Methods

understanding of the problem. It will also ginger the seriousness that will motive a collective answer and action against the octopus. At a time it was still doubtful if environmental problems were real, world seminal scientists, among them Noble Laureates from 70 countries (and numbering 1680) on November 18, 1992, according to Nwosu and Uffoh (2005:123), resolutely warned world leader of the stress the earth is undergoing, in their words, the level of tampering with worlds, species loss, among others, would result in catastrophic disasters. To them, the threat is real and only emergency measures can avert such destructive consequences on what they called one life boat (the earth); and no nation, rich or poor, industrialised or not, can escape the calamity.

Another group of concerned scientists, this time, the United States National Academy of Science and the Royal Society of London came up with a joint report on the same issued. To them, population growth and man’s activity on earth over-weight the capacity of science and technology to sustain the plat and mankind, poverty and uncontrollable environmental degradation was bound to escalate. They therefore, called on man to rethink over his activities and concept of development, Nwosu and Uffoh (2205:124).

This warning, further researches and of course already clearly manifested destructive global phenomena with the large scale tolls on the environment, perhaps, have convinced doubting Thomases. This can be seen in this opinion of Grunwald (2013:17):

The respectable American Centre has recognised that climate changes is not only real and man-made, but also a genuine emergency. The scientific evidence has become too stark to indulge denial or dithering. The earth is hotter; Arctic ice is melting at a terrifying rate; aid institutions like Reinsurers and the CIA are sounding dire warnings about rising seas and extreme droughts.

Do these authorities need to say more? The gravity of these realities and revelations, which are overt and overweening, calls for emergency, concrete, deliberate, planned systematic and sustained efforts for preempting the impending doom. It is with a view to collectively dealing with the crisis that this field and profession, Public Relations, articulated, formulated and presented some scheme and approaches as its own

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contributions to the urgent and importance fight to keep the earth habitable.

Below are some of such strategies: Some of these are borrowed from inter-related discipline like marketing and management, among others. Nwosu and Uffoh (2005:46) justify this by saying that “Since environmental public relations is a holistic management process, its practice must extend far beyond the normally recognised boundaries of public relations theory and practice, especially in terms of its philosophy, strategies, techniques and mode of applications”.

1. Societal Marketing Strategy

To Nwosu and Uffoh (2005:46), this is a marketing philosophy. It uses corporate social responsibility and/ or community relations in steering corporate bodies to assist their communities and the society. With these, the showcase themselves to the communities and the public as responsible, responsive and reliable corporate citizens, thereby enduring themselves to their public (stakeholders)

2. Social Marketing Strategy

This is different from societal marketing. It is more of a marketing strategy, Nwosu and Uffoh (2005:46), used mainly in marketing non-profitable, services, ideas and institution.” Example is environmental issues and problems.

3. De-marketing Strategy

De-marketing is that another marketing strategy. It is applied stopping the consumption of harmful goods and services. Histories are cigarette, marijuana and unacceptable behaviours: same sex relationship, prostitution and polluting the environment through improper disposal of wastes (Nwosu and Uffoh, 2005:47).

4. Relationship Marketing

It entails the cultivation and maintenance of good relationship “with customer, distributors, supplies, retailers and stakeholder” of an organisation, which results in mutual understanding. It is an off-shoot of customers’ relatives (Nwosu and Uffoh, 2005: 47).

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5. Human Resource Management Strategy

It is a style of managing an organisation in which employee and is absence of in-human treatment of the employee and exploitation. The presoment are motivated to maximise resources in attaining environmental public relations goals, according to Nwosu and Uffoh (2005, 48).

6. Total Quality Management (TQM) Strategy

This is ensures the satisfaction and full involvement, Nwosu and Uffoh (2005:48), of internal and external publics to organisational eco-friendly performance. They also call it Total Quality Environmental Management (TQEM)

7. Management Re-Engineering Strategy

It requires the redesigning, restricting and transforming or remolding corporate culture through new use application of corporate resource. Nwosu and Uffoh (2005, 48) insist it has to be handled carefully as its failure turns to be disastrous.

8. Offensive Strategy

As Nwosu and uffoh (2005; 52) put it, the environmental public relations manager has “to take the initiative with his public relations action and communications. It is also called proactive strategy or offensive marketing strategy.

9. Proactive Strategy

Action launched is done preemptively or with a view to first-hand taking advantage of an emerging situation.

10. Pre-emptive Strategy

Through similar to proactive strategy, Nwosu and Uffoh (2005:52), observe, pre-emptive strategy is applied ‘participation,’ to counter attack, criticism, danger or an offensive

11. Optimistic Strategy

In Nwosu and Uffoh (2005:52) view is used to take advantage of an opportunity for instance, result presented by research and environment

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scanning can be the basis for launching a campaign in order to promptly deal with a crisis.

Nwosu and Uffoh (2005: 52) sum up their position on the application of these strategy by saying that it is “possible by the fact that public relations is a flexible form of communication’ “and in the area of corporate communication, it is becoming increasing important as a strategic tool and weapon,” they also quote Paettie (1995: 226), as saying.

SELF-ASSESSMENT EXERCISE

i. Name and explain, at least, five strategies of environmental public relations, as well as the crisis to which they can be applied.

ii. Show areas of similarities which warrant the application of these strategies in both public relation and environmental public relations.

4.0 CONCLUSION

As environmental public relation is versatile, it is also needs multi-pronged instrument to handle them, it is in this direction that these strategies, applicable measures for effectively tackling these challenges.

Some of these strategies are borrowed from related discipline, like marketing, management among others. This shows the flexibility of the profession and lays bare the fact that it is anchored on communication, like its other multi-disciplines.

5.0 SUMMARY

This aspect of the course, one may argue, seems technical and often

“diversionary”; yet, it is a core subject and must be understood by students of public relations. That is how to be formidably prepared for the task ahead- that of using the course as a platform for reversing the near catastrophic doom awaiting mankind as a result of his intentional and unintentional misapplication of the resources bestowed on him by providence.

6.0 TUTOR-MARKED ASSIGNMENT

1. With detailed discussion, show areas where five of the environmental public relations strategies can be applied.

2. Explain the relationship between any four of these strategies.

3. Why do these strategies come from different discipline?

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