The Understanding of Environmental Citizenship among Malaysian Youths: A Study on Perception and Participation

Abstract

Over the past years, there have been great concerns over the global environmental issues. Human activities have contributed towards climate changes that are affecting the world. The rise of temperature has been noticeable and this strengthens the arguments of the greenhouse effect. Among the environmental concerns include carbon dioxide emissions by transportation, deforestation, open burning, excessive waste, river pollution and etc. These issues have raised the global need for environmental citizenship. It is a form of citizenship that prioritizes and emphasizes the importance of the environment and one that crosses the national territorial borders. It stresses the need to have citizens who inhibit greater awareness of the environment and try to maintain and preserve the earth by participating in ‘green’ activities and saving the earth. This research aimed at exploring the awareness, understanding, perception and participation of Malaysian youth with regards to environmental citizenship. Six focus groups were conducted within Klang Valley with each group comprising of 5-6 people. The informants consisted of Malay, Chinese and Indian youths between the age of 18-25. The questions were focused on the general and technical understanding of environmental issues, the sources of information on the environment and the role that these individuals and the community have played as environmental citizens

Investigating Students’ Environmental Knowledge, Attitude, Practice and Communication

“…When probed about the causes of sewer line blockage, 70.9% agree that it is caused by oil-based wastes that are poured down the sink drain, 81.4% think that it is caused by food scraps that flow into the kitchen sink, 78.1% believe that such problem occurs when toilet is used as a wastebasket, and 87.4% agree that it happens when rubbish is dumped into the system. These findings reaffirm Besar et al (2013) and Ahmad et al (2012) who ascertain that the level of environmental knowledge and understanding among Malaysian youth in general is good. This can be attributed to efforts made by the Malaysian government to incorporate sustainable development component into the country's education system and the proactive roles of higher learning institutions such as USM and UKM in championing sustainability (Foo, 2013;UKM, 2014;USM, 2014).…”

“…Second, realising their crucial role in shaping Malaysia's future, the government and higher learning institutions, particularly public institutions, emphasise on efforts to nurture students' potential through the implementation of youth-related policies, holistic education and programmes particularly those related to sustainable environment (Bernama, 2012;Foo, 2013;Rosly, 2012;UKM, 2014;USM, 2014). Third, as stated above, youth's engagement in everyday sustainability practices in general is found to be low and unsatisfactory (Ahmad et al, 2012). Since many earlier studies of this nature have been conducted in other settings, particularly in the first world countries (Chaplin & Wyton, 2014;Too & Bajracharya, 2015;Zwickle, Koontz, Slagle, & Bruskotter, 2014), this study is expected to add to the literature and contribute to the body of knowledge based on the Malaysian unique experience as a developing nation committed to rapid, yet sustainable development.…”

“…This is due to the fact that, past studies that have been conducted in Malaysia were mainly focused on youth's role in preserving the environment (Nadeson & Barton, 2013), their awareness and participation (Ahmad et al, 2012;Said et al, 2007), and environment related plans and policies (Foo, 2013;Rosly, 2012). Hence, the following research questions were posed: RQ2: What is the relationship between students' attitude and sustainable environment practices?…”

“…Nevertheless, despite continuous efforts to promote sustainable environment among youth in Malaysia, their engagement in sustainable practice is found to be below expectation (Ahmad, Rahim, Pawanteh, & Ahmad, 2012;Said, Yahaya, & Ahmadun, 2007). This may possibly be due to the way in which the sustainable information is delivered.…”

A Model of Participation in a Water Rehabilitation Project of a Local Government Unit in the Philippines

“…While there is a growing concern for participation in development projects, previous studies support that involving the stakeholders does not happen in a vacuum. Factors such as demographic profile [13], [14]; media exposure [15]; quality of community members' life [16]; environmental values [17] and attitudes and motivation towards participation [18]. [19], on the other hand, found two variables that influence participation: -ownership variables‖ (personal interest and knowledge on the issue) and -ownership variables‖ (environmental strategies and belief in one's ability to succeed).…”