• 
• Japanese
• 
• IETC's Focal Area
• Waste Management
• Publications & Tools
• Meetings & Workshops
• Global Partnership on Waste Management
• Background
• Objectives
  & Expected Outcomes
• Framework
• Sub-focal Areas
• Information Platform
• Meetings
• Participation / Membership
• Water and Sanitation
• Publications & Tools
• Meetings & Workshops
• Resources
• Publications & Tools
• About IETC
• Background and History
• Director
• Activity Reports
• Supporting Foundations
• Internship
• Contact Us

CHAPTER 4. PUBLIC AWARENESS AND ENVIRONMENTAL EDUCATION

4.6. Conclusions and Recommendations

1. Without a high degree of public involvement and commitment it is unlikely that any programme for lake or reservoir management will be successfully implemented. Public pressure results in political response and for this to be most effective a knowledgeable public is essential.

2. To achieve active public involvement the decision-makers should consider environmental education and community participation as a priority in the national and local environmental policies. Public participation should be a part of any environment projects.

3. It is crucial for effective public participation that communities and environmental groups are aware of national and local priorities for development. It means that national and local development priorities need to be, in the first place, worked out and accepted by local, regional, and national governments, and next appropriately disseminated through the public.

4. The dialogue with the public should already be established at the stage when the concept for a given decision is being developed and continued throughout the entire period of planning and implementation stages, as well as monitoring until the anticipated environmental result of the undertaken decision is achieved. Planning and implementation is greatly facilitated if the public has direct involvement in the planning and decision-making process

5. Effective public participation requires the availability of adequate information in public input. Freedom of public access to information on the environment is the basic step to achieve this. Limitation in the accessibility of data to the public is one of the main barriers in effective public participation.

6. Providing access to information will not automatically lead to a significant increase in the degree of public participation in environmental decision-making. A bridge needs to be built, linking the information pillar with the participation pillar, to stimulate the involvement of civil society in the decision-making process.

7. Increasing environmental public awareness is the most important way to build up active public involvement in the decision-making processes. Public awareness must be an ongoing activity from the early identification of the problems and issues of the resource in question, through planning and implementation and by continuing to be informed of the results, progress, and effectiveness of programme delivery.

8. Environmental education and public communication are the main tools for increasing environmental awareness.

9. Education programmes can impact on a multitude of lakes and reservoirs management objectives related to community awareness, attitudes, behaviours, and perceptions.

10. The importance of environmental education is not to impose a way of thinking, but to clarify and deepen the understanding of people of the environment in which they live and the problems they face, to create a climate in which they will find appropriate solutions through changes of attitude and behaviour, and through the application of simple techniques and practices.

11. Environmental Education and Communication has to become the programme, based on the new way of people thinking and behaving. People have to be able to reproduce it, to transfer the knowledge and technology in their own words and actions.

12. Simple low-cost visual aids are effective tools of environmental education and communication including mass communication techniques and teaching/learning approaches. They can all be easily developed to show the environmental processes that take place.

13. It should be kept in mind that:

• the simple materials and approaches are often more effective because they use available resources and can take into account local knowledge and existing communication channels;
• the traditional ways of communication based on cultural heritage should be taken into account;
• involving all the partners from the bottom to the top, from the beginning and all through the process, as well as listening and understanding the knowledge and the priorities of the people, is essential to make the public communication process the most effective;
• the flexibility in working with all stakeholders is very important;
• the use of pilot "demonstration" projects should be used by governments and decision-makers to promote ideas and approaches in order to ensure that the policies that come through are manageable and applicable in the long term;
• the importance of flexibility and the need to work with all stakeholders are crucial. Time to experiment the "know how" as a step to build national policy is vital for the future and the continuity;
• participation is the key issue for the success of any policy, project, or programme;
• build the links both with modern and traditional leaders and use, as much as possible, the traditional communication paths that are recognized by the population at large;
• this method is suitable for areas that have no access to radio or TV and have few cultural activities. Urban areas are suitable for educating people. However, it is important to prepare a relevant education programme which will be adapted to the local conditions and which will use existing resources, such as people, infrastructure, etc.

14. The advantage of low cost material, such as flannel board, drawings, paintings, is their ease to replicate and update taking in account the reality. In addition, these are relatively inexpensive as they can be constructed from local materials.

15. The use of Clubs, youth associations, can be a good opportunity to communicate messages and to undertake activities related to environmental issues crucial for the government and the population.

16. Youth Clubs need technical support and recognition from adults and project leaders to be able to perform ideas. Decision-makers and project leaders can help them by encouraging them to go step-by-step and help them to implement their projects.

17. Build, as soon as possible, the link between the scientists and the local people who are faced with an environmental issue. It is one of the keys to success.

18. Monitoring and evaluation must be an integral part of Environmental Education and Communication (EE&C) activities to ensure real progress and success.

19. It is common practice that EE&C programmes are funded in the developing countries through international funds. This pattern needs to be changed and decision-makers should consider environmental education and community participation as a part of any environmental project.

Table of Contents

• Brochure
• 
• 



• International Year of Forests
• 
• 



• World Environment Day
• 
• 



• UNEP Campaign
• 
•