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We all have heard about this very famous field of study and may have also seen a lot of friends, relatives, colleagues, acquaintances, etc. making their career in this famous field called “science”. But, how many of us actually know what this field of study contains and includes. Well, if you are one among those who want to know more about environmental science, this article is just for you. In this article, you will get first-hand information on what environmental science is, what all it includes, and how can one make a career in this field, among many other details.

Environmental science is actually the interaction of the human beings with their surroundings that include both non-living things and living things. The interaction between we, human beings, and our surroundings that comprises both living things (plants and animals, natural resources) and non-living things (man-made things) has been in existence for a very long time, in fact ever since life on Earth was formed.

Each day the human population keeps on growing. With this, technological advancements also take place and our demand for existence and livelihood also increases. As our demand for existence and content livelihood increases, it leaves an adverse effect on our environment and our surroundings. A collective study of all these issues comes under a field called “Environmental Science”. Some major sections in this field of study include the following:

• Managing the water resources on our planet Earth
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• Addressing the issues pertaining to the global climatic change (issues related to global warming, melting of the glaciers, etc., their causes and impacts)
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• Addressing the fast depletion of our non-renewable natural resources such as mineral resources
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• Meeting the livelihood needs of the ever-increasing population (needs such as proper food, clothing and shelter)
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• Addressing the causes and after-effects of air pollution (issues such as yellowing of historical monuments, acid deposition, etc.)
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• Addressing issues related to depletion of the ozone layer leading to fatal diseases such as skin cancer
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• Eradicating pollution of water, its causes and impacts
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• Addressing issues related to soil erosion and its contamination, fertility depletion, etc.
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• Addressing issues related to loss of marine life because of water pollution or change in natural cycles
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• Addressing issues related to deforestation
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• Addressing issues related to damage and destruction of coral reefs
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• Bringing an end to the spread of diseases and disease-causing bacteria and viruses
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• And many more concerns

In simple language, anything that describes the activity of human beings with the environment comes under Environmental Science. All the environmental challenges that have been mentioned in the article earlier are very multidisciplinary in nature. This means that to understand each of these sub sections in detail, one has to gain expertise in the study of Environmental Science and become a master of the subject in a broader sense.
 
Many universities today offer graduation-level, post-graduation level and doctorate-level courses in Environmental Science. Under Environmental Science, a student largely studies about chemistry, physics, geology, ecology and biology. Environmental Science is, indeed, a combined study of all these subjects that relates to all the interactivities between the environment and the human beings.