A new study on the environment focuses on the role of women in the home, describing them as being an “influencing factor, for good or for bad”. The study, conducted by Iman Asiri, undersecretary of the Scientific Research Deanship at Taiba University, notes the “significant role” that women have “in protecting the environment”, describing women as the “primary environment teacher”. In her study, the author explains that women can have both positive and negative effects on the environment, depending on their awareness of the correct use of household substances and resources. Women have a different responsibility towards the environment, the study says, as they clean the home and manage household refuse as well as organize its economic requirements, and through their use of water and energy, women have a responsibility to try and cut back on consumption and use resources properly,. Women also have the task, the study adds, of guiding their children towards the responsible use of water and avoiding waste, as well as ensuring that they are protected from illness and enjoy a healthy lifestyle. “They are the first teachers on whose shoulders falls the responsibility for the education of children,” the study says. Asiri notes that most environmental studies concentrate on the effects of industry, waste and pollution, rarely taking into account the part played in the everyday household. While official organizations and businesses are required by law to comply with regulations protecting the environment, the same is not asked of every home. “Environmental awareness begins at home, and particularly with women,” the study says. “Environmentally aware women should attempt to establish a co-existence between people and the environment in order to protect it.”
