On my own understanding, research is the process of collecting, analyzing and interpreting data in a way of exploring or having more information on a certain issue or something. By combining two words "environment and research", it is clear that we are in a position of collecting environmental data. But what is data? Due to the purpose of this article, data is described as the comparison of past, current and forecasting situation in a form of statistical numbers.

Then here comes a question what the use of collecting environmental data? Why? Let us think in this way where we have a patient who needs to be treated. We can't perform any operation without knowing the condition of the patient otherwise we can do it wrongly which might result into critical condition, therefore we need to examine our patient before proceeding with anything else. The same goes to the environment; we can't treat and protect the environment without knowing the past, current and forecasting situation.

There are different research methodologies or data collection methods, however you might find some relevant based upon the project you are working on and reject others. They include; Survey, Observational, and Experimental. This directly takes us to the point; if we meant to examine the worldwide environmental issue, shall we take into consideration state by state?  No, we only take a sample which represents a specific region we want to examine.

When dealing with environmental research, you must be familiar with probability theories. The fact that environmental research falls in a dimension of scientific research, it is very essential to learn statistical data analysis and interpretation. In this case I recommend to use data analysis software such as; SPSS, STATA and so on. By using these software, they will help you boosting your research skills and your familiarity with scientific research. 

The other concerning issue is the cost of environmental research which goes in hand with data sources. When preparing environmental research, it is very important to know whether you need primary data, secondary data or both. Using primary data for environmental projects is too expensive. Thou it is too expensive, its probability to be relevant is high compared to the second data. It's up to you whether you use one of them or both. However you need to be aware of your research project cost and whether you may afford it or not in advance. This will help you choose the source which best suit your financial situation.

The last point is time. Everything on the earth requires time and time worthy money and even life. When you are determined to handle environmental challenges, it will cost you time as well. And 3/4 of your committed time must be spent in research. You know what I mean? When data processing is done appropriately then having a solution will take a second. What mean is that; when adjusting your time, don't spend much time thinking of a solution without clear facts instead spend your time studying a problem, causes and effects.

By concluding, we now understand the role of environmental research to address environmental issues. All the above discussed contents are based on my academic knowledge and understanding therefore I highly recommend you to learn and explore more regarding environmental research on your own. As mentioned above, we must be aware of past, current and forecasting environment situation in order to come up with appropriate and sustainable solutions.