Forest for Sustainable
Development: Role of Media
Dr.
Mrinal Chatterjee
Professor,
Indian Institute of Mass Communication (IIMC)
Sanchar
Marg, Dhenkanal 759 001, Odisha, India
Some questions to start with:
1. What is development? And, what is sustainable
development?
2. What is the role of forest in sustainable
development?
3. What is the role of media?
4. Can and should media play any role in
development? If it can, and should- what is that role? And how can media play
that role? What is the road map?
What is Development?
Answer to this
simple question can differ from country to country, for it has subjective,
formative and cultural dimensions. Taking these into considerations- attempts
have been made to have a universally acceptable definition. Attempts have also
been made to quantify concepts like development and poverty. Development can be
measured in terms of GDP, calorie intake, per capita spending, per capita
energy consumption, etc. But any quantitative measure one applies will have its
detractors and critics. Hence, it is prudent to define development with the
help of yet another set of concepts: personal and social well-being,
fulfillment of basic necessities like food, shelter, education, health
services, communication facilities; a sense of security, peace, freedom of
expression, freedom of choice, etc.
It is interesting
to note the way UN defined it: “Development is a comprehensive, economic,
social, cultural and political process which aims at the constant improvement
of the wellbeing of the entire population and of all individuals on the basis
of their active, free and meaningful participation in development and in the
fair distribution of benefits resulting there from.”
What is Sustainable Development?
The term
‘sustainable development’ emerged in 1980s in response to a situation, when
economic development using natural resources and concern for ecology clashed.
The questions that became increasingly more pronounced was: development at what
cost? Can the earth survive the onslaught of development? To strike a balance
between the need for development using natural resources and planet earth’s
fast dwindling assets- the concept of ‘sustainable development’ emerged.
Sustainable development is necessary for the
earth to survive for the situation is really grim. Polar ice caps are melting faster than ever.
More and more land is being devastated by drought and desertification. The
amount of the earth’s surface afflicted by drought has more than doubled since
the 1970s. Rising waters are drowning low-lying communities. Global warming is
already disrupting the biological world, pushing many species to the brink of
extinction[1].
Scientists fear we may be approaching the point of no return.
Most of the situations are the results of so
called ‘development’. For example, we know that burning fossil fuels releases
carbon, which is the main reason of global warming. But still, it is used- in
large quantity. The U.S. with less than 5% of the world’s population, produces
one quarter of all greenhouse gases. Deforestation, through clear cutting or
burning, sows havoc far beyond the affected area. The fire releases still more
carbon into the atmosphere, fewer plants survive to convert carbon-di-oxide into
oxygen, and scorched soil absorbs more heat and retains less water, increasing
droughts.
Development, the way the world sees it now,
requires energy. Development requires forest to be denuded. Development
ironically has always been a conflict zone: conflict with environment, conflict
with people fearing development, conflict with lovers of status-quo, conflict
with people affected adversely by development. Sustainable development tries to
minimize the damage to the environment and ecology. Therefore there will be clash of interests. Sustainable
development will require less consumption of many goods. This can not augur well with the
manufacturers of those goods. That will create conflict. Hence is the need for
a hard look at development not merely from economic angle but from ecological
and humane angles.
Forest
Odisha is the fourth largest among all Indian
states in terms of the extent of forest cover, with per Capita Forest of 0.16
ha, which is more than double the national average. The state is naturally the
abode of immense diversity of wild life.[2]
As per the report of the Forest Survey of
India using remote sensing techniques, the forest cover in the State is 48,855
sq. kms of which 7,073 sq. kms is very dense forest. The moderately dense
forest extends over 21,394 sq. kms while open forest is over 20,388 sq. kms.
The forest cover in the State constitutes 31.38% of the geographical area.
Besides this, there exists tree cover outside the forest over 2.85% of the
geographical area of the State. Thus the forest and tree cover in the State is
34.23% of the geographical area.
The forest cover in the State is rich in
biodiversity and density. There are two National parks, 18 Sanctuaries and one
Biosphere Reserve in the State. There are two notified and one proposed Tiger
Reserves namely Similipal, Satkosia and Sunabeda (proposed).There are three
elephant reserves in the State namely Mayurbhanj, Sambalpur and Mahanadi. The
protected area for wildlife management constitutes 4.25% of the total
geographical area of the State.[3]
Forest for Sustainable
Development
Forests help sustain ecological balance.
Besides supporting a large number of plant, animal and bird species it retains
the moisture, ground water and top soil. Forests act as lungs of the nature. It
helps create rain and sustain the rivers. Millions of people have been relying
on the forests to earn a living for centuries. The world needs forests for its
survival. However, increasing population and increasing demands on forests
gradually are taking a toll on the forests.
Threats to the Forest
There are several threats to the forest. If we
consider the case of forest of Odisha the major threats are:
a. Mining
and Industrialization:
Rapid economic activities have put unprecedented pressure on our environment
and natural resources such as land, water, air, soil and forest. Forests are
denuded and degraded for industrialization. The large-scale mining in the
forest areas has significantly impacted the environment.
b. Increasing
human activity inside forest area
c.
Illicit felling
d.
Uncontrolled grazing
e.
Encroachments
f.
Forest Fire: Since most of the forests of Odisha are
deciduous in nature, forest fire becomes a problem and menace to flora and fauna.
All these impact forest and wild life critically.
Take Angul district as a test case.
Angul district covers forest areas managed
under entire Angul, Athamallik, Satakosia(WL) divisions and Pallahara range of
Deogarh Forest Division. Established in 1885 Angul Forest Division is the
oldest Forest Division in the State. It covers forest areas of Angul and
Talcher civil Sub-division of Angul District. The total geographical area of
Angul and Talcher Sub-Disvision is 3336.63 Sq.Km. This includes 427.008 Sq.Km.
of Satakosia Sanctuary area. With the transfer of 427.088 Sq.Km. area to the
administrative control of Wild Life Division, the area of the Division is
2909.542 Sq.Km. The forest area involves the reserve forests, demarcated
protected forests, un-demarcated protected forests and forests under revenue
records. Total forest area constitutes 37% of the geographical area. Although
Angul is one of the pioneer Divisions where scientific management of forests
commenced, forests have been depleted. As per the survey of India report the
percentage of forest under various density classes have shrunk. It remains at:
Dense forest- 19%, Open forest- 51%, Shrub Forest- 30 %. Man-animal conflict
has grown many folds.[4]
It is not that the government is unaware of
the situation. Odisha government has a proactive forest department. They have a
vision document ready to mitigate the situation and improve the forest cover
and wild life health. Elements of the Vision Principles include the following[5]:
1. Forest planning and operations are
sustainable and balance environmental services, local use, and commercial
extraction.
2.
Environmental services from forests are recognized and protected.
3. Local subsistence and forest based
livelihood use has the first charge on forests, especially in scheduled areas
based on strong incentives for local participation. Customary rights and usage
are protected.
4.
Operations and procedures are simple, transparent and effective.
5.
Regulatory burdens and transaction costs are low.
A look at the vision summary will not be out
of place here:
Orissa's forests are well stocked, diverse,
multi-storied and dense. The forests are managed for sustained use providing a
range of goods and services to a variety of stakeholders at local and broader
levels. Forests are home to flora and fauna, build soil, regulate water flows,
provide quality water as well as small wood, timber and NTFPs. They provide
inputs to the agricultural economy, income to the impoverished and subsistence livelihood
to all.
An enabled and responsive Forest Department
and empowered local community institutions collaborate to protect forest areas
from encroachment, poaching, illicit felling and fire. Flexible forest tenure allows
a diversity of institutions and forest categories at different spatial and
temporal scales. Categories reflect function: Protected Areas protect
representative habitats and species, Reserves are for environmental protection,
subsistence use and commercial production.
Forests are managed under a range of
participatory options (Participatory Forest Management (PFM)), for local use,
sale of surplus and commercial use. All categories, however, respect local
rights and provide strong incentives for local participation in protection, management
and use. Diversion of forest for development projects invite disincentives and
increased cost and local compensation after due process. Transparent operations
and procedures reduce transaction costs for harvesting timber and NTFPs and
starting and operating enterprises, reduce externalities in terms of social and
ecological impacts, and maintain confidence in the integrity of forest
management and operations.
A critical look at the ‘vision’ will tell that
it envisages people’s proactive participation and stake holder’s intimate engagement.
There is a paradigm shift here. From the old exclusivist policy trying to keep
people away from forest- the State now wants the people to take an active role
in preserving and managing forest. But for doing that, the people, especially
the stake holders must have awareness about the importance of the forest and also
right mindset and attitude to preserve forest. A social security net for the
forest must emerge, so that forest resources are used and not abused and
looted.
Role of Media
At the most basic level media is a means of
communication and vehicle of information. Period. But, why it is so important?
Because media has added power onto itself by acting and speaking out on behalf
of the people. It has gained credibility over the years. People believe in what
is being told, written and shown on media. People and to some extent policy
makers form their opinion on the basis of information, analysis, and suggestion
given by the media. It does not happen always. But it happens often enough to
have vested enormous power on media. Countless number of research studies have
shown that media can and do influence human thought and behaviour. From fashion
to stardom to creating positive attitude for development issues- media can
influence, and therein lies its power.
But
as it has been mentioned- it does not happen always. People do not believe
everything that has been told in the media. People do not always act as the
media tells them to. People exercise their will. They exercise their choice-
based on their liking or disliking. Hence the question: can media trigger,
sustain and guide development? Can it become a positive change agent? Should it
be one? If it can work as a change agent, how must it work? What is the
roadmap?
But
before we attempt to answer these questions, a word about the present day
media. Media is an omnibus term. It includes a wide range of communication
system, which often targets different set of audience, at times working on
cross purposes. Let me divide it into three broad categories: entertainment
media, news media and education media. Each of these categories has separate
objective and paradigm. That makes their content and format different. Each
category has separate culture, separate sets of dos and don’ts. Each category
has different attitude to societal issues.
For example, on the issue of prioritizing sustainable development- the
news media might ask: Should it be a change agent? News media will ask this
question because they see their job differently. News media’s priority is to
disseminate news and not to become a change agent. Similarly the entertainment
media’s priority is to entertain and not to become a change agent. Education
media might like to be a change agent, and then they would ask: how must it
work? What is the roadmap?
Of
course, there can never be tight compartmentalization among these three categories
of media. And increasingly so. As Alvin Toffler says in his now cult book Power
Shift ...‘for better or worse, the old lines between show business and
politics, leisure and work, news and entertainment are all crashing, and we are
exposed to a hurricane of often fragmented, kaleidoscopic images[6].
That
is making the task of following a particular agenda by the media both easy and
difficult. Easy- because of the tremendous reach and penetration of media.
Difficult- because there are so many of them. India now has 500 plus television
channels and 60,000 plus newspapers and periodicals. The sheer vastness of
media has made the task difficult- as it has become difficult for any
particular medium or channel or publication to sustain the interest of the
readers.
The problem of ‘reach’ and ‘access’ is
withering. The problem of ‘reach’ is taken care of by developing technology.
The problem of ‘access’ is taken care of by growing purchasing power of the
people and a kind of societal pressure to ‘own- what-your neighbour has’. But when it comes to use, the problem has
grown. It is a problem of plenty. Problem of choice from a vast plethora of
media bouquets- each one trying of vie for attention. In a situation like this,
media supplies what people want. It changes from being need-oriented to
demand-driven. It caters not to what the audience needs (in a sense what they
ought to watch), but what they want and are ready to pay for. If people want
development-oriented content, media would supply that. If they want something
else, it would supply that. Media content is treated like FMCG (fast moving
consumer goods) in a bazaar. The salesman will stock goods - that sells fast.
Since development stories do not receive priority on the reader/viewer’s point
- it fails to fetch advertisement- life line of most of private news media, it
is not given priority in the media. It is as simple as that.
But
there is a silver lining. In fact, two.
First, in a de-massified society media caters to the niche. So, if there are
people who are interested in development through media- there are certain media
dedicated to that. Second- improved technology has made access and use of media
easy. Hence sustainable development as an issue can and do find space and time
in the media easily. The problem lies in
mainstreaming the issue, to put that issue on top priority for mainstream news
media in particular and other category of media in general.
Now onto the question what roles media can
play? Media can play five roles. There can be considerable overlapping in the
roles.
• Media
as a Watchdog: It is said that sunshine is the best disinfectant. That somebody
is watching me- is the best deterrent to lot of social maladies like
corruption.
• Media
as an Enabler: Media increases people’s access to information. Information
brings them power and to some extent prosperity. If we take a look at the media
consumption and development matrix of Kerala and Bihar or Odisha, we shall find
that there is a clear relation between access and use of media and development.
• Media
as a Public sphere: People can air and share their ideas through mass media.
Issues can be discussed. Suggestions for solutions of problems can be aired and
discussed. For example media can help discuss the suggestions M S Swaminathan
offered to mitigate hunger and ensuring food security in the ‘Food Security
Atlas’. Socially responsible journalism
is a struggle to gain public space within the private sphere.
• Media
as an Informer: Media can inform people about various problems of society, and
what causes them, and what is being done or not done about them. This helps fix
accountability.
• Media
as a Platform: Media can provide a platform, where people can air their
grievances, put forth their views, and participate in governance.
Let us now understand the function and
dynamics of mainstream news media. It’s priority is to disseminate news. In
other words their foremost task is to tell the readers, listeners, viewers-
what has happened and how it has happened and why it has happened. With the
technology advancing by leaps and bounds, their task has changed from telling
what has happened to what is happening, and how is it happening. This has put
more emphasis on the ‘now’ factor. It has put more emphasis on ‘events’.
Adopting sustainable development is a ‘process’. It does not get their top
priority. This fact has to be appreciated first. Then we can proceed to examine
what the news media in particular and other categories of media can do.
1.
Media can definitely create an atmosphere of acceptance for sustainable
development. It can set an agenda.
2.
Sustainable development, as we have discussed is susceptible to conflicts.
Media can reduce the intensity and impact of these conflicts and may be make
development acceptable, or a step further - desirable. Besides news media,
other media like popular cinema, television soap-operas, and even folk media
can play a role here. Products are being advertised through surrogate
advertising. What is the harm in using that technique to promote a concept,
certain ideas? That is social marketing all about. If at present ‘sustainable development’
is not getting its due space and time in media, let us steal time and what I’ll
call ‘mind space’ with stealth. At a
time when information fatigue is being felt- it will be prudent to adopt
extraordinary ways, out of the box thinking to put the issue of sustainable
development on top of the mind of people.
One last word. Media can do a lot of things. But we have to remember that media
is not panacea of all ills. Sustainable development has economic and other
imperatives. That is a fact we have to accept and appreciate. Media can at best
act as a catalyst in a socio-economic process.
***
The author, a
journalist turned media academician presently heads Eastern India campus of
Indian Institute of Mass Communication (IIMC) located in Dhenkanal, Odisha. He
can be contacted at mrinaliimc@yahoo.in
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