【１】環境問題は、身近な問題であり、人間の生存をも左右する根本的な問題です。しかし、その認識は、問題が深刻にならなければ深まらないというのも事実のようです。このような性格の環境問題をうまくたとえたものに水草の話があります。
　【２】地下水が豊富な熊本市に、江津湖という湖があります。この湖で最近問題になっているのがウォーターレタスという外来の水草の増殖です。湖一面、この水草で覆われてしまい、ヒメバイカモなどの在来の貴重な水草が駆逐されようとしています。
　【３】水草がこれほど増えるまで問題にならなかったのは、環境問題に対する、私たちのこのような意識のあり方と似たところがあったようです。つまり、一片の水草が一週間に二つに増える能力があるとしましょう。【４】最初は、だれかが問題意識もなく、自宅の水槽の水草を捨てたのでしょう。一週間後、水草が二つに増えてもだれも気づきません。何週間か後、少し目につくようになり水草に気づく人もでてきましたが問題にする人はいません。【５】まだ、広い湖でほんのわずかな部分にあるだけだからです。さらに月日が経ち、水草が湖面の八分の一ほどを覆うようになると、人々が問題にしはじめました。「大変だ。このままでは水草が増えて湖が覆われてしまう。」と。【６】しかし、次の週には、湖面の四分の一に、その次の週には半分まで水草が覆い、本格的な対策を打つ余裕もなく、人々が騒ぎ出してから、たった三週間目には、水草が湖一面を、占領してしまったのです。
　地球環境問題も、この水草の問題と同じような性質をもっています。【７】私たちの子どもたちが生きていく地球の環境をよりよいものとするために、問題が現実となる前にしっかりと手を打っておかなければなりません。
　子どものころ、二十一世紀は夢の時代として遠い存在でした。【８】しかし、今、現実となり、私たちの子どもたちがこの世紀を支えていくことになります。
　人間は地球上の他の動物と違って、脳を極端に発達させてきました。その結果、知能が発達し、道具を使い、火を利用し、機械をつくり豊かで便利な社会を築いてきました。【９】その反面、私たちの生存の基盤である地球を流れる時間の追随を許さないはるかに速いス∵ピードで私たちは地球に負荷を与えるようになってしまいました。私たちの欲望がそうさせたのです。
　【０】今や、地球にとって、他の生物とは異なり、私たち人間の存在そのものが負担となっているのは間違いありません。私たち一人一人が謙虚にこのことを受けとめていかなければならないでしょう。
　また、よく都市と地方の対立の構図を見ることがあります。
　都会の人が、田舎の人に対し、環境が壊れるから、道をつくるなといってみたり、舗装道路は必要ないなどといってみたり、しかし、こういう意識は、正しいのでしょうか。このような環境問題について声を大にする人々も、普段、自動車や鉄道を利用し、電気を使い、紙を消費しています。日常、森林の手入れに汗することもありません。きっと地方の人々に比べ、一人当たりの地球への負荷量ははるかに大きいはずです。
　二十一世紀を生き抜くためには、このような現実をしっかりと理解し、謙虚さを失わないことが大切です。また、それが他人であったり、動物であったり、地球であったりもしますが、思いやりを持つことが基本となるでしょう。
　日本では、公徳心に欠ける光景を目にすることがよくあります。自然公園の中で、平気でゴミを捨てたり、木の幹に名前を彫るなど枚挙にいとまがありません。このようなことをするのは、日常の生活でも、吸い殻を投げ捨てたり、車から空き缶を投げ捨てたりしているからでしょう。これは自分さえよければ構わないという発想に根ざした行為です。誰でも多かれ少なかれ経験しているのではないでしょうか。この公徳心も結局、思いやりの心をもつことで生まれてくると思います。

（矢部三雄「森の力」より）

Many of us like to keep pets. Why do we like them? Perhaps because they depend on us, or because they give us love. But what do we do for them? Watching tropical fish or stroking a cat are pleasant things to do and they can help to relax us if we are tired. But is it all right to keep animals as pets? Yes, if we take care of them well. But some pet owners do not. In cities many dogs are given too much food and not enough exercise.
The pet dog is often called“man's best friend". In old days dogs and humans took care of each other's lives. They protected people against enemies, like animals and other humans. They also hunted down food for their owners. Now we have shops, so we don't need dogs in the same way.
How kind are you to your pets? When you keep a pet, it needs a lot of care and attention. Hamsters are easier to keep than most pets. But they need enough space. Many pets feel pain in very small cages or because of bad care. Pets are not toys to be given as presents. They need regular feeding and care for many years.
Thousands of dogs and cats are abandoned each year because they are not wanted as pets any longer. Then they have to be destroyed by the police or animal welfare organizations.
Sometimes a pet has to be left with other people. The person taking care of your pet must always take care of it well.
Getting close to wild animals in a zoo is fun. We can learn a lot from animals. Small animals, like rabbits, can have all the space they need and are easy to keep. However, large animals, like elephants, become bored in a small space. Some of them need friends and a lot of space, but they sometimes cannot get them in a zoo.
Many wild animals have already died out because of human activity and many more are in danger. To keep living, they need to be alone in wild places. We need to try to balance our needs with wild animals' need. Zoos can help to save animals in danger. Good zoos can teach people how animals live in their natural homes, and how important it is to preserve the places they live in. This can help animals to live in the wild. Zoos can also help animals which have nearly died out. They can raise animals in zoos and then put them back in the wild.
Some wild animals, like elephants, need special protection because they are killed for their tusks. These are used as ornaments. All over the world wild birds and animals are in trouble because the places they live in are used by humans and they have no place to live in. Also we pollute the rivers and the seas. This damages and kills fish and the sea mammals that eat them.
Some people like to wear animal fur because they think it looks beautiful. In old days people wore animal fur because it was the only material they could get to keep warm. Today warm clothes made from plants or man-made materials, like polyester or nylon. But animals are still killed to make fur coats. Foxes, beavers, minks and wild cats are caught and shot.
People have eaten meat for thousands of years. Until recently animals were raised on small farms. Their owners knew that if they took care of them better, the food would be better. Today most meat is "factory farmed" -- the largest number of animals are raised in the smallest possible space. This means everyone in cities can eat cheap meat, milk and eggs. Not everyone agrees that we should eat meat, though.
Animals are used by scientists to examine how bodies work and sometimes to make new medicines. If scientists don't test new medicines on animals, people may lose their lives or health. Some people say we shouldn't use animals to do things we don't want to do. But do animals feel the same way as we do? Animals can feel pain, but many people think they cannot feel so much pain as we do.
People have used animals for fun for thousands of years. They have stopped some cruel sports, like dog fighting. But animals are still hunted for fun. People pay money to shoot lions in Africa. Sometimes the numbers of one animal in an area become too large for its own survival and that of other animals. So hunters say that they are not damaging animals by killing some. Many people think this is cruel.
Our relationship with animals is changing. We need them less for protection and food gathering. But we want them more for other reasons, like giving enough meat to many city people, trying out medicines and making lonely people happy. People damage animals when they put human needs before animal needs. Animals, plants and humans all live in the same world and depend on each other. So we must respect animals' needs like our own needs.