Lecture 3

• Human development is considered as expansion of the real freedoms and capabilities
• Human development allows liberties to expand such as economic growth, increased personal income, technological progress/modernization
• Through human development, attention has been also given to the role of natural resources and the environment which pointed out that “environment as a limit to economic growth"
• The effects of economic growth and development on the environmental quality has opposite causal relation
• Through air pollution there has been too much carbon in the atmosphere and to the ocean waters – it increases the greenhouse effect, that cause the planet to become warmer than normal.
• The causes of air pollution and climate change are: burning of fossil fuels, deforestation, and industrial activities which results to climate disruption.
• Possible solutions to air pollution and climate change: replacing fossil fuels with renewable energy, reforestation, reducing emissions from agriculture, and changing industrial processes
• Deforestation occurs when forests are being converted to non-forest uses such as road construction and agriculture
• According to the food and agriculture organization (FAO), forests cover 31% of the world area (2020) which is about half before agriculture started around 11,000 years ago.
• A possible solution to deforestation is conservation which needs to have strong governance
• According to UN, it estimates that about 12 million hectares of land are degraded.
• The possible solution/s to soil degradation is/are: Conservation and restoration from no-till agriculture (valuable in drought-prone areas) to crop rotation to water-retention through terrace-building
• An example of integrating environmental issues into policy design is PD no. 1586, or Environment Impact Assessment System, which facilitates the attainment and maintenance of a rational and orderly balance between socio-economic development and environmental protection
• Integrating environmental issues into policy design will help the government, decision-makers, proponents, and the affected community address the negative risks to the environment.