The simple meaning of environment is "external conditions or surroundings." With our careless interference and exploitation we have changed everything around us to an extent that our natural surroundings are no longer natural. They are polluted, spoiled and degenerated. In the process we ignored even the vital fact that our actions may one day endanger our own existence.
From: Introduction To Jainism ► [03.1] Ahimsa ►Āchārānga: The first book on the environment