Daily Times

It is generally said that success requires hard work. But there are other essentials which ensure success in life, including your daily habits. Good habits lead a nation to development and prosperity, whereas bad habits cause deterioration and ruin. Specific individual and collective habits need to be adopted by the country if it is to succeed. Unfortunately, enough work has not been done in this regard.

Pakistan is currently facing numerous problems. These include, but are not limited to, water scarcity, an energy crisis, and improper planning and management of its natural resources.

There also needs to be a stronger focus on not only conserving our environment, but also on minimising inconsequential usage of our resources.

Human beings have been blessed with countless natural resources. Many times it seems our planet has been especially crafted to nurture life, as we have been provided with countless sources of food, energy and water, which are essential to our survival. However, even though nature has provided us with a lot, it can also take it all away if we are not careful with the way we use up our resources.

Problems like climate change and the increasing number of natural disasters around the globe are proof that there is only so much our planet can take, and it is time for us to make a contribution as well. For the future prosperity of the human race, we need to focus more on the bare essentials, and make sure that unnecessary waste of resources is cut down, not only in Pakistan but the world over.

Pakistan is currently facing numerous problems. These include, but are not limited to, water scarcity, an energy crisis, and improper planning and management of natural resources. There also needs to be a stronger focus on not only conserving our environment, but also on minimising wastage

This reminds me of an incident that I observed at a restaurant. A person sitting near me ordered lunch, but left most of his food uneaten when they got up to leave. Another person sitting nearby noticed the leftover food, and pointed it out, telling the first person not to waste it.

This angered the latter, who told the other patron not to care about another man’s plate, especially if they haven’t paid for it.

The second person retaliated by saying that all it takes is one person wasting a resource, and like the drops of water, it can accumulate to eventually affect the whole of humanity.

There are two main ways we can assure the conservation of our natural gifts. First is their discovery, and if a particular resources cannot be found in a country, then it can be imported from another. However, the second, and most important part, is that each resource, no matter if it is in excess or in short supply, must be used prudently.

We need to comprehensively plan out the way we use resources in the future, so that deficiencies can be highlighted and we can look for suitable solutions to these problems.

The writer is an author and has a doctorate in Political Science

Published in Daily Times, June 22^nd 2018.