Evaluation of the environmental perception by university students from Cajeme municipality for the implementation of an Environmental Citizen Observatory

Abstract

This article analyzes the perception and attitudes by university students at the Instituto Tec-nológico Superior de Cajeme (ITESCA) about environmental problems in their locality. The purpose of this data is to incorporate the opinion of young people into an environmental citizen observatory. To this purpose, surveys and participatory workshops were carried out among the population studied. The data collected were categorized in a Geographic Information System and used to draw up six maps of perception of pollution and environmental status in the central area of the municipality. The results obtained in this research show that students perceive the state of the environment to be fair to bad with a tendency towards the stagnation, and that they have a well-defined environmental awareness about environmental issues. Litter in the streets and air pollution were identified as the main environmental problems affecting the community; although the students demonstrated a responsible attitude towards the environment, they sometimes feel unable to improve their life quality. The data collected proved to be useful in this first stage of the environmental citizen observatory.