Currently, one of the most popular sounds in the world is environment and its pollution as well as sustainability due to impetuous growth of population and haphazarddevelopment of industry. Consequently, available natural resources have already been depleted and disturbedvirgin environment by making environment and all development activitiesunsustainable. Hence, one of the eight visions of Agenda 21 of United Nations is‘sustainable development and environment’.
Thereby, all developed countries have established their own environmental regulations that have already been amended several times to adjust with changing situation such as in European countries, United States, Japan and Australia etc. On the contrary, none of the international organizations donate or invest any fund in developing countries without being confirmabout environmental safely. Consequently, such countries are being aware and making related regulation strong and strict to protect environment but still unfruitful due to defective implementation; wherein, Bangladesh is one of such countries.
However, major environmental components are water, soil, air, solid waste, biodiversity, and ecosystem or ecology etc. Still, Bangladesh is not so much polluted like industrialized countries; therefore, it has an opportunity to avoid such problems by resorting needful precautions. Inversely, air andBuriganga River water pollution are serious problems in Dhaka city while and Karnuphuli River water in Chittagong city. The intensity of pollution in the rest cities is still acceptable compared to industrialized or seriously polluted countries.
On the other hand, deforestation is the greatest problem in Bangladesh due to continuous population pressure and corruption of Forest Department. Anyhow, international and national NGOs jointly effort with government in ‘social forest program’ involving forest depend community people is supporting to rehabilitateforest coverage areas in Bangladesh. But the project is not fully successful yet due to some unavoidable factors such poverty, illiteracy, political leaders and defective implementation of laws.
Therefore, Bangladesh should take immediately steps to protect environment from being further polluted as well as to conserve undisturbed ones. There are several factors that can support to protect environment; such as, public awareness, strict laws, skilled manpower, planned development activities, and research etc. Though it was late but government started to think about environment since 1992. As a result, environment policy, act, rules and regulations have already been formed. But still there is no enough skilled manpower and research project.
Lately, several public and private universities are teaching Environmentbut most of the teachers are from different disciplines, not specifically from Environmental Science background. Hence, students are not getting appropriate teachingsfrom them about environment management, protection and conservation. In addition, graduates from environment disciplines can’t develop required skills to solve environmental challenges.
By realizing the significance of environment, many environment related programs has started such Environmental Science, Engineering, Chemistry, Microbiology, and Industrial Ecology etc. but Bangladesh is confined within Environmental Science hereto. Further, both national and local governments in developed countries are making stricter existing environmental laws and regulations. Moreover, they are investing huge fund for inviting scholars different countries and to perform environment related research projects.
Inspite of so many limitations, many students are graduated from different universities every year but become frustrated after facing job markets. Seeing such worst situation, new students lose interest to study in Environmental Science. Therefore, talent students don’t want to study in Environmental Science though its significance is increasing day to day. On the contrary, many students are studying environment related programs with full enthusiasm in developed countries.
Though students take Environmental Science by thinking its importance but after graduation see completely opposite scenarios. There is no professional BCS cadre for environmental graduates, further, they are also neglected and need to fight with many disciplines students in available environment related posts. Sometimes, it is seen that for same post candidates are selected from Chemistry, Zoology, Botany, Soil Science, Physics and Economy; even MBA by neglecting environmental science degree holders. How is it possible to serve better in environment sector by a non-environmental science degree holder?
Inversely, environment graduates easily get jobs as researcher, research assistant, consultant, environmentalist, and such other related posts in different government organizations and private companies with better payment. Due to international buyers’ continuous pressures, recently garmentand textile industries in Bangladesh are employing environmentalists but with poorsalary,approximately Tk. 12000-15000/month. But it is quite impossible for a postgraduate degree holder to maintain a standard life with such low remuneration; even it is hard to lead single life right now.
In industrialized countries, industry owners collect and send samples for experimenting in universities or research institutes and bear all the costs including remuneration of researchers. Further, they arrange field trips for university students or teachers if any research group wants. Therefore, their students can develop skills before getting jobs and can also apply for job before graduating. So, they don’t need to wastes any time for searching jobs.
On the contrary, no industry collaborates with any research group by not allowing them to collect samples for research purposes. Thus, they neither provide fund for researching about industrial issues as well as internship. Besides, they ask for 2/3/4/5 years working experiences to employ in environment related post of industry. Then, how is it possible for a new environment graduate to achieve experience before getting a job?
How is it possible for an environment graduate to keep him/herself mentally free; wherein, it takes 6/7 years to complete bachelor degree and 2/3 years for postgraduate? In addition, employers ask for several years experiences. Due to these two big problems, most of the graduates remain workless and some get involved in crimes or unsocial activities. By the way, country is continuously losing valuable talent and labour. But today China is economically developed by using their huge manpower.
If government and industrial owners don’t evaluate environment graduates by employing with sufficient payment and don’t collaborate Environmental Science students in their research project by helping in sample collection as well as providing fund then no students will dare to study in this disciplines in future. Moreover, government should start a technical BCS cadre for environment graduates.
In conclusion, it is seen that without evaluating environment graduate with appropriate prestige, it is useless to dream a better and sustainable environment. So, I hope that concerned authorities will adopt necessary steps to ensure a better career for environment graduates and to protect environment.
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The author is studying Masters of Environmental Engineering in UNEP-Tongji Institute of Environment for Sustainable Development (IESD), College of Environmental Science and Engineering, Tongji University, Shanghai, China.