry faces is also the one over which it has, in reality, the least direct control: rider safety. One study, released earlier this year by researchers at the University of California, Los Angeles, found that from 2017 to 2020 serious injuries for scooter riders rose threefold , just as revenues for the scooter-sharing industry shot from $10 million to nearly $450 million. This trend only continued into 2021 and 2022, with micromobility injuries increasing an average of 23 percent every year . And these weren’t just scrapes and bruises. The UCLA-led study found that scooter users were, compared to cyclists, more likely to end up with a broken arm or leg, require surgery, or even end up paralyzed. The researchers suspect that may be due, among other things, to riders often lacking safety gear.

Lime insists that it places safety first . But with most American cities designed to promote cars over all other forms of transit, the health of scooter users is, like those of pedestrians and cyclists, at risk once wheels hit pavement. Perhaps it should be no surprise that of the 30 people killed in 2018 while riding an e-scooter, 80 percent were struck by a car . This is why, if society wants to move away from cars as the default, Kailai Wang, who studies urban mobility at the University of Houston, believes urban areas need to invest in upgraded infrastructure like protected bike lanes that can make roads safer for non-automotive transport.

Of course, cars aren’t the only dangers e-scooter users, like cyclists, face. Poor road and sidewalk conditions can lead to serious injuries. And sometimes riders are their own enemy. According to some studies, first-time riders and late-night riders face elevated risks. Murphy, said that these are two areas where scooter-sharing platforms and local policymakers can step in. 

For instance, he said that operators could artificially limit the max speed of a scooter during a user’s first few rides as they grow accustomed to the vehicle. In other cases, many cities prohibit e-scooter rides in the wee hours to prevent misuse. But “to the degree that these vehicles provide a real kind of transportation lifeline for some people,” Murphy said, “that’s almost when they’re at their most important.” For someone who ends a late shift after bus services end, an e-scooter might actually be their best, or only, means of getting home. This reality led the Chicago City Council, for example, to consider revising its own late-night prohibition.

As long as people have access to one of these vehicles when they need one, and a safe lane in which to ride it, shared micromobility can help cities move away from car-dependent transportation, slashing emissions in the process, by shifting transit from something material and energy-intensive to something low-impact and electric.

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Transportation, monitoring a ‘sea of trucks’ in chicago, disabled drivers can’t use many electric car chargers. it doesn’t have to be this way., in chicago, one neighborhood is fighting gentrification and climate change at the same time, the epa’s push to clean up trucking goes way beyond 18-wheelers, a new federal rule aims to protect miners from black lung disease, in a first, california cracks down on farms guzzling groundwater, who’s afraid of a 300-mile transmission line that could help decarbonize the southeast, the world’s 4th coral bleaching event has officially arrived, modal gallery.

Can green hydrogen production help bring oceanic dead zones back to life?

Green hydrogen production makes a lot of extra oxygen. Could we put it to work revitalizing the ocean?

By Brian Owens / Hakai Magazine | Published Apr 15, 2024 8:00 AM EDT

• Environment

This article was originally featured on  Hakai Magazine ,  an online publication about science and society in coastal ecosystems. Read more stories like this at  hakaimagazine.com .

Douglas Wallace was on a research ship in the middle of Canada’s Gulf of St. Lawrence when he heard the news: Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau had met with Olaf Scholz, the German chancellor, in nearby Stephenville, Newfoundland. At their meeting in August 2022, the two leaders locked in Canada’s commitment to supply Germany with hydrogen gas. They chose to  declare the “Canada-Germany hydrogen alliance”  in Stephenville because the town is the site of the proposed World Energy GH2 project, a facility that will use wind power to produce hydrogen gas.

The announcement allowed the world leaders to demonstrate the shared goals of increasing the availability of so-called green hydrogen and of reducing Germany’s reliance on Russian oil. But for Wallace, the news triggered a different idea.

At sea, Wallace, an oceanographer at Dalhousie University in Nova Scotia, was tracking how dissolved oxygen moves from the Atlantic Ocean through the gulf into the St. Lawrence River, and how the dearth of oxygen in some places can lead to the development of low-oxygen dead zones. In particular, he was concerned with one extra big and persistent dead zone that had taken up residence near Rimouski, Quebec, along the outlet of the St. Lawrence River. So when he heard that Canada was set to ramp up hydrogen production—achieved by electrically splitting water molecules into hydrogen and oxygen—he wondered: could all of that spare oxygen help bring the dead zone back to life?

For those who live on land, it’s easy to take abundant oxygen for granted. But underwater, persistent patches of low oxygen are “a fundamental control on habitat,” says Wallace.

As the world warms, the oceans are losing their oxygen. Since the 1950s, they’ve already lost about two percent—a figure that could hit four percent by the end of this century. The loss can be caused by excess nutrient runoff, as with the vast dead zone at the mouth of the Mississippi River in the Gulf of Mexico, and by changes in ocean circulation driven by climate change—the likely culprit in the Gulf of St. Lawrence.

Too little oxygen in the water can reduce the diversity of marine life as animals either leave the area or die. In the Gulf of St. Lawrence—where the size of the dead zone has grown nearly sevenfold since 2003 to encompass roughly 9,000 square kilometers—dropping oxygen levels are already affecting many commercially important and at-risk species, such as cod, halibut, and northern shrimp, Wallace says. “About 15 percent of the deeper parts of the Gulf of St. Lawrence are getting close to the threshold where a lot of marine animals will struggle to live,” he says.

Currently, scientists can do little to fix oceanic dead zones. In smaller bodies of water, such as lakes and reservoirs, managers can pump oxygen-rich water from the surface into oxygen-poor deep areas. But the ocean is way too big to be artificially churned. Maybe, thought Wallace, he could take the oxygen created during hydrogen production and somehow pump it into the gulf.

His calculations suggest that it could work . The proposed Stephenville plant would produce more than enough oxygen to replace what the gulf loses each year. And Wallace’s experiments tracking how oxygen moves through the region show that oxygen pumped into the gulf near Stephenville would reach the Rimouski dead zone several hundred kilometers away within a few years.

Sean Leet, CEO of World Energy GH2, says the company is actively investigating uses for the oxygen produced by the hydrogen plant and that he’s met with Wallace to discuss the idea. The company would support further research and discussions around how it might work in practice, he says.

Even with Leet’s interest, however, the viability of Wallace’s oxygenation scheme is far from certain.

For starters, Wallace’s plan relies on the existence of large-scale hydrogen production.  While the Stephenville plant seems to be on track  to be built, Mark Winfield, who studies sustainable energy and climate change at York University in Ontario, says that, in general, the hydrogen market has an iffy future. The market “is smaller than some think, and the transition to hydrogen will be harder than they think,” he says.

Hydrogen fuel cells are still extremely expensive, Winfield says, and in many ways—such as the rush to decarbonize transportation—hydrogen has already lost the race. Hydrogen as a fuel makes the most sense for large industrial applications that cannot easily be electrified such as cement and steel production. But at present, no hydrogen-powered steel plants have been built. “The market is not at all mature, and there has been no increase in demand,” says Winfield.

In many cases, he says, rather than using renewable electricity to produce hydrogen, it’s probably better to just send that power to the grid.

Leet, however, counters that there is potentially a big market for hydrogen in Europe—particularly in Germany, the Netherlands, and Belgium—with applications in steel manufacturing, heavy industry, aviation, and marine fueling. “Their demand for clean fuels far exceeds what Canada and other countries will be able to supply,” he says.

Beyond the big questions about the future of hydrogen manufacturing, pumping dead zones full of oxygen would also require overcoming many lingering engineering challenges and environmental concerns, says Wallace. This includes figuring out how exactly to capture the oxygen and deliver it to the deep ocean. But Wallace says these are not insurmountable challenges;  companies already do something similar in lakes on a much smaller scale .

Wallace also wants to determine what effect pumping large amounts of oxygen into the water would have on the local ecosystem and figure out how to fine-tune a process with a years-long lag between adding the oxygen and having it arrive at the dead zone. “We’d really want to do a small, controlled pilot before rushing in,” says Wallace.

And while the companies producing hydrogen would likely welcome a market for oxygen, a potentially valuable byproduct with no clear buyers, it’s unclear how it could generate revenue for them. Wallace suggests some form of credit, similar to carbon credits, but all the details would need to be worked out.

Despite the uncertainty, Wallace thinks it’s an avenue worth pursuing. “There are risks, but there are also risks to parts of the ocean becoming uninhabitable,” he says. “These are difficult questions, but we can’t avoid asking them, especially if there is a chance we can do something about it.”

This article first appeared in  Hakai Magazine  and is republished here with permission.

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Fall 2024 CSCI Special Topics Courses

Cloud computing.

Meeting Time: 09:45 AM‑11:00 AM TTh  Instructor: Ali Anwar Course Description: Cloud computing serves many large-scale applications ranging from search engines like Google to social networking websites like Facebook to online stores like Amazon. More recently, cloud computing has emerged as an essential technology to enable emerging fields such as Artificial Intelligence (AI), the Internet of Things (IoT), and Machine Learning. The exponential growth of data availability and demands for security and speed has made the cloud computing paradigm necessary for reliable, financially economical, and scalable computation. The dynamicity and flexibility of Cloud computing have opened up many new forms of deploying applications on infrastructure that cloud service providers offer, such as renting of computation resources and serverless computing.    This course will cover the fundamentals of cloud services management and cloud software development, including but not limited to design patterns, application programming interfaces, and underlying middleware technologies. More specifically, we will cover the topics of cloud computing service models, data centers resource management, task scheduling, resource virtualization, SLAs, cloud security, software defined networks and storage, cloud storage, and programming models. We will also discuss data center design and management strategies, which enable the economic and technological benefits of cloud computing. Lastly, we will study cloud storage concepts like data distribution, durability, consistency, and redundancy. Registration Prerequisites: CS upper div, CompE upper div., EE upper div., EE grad, ITI upper div., Univ. honors student, or dept. permission; no cr for grads in CSci. Complete the following Google form to request a permission number from the instructor ( https://forms.gle/6BvbUwEkBK41tPJ17 ).

CSCI 5980/8980 

Machine learning for healthcare: concepts and applications.

Meeting Time: 11:15 AM‑12:30 PM TTh  Instructor: Yogatheesan Varatharajah Course Description: Machine Learning is transforming healthcare. This course will introduce students to a range of healthcare problems that can be tackled using machine learning, different health data modalities, relevant machine learning paradigms, and the unique challenges presented by healthcare applications. Applications we will cover include risk stratification, disease progression modeling, precision medicine, diagnosis, prognosis, subtype discovery, and improving clinical workflows. We will also cover research topics such as explainability, causality, trust, robustness, and fairness.

Registration Prerequisites: CSCI 5521 or equivalent. Complete the following Google form to request a permission number from the instructor ( https://forms.gle/z8X9pVZfCWMpQQ6o6  ).

Visualization with AI

Meeting Time: 04:00 PM‑05:15 PM TTh  Instructor: Qianwen Wang Course Description: This course aims to investigate how visualization techniques and AI technologies work together to enhance understanding, insights, or outcomes.

This is a seminar style course consisting of lectures, paper presentation, and interactive discussion of the selected papers. Students will also work on a group project where they propose a research idea, survey related studies, and present initial results.

This course will cover the application of visualization to better understand AI models and data, and the use of AI to improve visualization processes. Readings for the course cover papers from the top venues of AI, Visualization, and HCI, topics including AI explainability, reliability, and Human-AI collaboration.    This course is designed for PhD students, Masters students, and advanced undergraduates who want to dig into research.

Registration Prerequisites: Complete the following Google form to request a permission number from the instructor ( https://forms.gle/YTF5EZFUbQRJhHBYA  ). Although the class is primarily intended for PhD students, motivated juniors/seniors and MS students who are interested in this topic are welcome to apply, ensuring they detail their qualifications for the course.

Visualizations for Intelligent AR Systems

Meeting Time: 04:00 PM‑05:15 PM MW  Instructor: Zhu-Tian Chen Course Description: This course aims to explore the role of Data Visualization as a pivotal interface for enhancing human-data and human-AI interactions within Augmented Reality (AR) systems, thereby transforming a broad spectrum of activities in both professional and daily contexts. Structured as a seminar, the course consists of two main components: the theoretical and conceptual foundations delivered through lectures, paper readings, and discussions; and the hands-on experience gained through small assignments and group projects. This class is designed to be highly interactive, and AR devices will be provided to facilitate hands-on learning.    Participants will have the opportunity to experience AR systems, develop cutting-edge AR interfaces, explore AI integration, and apply human-centric design principles. The course is designed to advance students' technical skills in AR and AI, as well as their understanding of how these technologies can be leveraged to enrich human experiences across various domains. Students will be encouraged to create innovative projects with the potential for submission to research conferences.

Registration Prerequisites: Complete the following Google form to request a permission number from the instructor ( https://forms.gle/Y81FGaJivoqMQYtq5 ). Students are expected to have a solid foundation in either data visualization, computer graphics, computer vision, or HCI. Having expertise in all would be perfect! However, a robust interest and eagerness to delve into these subjects can be equally valuable, even though it means you need to learn some basic concepts independently.

Sustainable Computing: A Systems View

Meeting Time: 09:45 AM‑11:00 AM  Instructor: Abhishek Chandra Course Description: In recent years, there has been a dramatic increase in the pervasiveness, scale, and distribution of computing infrastructure: ranging from cloud, HPC systems, and data centers to edge computing and pervasive computing in the form of micro-data centers, mobile phones, sensors, and IoT devices embedded in the environment around us. The growing amount of computing, storage, and networking demand leads to increased energy usage, carbon emissions, and natural resource consumption. To reduce their environmental impact, there is a growing need to make computing systems sustainable. In this course, we will examine sustainable computing from a systems perspective. We will examine a number of questions:   • How can we design and build sustainable computing systems?   • How can we manage resources efficiently?   • What system software and algorithms can reduce computational needs?    Topics of interest would include:   • Sustainable system design and architectures   • Sustainability-aware systems software and management   • Sustainability in large-scale distributed computing (clouds, data centers, HPC)   • Sustainability in dispersed computing (edge, mobile computing, sensors/IoT)

Registration Prerequisites: This course is targeted towards students with a strong interest in computer systems (Operating Systems, Distributed Systems, Networking, Databases, etc.). Background in Operating Systems (Equivalent of CSCI 5103) and basic understanding of Computer Networking (Equivalent of CSCI 4211) is required.

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View, manage, and install add-ins for Excel, PowerPoint, and Word

When you enable an add-in, it adds custom commands and new features to Microsoft 365 programs that help increase your productivity. Because add-ins can be used by attackers to do harm to your computer, you can use add-in security settings to help protect yourself.

Note:  This article only applies to Microsoft 365 applications running on Windows.

View installed add-ins

You can directly install add-ins from this page or select  More Add-ins  to explore.

In the Office Add-ins dialog, select  My Add-ins  tab.

Select an add-in you want to view the details for and right-click to select  Add-in details  option.

Click a heading below for more information .  

Add-in categories explained

Active Application Add-ins      Add-ins registered and currently running on your Microsoft 365 program.

Inactive Application Add-ins      These are present on your computer but not currently loaded. For example, XML schemas are active when the document that refers to them is open. Another example is the COM add-in: if a COM add-in is selected, the add-in is active. If the check box is cleared, the add-in is inactive.

Document Related Add-ins      Template files referred to by open documents.

Disabled Application Add-ins     These add-ins are automatically disabled because they are causing Microsoft 365 programs to crash.

Add-in      The title of the add-in.

Publisher      The software developer or organization responsible for creating the add-in.

Compatibility      Look here for any compatibility issues.

Location      This file path indicates where the add-in is installed on your computer.

Description This text explains the add-in function.

Note:  Microsoft Outlook has one add-in option in the Trust Center: Apply macro security settings to installed add-ins . InfoPath has no security settings for add-ins.

Permanently disable or remove an add-in

To disable or remove an add-in follow these steps:

Select  File > Get Add-ins . Alternatively, you can select  Home > Add-ins .

In the Office Add-ins dialog, select  My Add-ins  tab.

Select an add-in you want to remove and right click to select  Remove  option.

View or change add-in settings

You can see and change add-in settings in the Trust Center, descriptions of which are in the following section. Add-in security settings may have been determined by your organization so not all options may be available to change.

Select  File  >  Get Add-ins .

Select  More Add-ins > Manage My Add-ins.

Select  Trust Center  >  Trust Center Settings  >  Add-ins.

Check or uncheck the boxes you want.

Add-in settings explained

Require Application Add-ins to be signed by Trusted Publisher      Check this box to have the Trust Center check that the add-in uses a publisher's trusted signature. If the publisher's signature hasn’t been trusted, the Microsoft 365 program doesn’t load the add-in, and the Trust Bar displays a notification that the add-in has been disabled.

Disable notification for unsigned add-ins (code will remain disabled)      When you check the Require Application Extensions to be signed by Trusted Publisher box, this option is no longer grayed out. Add-ins signed by a trusted publisher are enabled, but unsigned add-ins are disabled.

Disable all Application Add-ins (may impair functionality)      Check this box if you don't trust any add-ins. All add-ins are disabled without any notification, and the other add-in boxes are grayed out.

Note:  This setting takes effect after you exit and restart your Microsoft 365 program.

While working with add-ins, you may need to learn more about digital signatures and certificates , which authenticate an add-in, and trusted publishers , the software developers who often create add-ins.

Manage and install add-ins

Use the following instruction to manage and install add-ins.

To install a new add-in:

You can directly install popular add-ins on the page or go to More Add-ins  to explore. 

Select the add-in and select  Add . Or browse by selecting  Store  tab in the Office add-in dialog to find other add-ins to install and select Add for that add-in.

To manage your add-ins:

Select  File > Get Add-ins and from the bottom, select More Add-ins.  Or select  Home  >  Add-ins > More add-ins.

In the Office dialog, select My Add-ins tab. If you are not able to see your add-ins, select  Refresh to reload your add-ins.

Select  Manage My Add-in  to manage and select  Upload to browse and add an add-in from your device.

How to cancel a purchased add-in

If you've subscribed to an add-in through the Microsoft 365 Store that you don't want to continue, you can cancel that subscription.

Open the Microsoft 365 application and go to the Home  tab of the ribbon.

Select  Add-ins  and then select  More Add-ins > My Add-ins tab   to view your existing add-ins.

Select the app you want to cancel and select  Manage My Add-ins .

Under the Payment and Billing section choose Cancel Subscription .

Select  OK and then Continue .

Once that's complete you should see a message that says "You have cancelled your app subscription" in the comments field of your apps list.

Why is my add-in crashing?

Some add-ins might not be compatible with your organization's IT department policies. If that is the case with add-ins recently installed on your Microsoft 365 program, Data Execution Prevention (DEP) will disable the add-in and the program might crash.

Learn more about DEP

Get a Microsoft 365 Add-in for Outlook

Get a Microsoft 365 Add-in for Project

Taking linked notes

If you're looking for Help on linking notes in OneNote to a Word or PowerPoint document, see Take linked notes .

Excel Windows Add-ins

If you're looking for Help on specific Excel Add-ins, such as Solver or Inquire, see Help for Excel for Windows add-ins .

If you're looking for additional help with Excel add-ins using the COM Add-ins dialog box, see Add or remove add-ins in Excel .

Get a Microsoft 365 Add-in for Excel

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