the environment -- takes place this week.

Sadly, the passion which many young people have for the environment fades as they enter adulthood. Children learn a great deal in school about the tenuous relationship humans have with the environment and the need to care for the Earth.

But as they grow into adulthood, this awareness fades, presumably as the pressure to make a living and the pace of modern living makes them more careless about looking after their home.

For Bermuda, this is particularly important. It's easy to take the beauty of the Island and the surrounding ocean for granted, but it also has to be cared for as an economic necessity.

The young people who will gather this coming week may be more aware of this than more jaded adults, and for this reason alone, the community should listen very carefully to what they have to say.

Government and business can do much to help in maintaining and improving the environment.

Government can continue to preserve open space and important natural habitats by ensuring that the lands under its control are treated with sensitivity and are not developed. Planning laws which preserve open lands help to restrain those who would develop them; once land is built on, it almost never returns to its natural state.

Continuing to improve emissions and fisheries protection laws can also help to improve the air we breathe and the seas we depend on. Enforcing the litter laws which are already on the books would be a major step towards improving the Island's roadsides and walking areas. This not only maintains the Island's beauty, it is an important environmental safeguard because animals can be killed by jars, cans and the ubiquitous six-pack holders.

Government needs to make a greater commitment to recycling. While recycling can be expensive and the price of used paper, glass and plastic varies enormously, the Island should make a commitment to reducing and re-using what will be thrown away or burned otherwise.

Companies, too, should make a greater effort towards the environment. Some companies already do so, including Belco Holdings, which must meet international standards controlling emissions from its stacks, and also deserves credit for encouraging its customers to conserve energy and for exploring alternative sources of energy.

Other companies could do more. Giving out cloth shopping bags, importing goods with reduced packaging or which use recycled materials would all help and can be used as effective marketing tools as well.

For the individual, much can be done as well. While one person's effort may not seem like much, thousands of people all doing a few simple things can make a huge difference.

Separating garbage into burnables and recyclables, refusing to litter, picking up other people's trash on the road, composting, planting shrubs and trees and growing your own vegetables and fruit can all help to reduce the pressure on the environment.

So can re-using packaging and choosing to buy environmentally friendly goods.

While the costs may be higher, it's a small price to pay for maintaining the beauty and survival of Bermuda.