At the National University of Lesotho, I am currently enrolled in my final year of study with the double major of Development Studies and Environmental History. In Environmental History, we study themes that are mainly based on effects and consequences of human interaction with the environment. The aim of this is to understand some of the harmful activities that human beings do that causes the environment to react in undesired ways such as Climate Change and Global Warming. An aspect on Environmental History is, thus, to study the ways in which past groups who have lived in the African environment behaved in accordance with the physical environment so as to learn lessons about how to change our behavior and culture to include conserving and preserving our land and its natural resources.

Lesotho, like the rest of Africa, has a History of being in close connection with the environment. This was due to the fact that the country had a deep respect and appreciation for the land that gave its people a way to survive through the provision of food and water. One such appreciation is through the practice of totems such as lions and crocodiles that Basotho have familiarized themselves with as animals that should be admired. In truth, some of the writing surrounding Africanist historiography may be a bit exaggerated but the fact that our continent has always respected the physical surrounding still remains. We have shown this through disinterest in intense pollution that is derived through heavy industries and through numerous traditional acknowledgement of the land that we live off. True, with changing times came new and different patterns of consumption and relationships with the environment and we have to adopt a nonchalance attitude about how our habits negatively impacts our physical surrounding.

Taking a glance at the past is important, almost as important as taking a glance into the future. Where do we see our country in ten to fifteen years? Will we still be chasing personal dreams that seem to harm our environment and deplete our natural resources far more than necessary? Will we finally realize that a common goal of growth is what is best for the land that we have appreciated so much and should be appreciating far more than ever right now? The issues of Climate Change, Global Warming, and Ozone Depletion, over-population, pollution and other such environmental concerns should be a wake-up call to act now but instead, it seems that the talk is falling on deaf ears. As we lose more of the environment, it seems that people are only geared towards ensuring that their own personal safety comes first instead of working towards the common goal of combating our common enemy. It also seems that personal rivalries, competition and a race to get to the Promised Land are far more important than the present moment.

Taking a deep glance at the past is a painful activity not because it reminds us of what our nations have had to endure but because we get a glance at the mistakes that we are repeating. Appreciation is important but without action engineered to ensuring that this appreciation results into co-operation towards good for all, appreciation becomes unimportant. We have come so far as a world, as a continent and as a country to simply keep doing our mistakes over and over again. This has to stop. We need to realize that some of the important lessons of how to move forward can be learned from principles such as Communism and Nazism. True, these are unpopular for reasons beyond my own understanding but the fact that there was a voice that stood up against what they viewed to be an enemy should be noteworthy. Our common enemy right now is time but it could a friend if we just stood for a moment, released we are already leaving a legacy and decide to take action to leave a good, great one even, instead of the one that exists already.