COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT: TOOL FOR ADDRESSING ENVIRONMENTAL SUSTAINABILITY

Abstract

Environmental, social, and economic sustainability are three pillars of sustainable development. Environmental sustainability focuses on the preservation of natural resources and addressing the impact of pollution on the global environment in order to safeguard the interest of both current and future generations. Environmental pollution and unsustainable development are intricately related. At a worldwide level, environmental issues are escalating quickly. The negative effects on the environment caused by rising urbanisation, industrialization, and population growth are clearly evident. The increase in these issues also indicates that people are unable to handle and control the negative consequences due to lack of awareness, lack of resources or exclusion from decision making process. In order to minimize the gap to achieve sustainability goals, the paper examines the function of community engagement. The efficacy of approaches for successful implementation of the community engagement on environmental sustainability needs to be researched and put in practice. Strategic planning is required for ensuring community engagement in the creation of a sustainable environment. The planning must be based on a thorough understanding of the community's existing and future needs. Based on the extensive literature review the paper proposes 3 I’s model (Information dissemination, Inclusion, Identification) focusing on three stages for community engagement: the preliminary stage (Information dissemination), the intermediate stage (Inclusion), and the concluding stage (Identification). In order to manage environmental crises and overcome obstacles to advance environmental sustainability, the proposed model emphasises the importance of community engagement.