I have found this with herdsmen in Inner Mongolia who have received knowledge through education on how to delay the grazing period to make their grass grow better, thus enabling them to have more efficient and healthier grasslands and more income from livestock. For example, education can help people use natural resources more efficiently. One is to increase social productivity from the perspective of production, and the other is to promote the concept of sustainable development through environmental education. The significance of education for human development is reflected in two aspects. How can education help us to educate people to understand their connection with nature and to better use science and technology to produce from nature without depleting the natural environment?Įducation, as well as science and technology, is the foundation of human development. You are an expert on education, and you have mentioned how the right type of education is important. We must admit that we will never be able to live independently from the other elements of nature, such as animals, plants and even microorganisms. We must obey the basic rules of being part of nature, while using our wisdom to improve living conditions. To me, the coexistence of indigenous knowledge with science and technology is a way forward. Therefore, human development in the future should consider the effects of human activities on the natural laws. However, such advancements also bring problems, in terms of contributing to global warming, climatic extremes and pollution, which bring about more uncertainties in natural laws. All these advancements have greatly improved social resilience. Moreover, progress in science and technology can effectively track climate change and predict natural disasters, helping us to face these challenges. Furthermore, the advancement of science and technology has improved the efficiency of human labour, and the saved time can create additional value, such as agricultural product processing and work outside, which can also boost farmers’ income. hybrid rice), mechanized agriculture can reduce the burden on farmers, and a diversity of agricultural products can increase farmers’ income. Scientific research can provide better seeds for planting (e.g. For example, agricultural production can be maximized through reasonable and scientific cultivation. Science and technology has greatly improved social productivity and liberated the labour force. However, this is not enough for us in a much more quickly changing world with much more disturbance. Indigenous knowledge has a good understanding of the laws of nature, such as the 24 solar terms in ancient China, which still can be used to guide farming activities. It should be recognized that human beings and nature are interdependent and interrelated components of the earth system with some resilience when disturbance is at low levels. Resilience is the ability of a system to bounce back to its original status when a disturbance disappears. I would like to use the term ‘resilience’ to further elaborate on this issue. Why is it a problem to isolate humans from the rest of the environment? This is an important message to convey, that human-centred development might actually be misleading us. In fact, we are now promoting solar energy in the Tibetan Plateau to partly take the place of yak dung (which is burned as fuel) to protect people’s health and also the local grasslands. One is the rational development and utilization of fossil energy, and the other is the development of clean energy, such as solar energy, wind energy and nuclear energy, which can not only ensure human development needs but also avoid environmental pollution. Therefore, we must abandon the human-centred development concept, advocate for the harmonious coexistence of humans and nature, rationally develop and utilize resources, pay attention to environmental issues, and build the future of human development based on sustainable development.īased on my experience, I have two suggestions in this field. Unrestricted human activity has also caused increasing pollution, such as air, water and soil pollution, which significantly threaten the health and safety of human beings. fossil fuels) are non-renewable resources but they are being unreasonably exploited. One of the major reasons is the lack of consideration of the environmental carrying capacity for long-term development. Such human-centred development is a common deficiency in human development nowadays. This can lead to human activities focusing only on what we need, regardless of the environmental carrying capacity and resulting in unsustainable human development. The general processes of human development are socioeconomic development, emancipative cultural change and the democratization and extension of civil rights. How should the concept of human development be re-conceptualized today, taking as a point of departure your work in China?
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