The Bhupen Hazarika School of Mass Communication, Krishna Kanta Handiqui State Open University celebrated World Press Freedom Day on 3rd May, 2024 by organizing a special lecture that was delivered by Dr. Arup Kumar Misra, Chairman, Pollution Control Board, Assam. In tune with the theme for this year’s World Press Freedom Day, Dr. Misra spoke on ‘Safeguarding the Environment : Role of the Fourth Estate”. He said that the climate and biodiversity crisis not only affects the environment and ecosystems but also the lives of billions of people around the world. He was of the opinion that media had a profound role to play in highlighting such issues and in raising awareness about climate change. In his speech, the speaker focused on the importance of safeguarding the environment and in providing every person with opportunities to acquire knowledge, values, attitudes, commitment and skills. He also said that environmental awareness aims at fostering clear awareness of and concern about economic, social, cultural, political, ecological and interdependence in urban and rural areas. Dr. Misra spoke on the importance of using media for environmental advocacy. It was also mentioned that the advantage of media in improving individual environmental knowledge lies in its ability to provide the audience with up-to-date environmental knowledge. He deliberated on an emerging area of journalism, i.e. environmental journalism which deals with the collection, verification, production, distribution and exhibition of information regarding current events, trends, issues and people associated with the non-human world. He specifically spoke about Rachel Carson, a renowned marine biologist and writer and her work ‘Silent Spring’ which brought environmentalism to the forefront. He concluded by stressing on the vital role that media can play in informing people, promoting environmental issues, changing human behaviour and bringing about positive changes in the society.
