Environmental Communication

Preface

Environmental issues are receiving priority attention across the
world today. This growing concern over environmental issues is
unarguably uniting the world through the concept of global
environment and global approach towards protecting, promoting
and conserving the environment. The numerous natural disasters
across the globe – Tsunami, hurricanes, flood, volcanic eruption,
typhoon, erosion, etc. and man-made environmental catastrophes
and their threats – land, air and water pollution, greenhouse gas
effects, ozone layer depletion, global warming, etc. contribute in
ensuring a global focus on how to make the world an
environmentally sustainable habitation. The need to intensity efforts
towards environmental management is not in doubt.
This book, “Environmental Communication: Perspectives
on Green Communication and Information Management” explores
the application of communication principles in environmental
management practices. It provides an insight on various approaches
and strategies of disseminating information, sharing and shaping
ideas, meanings, expressions, reactions, experiences, and
responsibilities on environmental concerns between and among
people, with a view to ensuring an environmentally sustainable
society.
The author appreciates the fact that man cannot be divorced
from the environment (natural or built). Man’s activities impact
greatly on the environment and are responsible for altering nature
and making the environment better or worse for organisms that exist
in it. It is against this backdrop that this book provides an indepth,
easy-to-understand information on how environmental protection,
promotion, preservation, and education could be factored into the
communication process to achieve green objectives. The book
dwells on how to adopt and functionally apply communication
strategies in not just drawing man’s attention to the environment and
the impact of his activities on it, but also to arouse his interest on how
to ensure that his activities are environmentally friendly i.e. how to
ensure sustainable development approach to existence. Other
communication-based strategies such as green marketing,
environmental public relations, and environmental journalism are
extensively treated in this book.
The mass media play essential roles in environmental
management. The workings of various mass media and how they
can effectively be applied in achieving environmental objectives are
treated in this book. Environmentalism, environmentalists and their
efforts in protecting the environment are also discussed.
The second edition of this book is an update of basic
concepts and definition on environmental communication. It
contains a discourse on climate change and media coverage of the
issue, including social media use in environmental communication.
Review questions that will guide readers in having a quick summary
of what has been read have been included at the end of every chapter
in this edition. The book is a practical guide for environmentalists,
environmental managers, green communicators and all those
interested in making the world safer and better for the human
existence.