Policy analysis

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also has to be comprehensive enough as to embody components that could as well address other environmental problems like poor sanitation, industrial wastages, improper mining waste disposals, water crisis, acid rain, air pollution, among others.

The importance of proper planning before engaging in any of those measures is obvious. There is need to safeguard scare resources and still attain the goal of environmental restoration and reformation.

It is, therefore, a sensitive issue requiring well-though out policy measures, if positive results musty be attained on sustainable basis. It is a serious and grave global matter requiring wide consultations, collective action and proper articulation.

2.0 OBJECTIVES

At the end of this unit, you should be able to:

• identify the need to properly plan environmental public relations campaigns and programmers

• explain the advantages inherent in a well designed environmental public relations project

• discuss the sensitive reasons such project should be planned.

3.0 MAIN CONTENT

3.1 Reasons for Planning Environmental Public Relations Multiplicity of factors makes it imperative to adequately and effectively plan environmental public relations campaign programmes before embarking on their execution. Such justifications include:

a) Safe guarding scarce resource and investment programmes Could cost a fortune such investments running into millions of naira must be protected by ensuring the attainment of the set objectives.

The surest means of achieving the goal is through planning as it provides the information which guarantees confidence, focus, direction and surety.

b) Meeting clients’ expectation.

There could be other goals and aspirations of the client other than safeguarding fund. It could be profit, image repositioning or corporate reputation enhancement. It is incumbent on the environment public

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relations agency, consultant or practitioner to ensure that such clientele aims and motives are realized - and planning is the answer.

c) Fighting Competition

The field of public relations is one of the most competitive, just like other allied disciplines, including advertising and marketing communications. Stiff and cut throat competition can easily be overcome through adequate planning. This ensures that all critical decisions necessary for the attainment of set goals are taken (and timely too). This is a sure way of outwitting rivalries.

d) Protecting expended resources

Apart from the investors/clients investments, other resources such as manpower, materials, logistics, infrastructure and technology are part of the inputs to any environmental public relations programme budgetary expenditure. It is only a successful campaign that translates into their protection. Adequate and effective planning is a means of attaining that.

e) Consolidating agency’s corporate image

Should the environmental public relations programme fail, the image of the agency will be dented. Proper planning is a definitive instrument of avoiding failure and protecting the image, integrity and reputation of the agency and its practitioners.

f) Warding off the effects of globalisation

In addition to local/national competition facing the agency, it confronts competition orchestrated by globalisation. Knowledge and awareness of this should make the agency to work harder through thorough planning in order to overcome its negative implications.

3.2 Gains of Planned Environmental Public Relations

The ultimate objectives of an environmental public relations practitioner is to, through his professional practice, aid the attainment of environmental restoration, resuscitation, preservation and Conservation. To realise this, every available arsenal at his/her disposal is deployed. Hence, the practitioner goes beyond profit making to put in place all available measures that will assist in the attainment of the primary goal of achieving the clients’ goal. Planning makes it easy to achieve these.

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Besides, planning of the programme before its implementation also assists the practitioner to aim at the specific goal of the campaign. The data and statistics used for planning provide the added leverage of the focus and essence of the campaign. With this, the right bearing and direction are known and followed, rather than engaging in guess work or trial and error.

Similarly, planning provides the opportunity of deploying square pays in space holes. This consequently saves scare resources, avoids wastages and aids the strategic application of resources. Additionally, it makes possible the full harnessing and utilisation of the diverse inputs necessary to achieving environmental preservation and transformation. Needed resources have to come from various sources, ranging from international institutions; NGOs; donors and philanthropic bodies; environmental agencies, like FEMA, SEMA, FEPA, SEPA, ministries of environment, other support organisations, and environmental activists. Put differently, planning enables the practitioner or/and his agency to involve the right kind of people or stakeholders who will assist towards the achievement of his/their set goals.

Belch and Belch (1995:521-529) list the processes of public relations (environmental public relations) to be so enormous that it would be futile, suicidal and unprofessional to engage in it without proper planning.

To them, the processes include the following:

1. Determining and evaluating public attitudes 2. Establishing a public relations plan

3. Developing the programme 4. Implementing the programme.

Therefore, planning equips the practitioner with sufficient knowledge of all the involvements and vision of what is required of him. When this is the case, the executioner is better placed to harness the available resources and attain the set agency objectives.

3.3 The Sensitivity of Meticulously Planned Environmental Public Relations

Tackling ordinary public relations problems such as corporate image repositioning or industrial unrest are not as tedious and resources involving like handling environmental public relations crises. This can be buttressed with two current environmental crises, one facing Beijing in China and the other in Ogoniland in Nigeria.

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Beijing pollution crisis (The Guardian, 2013:48) required China to spend US$16 billion to tackle. Some of the areas to be handled included improving air quality, sewage treatment, sewage disposal and managing illegal constructions in the city inhabited by about 20 million people.

The other case is Ogoni land environmental remediation. After many years of environmental degradation dating back to the 1950s and occasioned by insensitive and irresponsible oil exploitation, spillage and mishandling of their management, Ogoni land is at best desolate and barren. It is beyond contamination and degradation. Its restoration is beyond herculean task. According to Uwaegbulam (2013:48), a Federal Government and United Nations Environmental Proramme team of experts has recommended a remedial resuscitation measures expected to last between 25 and 30 years. The project is to gulp an initial fund of US$1 billion.

With the magnitude of the resources required to take on these two crises, one can imagine the colossal components of the needs for tackling the public relations aspect of the programmes. No one would invest such wooping sums or preside over the implementation of the programme and want excuses of failure to trail the execution.

And without minding repetition, planning remains the only reliable solution to any fear of failure. Planning provides the practical and crucial elements on which the programme is pivoted and hence the basis of confidence and success after the campaign execution.

SELF-ASSESSMENT EXERCISE

i. Why and how is planning an aspect of environment public relations?

ii. What are the merits of planning environmental public relations?

iii. Why is planning regarded as very sensitive in environmental public relations?

4.0 CONCLUSION

This unit further provides us with an opportunity to emphasis the unique place of planning as an indispensable element of environmental public relations process. It is stage, segment and process no practitioner can afford to ignore. Planning involves very sensitive decisions that are very pertinent to the effective implementation and success of the entire programme or project; and instances include media selection, scripting the communication message, among others.

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It is, therefore, an element every intending or incumbent practitioner has to take seriously. The full knowledge of its dynamics, diversity, implications and application is key to professional performance in the field. It aids the successful and effective carrying out of environment public relations programme.

5.0 SUMMARY

Planning forestalls the wastage of scarce resources and also provides the opportunity for the environmental public practitioner to ponder over his conceptualised framework before the full scale execution. It is a stage of the environmental public relations process every practitioner should take seriously.

It should not only be seen as very important, but also a relevant component whose omission signals failure in the process of implementing environmental public relations projects/programmes.

6.0 TUTOR-MARKED ASSIGNMENT

1. Underscore the reasons behind planning environmental public relations campaign programmes.

2. Are there any derivable gains from effectively planning an environmental public relations campaign?

3. Showcase planning as a sensitive aspect of the environmental public relations process.

7.0 REFERECES/FURTHER READING

Belch, G. E. & Belch, M. A. (1995). Introduction to Advertising and Promotion: An Integrated Marketing Communications Perspective. (3rd ed.). Boston: Irwin McGraw-Hill.

“China to Spend $166 on Beijing Pollution Crisis”. (2013). The Guardian.

Uwaegbulam, C. (2013). “Government, UNDEP Team Hold Talks over Ogoniland Environmental Remediation”. The Guardian.

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UNIT 2 PROTECTING THE EARTH THROUGH