What is Environment?

The term environment is derived from French word “environs” meaning around, encircle or encompass. And hence the term environment in short can be used for surrounding. Environment can also be referred as the totality of all the externalities that affect human life. In broader perspective environment consists of human, social, political, economic and physical environment.

Webster’s ninth new college dictionary defines environment as the “circumstances, objects or conditions by which one is surrounded”.

The Encyclopedia Britannica defines environment as the entire range of external influence acting on an organism both physical and biological”.

It can also be defined as the “surrounding in which organisation operates including air, water, land and natural resources, flora and fauna, humans and their inter relations”.

In nutshell environment comprises of all the biotic, abiotic, natural and human components defining the form and survival of each in a given system at a given time or over a period of time.