The Emergence of Environmentalism as a Major Force in Modern Politics - Essay Example

? The emergence of environmentalism as a major force in modern politics of The emergence of environmentalism as a major force in modern politics Baron de Montesquieu was perhaps the first political theorist to link politics with the environment when he proposed that laws must be framed in accordance with the geographical and climatic conditions of a nation (Montesquieu, Of Laws in Relation to the Nature, n.d.). Over the centuries environmentalism has become a multifaceted political subject touching upon the spheres of ethics, globalization, gender politics and sustainable development. It is also important to understand the global nature of this issue and act accordingly. The beginnings of an environmental crisis which looms large over the world can perhaps be traced to the Industrial Revolution in Europe which led to natural resources being used, often indiscriminately, for the purpose of scientific progress (Reynolds, A Brief History of Environmentalism, n.dd). At a parallel level, European colonies in Asia, Africa and Latin America were also subjected to much ecological damage for industrial growth. Though Henry David Thoreau pioneered environmentalist thinking in the USA, it was John Muir who laid the foundation of the Sierra Club in 1892 through which the government received ample financial aid for it to undertake wilderness conservation measures (Reynolds, n.d.). The emergence of environmental activists such as Wangari Mathai from Kenya shows that environmental concerns cannot be divorced from an engagement with the imbalances of power engendered by colonialism. In contemporary times ecocriticism has become an integral part of most academic disciplines. It has been particularly influential in the field of postcolonial studies where scholars have found a close connection between the discursive and economic power wielded by the West and the environmental damage inflicted by Western nations upon the nations of the Third World. The first breakthrough in American environmentalism came with Rachel Carson’s work Silent Spring (1962) which spoke of the impact of dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane (DDT), a commonly used pesticide on the environment. The work created immediate controversies and numerous American industrialists clamoured for its ban, accusing the author of baseless indictments. However, the work caused enough stir for President John F Kennedy to order a thorough investigation into its claims. The research revealed the hugely detrimental effect that DDT had not merely upon the physical environment but also on human health since it was commonly used as an agricultural pesticide. Following this the use of DDT was banned in the USA (Lear x-xi). This is an important episode in the history of environmentalism for it fortified American environmentalist movement besides proving the efficacy of protest movements led by seemingly politically disempowered individuals against multinational conglomerates. It is a sad fact that even today, several countries continue to use DDT and many such pesticides. These continue to affect the lives of millions of people and their health even today. The reasons for this can be traced to the lobbying power of the corporate firms that produce these pesticides and the lack of civic action on the part of the citizens of these nations. This can be remedied to an extent through the spread of awareness of environmental issues. In short, the issue of environmentalism needs to extend its reach to these nations in order for it to be an effective tool. In the 1970s began the era of international cooperation on the subject of ecological conservation, the manifestation of which was the Earth Summits summoned by the United Nations. The first among these was held in Stockholm in 1972 and was titled “UN Conference on the Human Environment, Stockholm” (“Earth Summit,” The United Nations Official Website n.p.). These forums of international debate and discussion have laid bare not merely the urgent need to incorporate the right to a clean environment as a fundamental human right (a decision that was unanimously taken in the Earth Summit held in Rio de Janeiro in 1992) but also the power imbalance within the seemingly egalitarian field of environmentalism. In the light of the latter discovery it was found that environmentalism could in fact be employed as a thinly concealed form of neo-colonialism. The success of Brazil Summit can thus perhaps be attributed to the fact that it was held during the post-Cold War period unlike its predecessors whose success was severely impeded by the mutual distrust between the two major power blocs of the Western world. It was also perhaps during the Rio conference that the now ubiquitous and hugely important term “global warming” was popularized. The term points to the shift of focus in environmentalism from the local to the international with sustainable development becoming a largely accepted universal goal. The 2002 Summit in Johannesburg, South Africa saw an increased participation of developing, making it thereby a more democratic forum than its antecedents. The goal that the participating nations decided upon was to significantly reduce the number of people who do not have access to basic public health and also to inhibit haphazard growth which depletes the nation’s water and forest resources. However, there were continuing accusations of a Western bias by nations who claimed the largest oil producing nations opposed the widespread use of renewable energy resources. Rather than being debilitating factors, these differences of opinion arguably broaden the horizons of the political movement of environmentalism. They facilitate a deeper understanding of subjects such as the equitable use of natural resources and collective responsibility of nations in controlling environment pollution. A close connection between environmentalism and politics is seen in the Kyoto Protocol of the 1997 where all signatory states pledged to reduce their respective carbon emissions within a stipulated period of time. This illustrates the fact that environmental concerns cannot merely be treated as ethical issues but must also have some backing in legality for countries to act upon certain universal goals on environment conservation. This system of checks and balances also ensures that such treaties are not misused by certain countries over their less developed counterparts. Many of these summits have however failed as a result of the lack of willingness on than part of many members to cooperate and the inability to understand the global nature of the problem at hand. Yet another means of promoting ecological protection is through ecotourism (Reynolds). This provides individuals with an immediate incentive to safeguard the natural environment while also bringing in ample revenues to invest in conservation projects. Furthermore, ecotourism also strengthens diplomatic ties between nations and hence possibilities of future collaborations on potential ecological crises. An important nexus of two important political movements is seen in the emergence of ecofeminism. Ecofeminism has proven to be extremely successful not merely in its goal of environment conservation but also in generating sustainable employment for women across the globe. It is thus premised on the argument that “…the domination of women and the domination of nature are “intimately connected and mutually reinforcing”” (Warren and Cheney 180-81). According to a United Nations reports, international brands such as The Body Shop and L’Oreal have begun to use natural ingredients sourced from Africa and have consequently created employment opportunities for the local women. Rebecca Moudio in her article in Africa Renewal observes, “In order for more African women in the shea industry to reap the benefits of fair trade, the Global Shea Alliance, an association that promotes quality and sustainability in the shea butter industry’s support for rural African communities and women’s empowerment, organized the New York Shea Butter Trade Industry Conference.” This concern for the environment also has its flip side. More often than not, environmentalism has also been used to put a spoke in the wheel of the third world countries’ progress. This has come in the form of demands for better technology as far as the processing of waste gases are concerned. It has also come in the form of demands for appliances that the people of these countries may not be able to afford. This has led to knee-jerk reactions on the part of these countries where they have refused to be a part of several programs intended to fight pollution and the degradation of the environment. This then takes one to the idea of progress and growth as they are understood by modern-day economists. The growth of a nation is understood by most analysts through the rates of growth that they are able to accomplish in a certain period of time. While this indicates the improvement or decline in the economic health of a nation as a whole, it does not indicate anything more. This is to say that the distribution of wealth is not indicated by these parameters. The rich may keep getting richer and the poor may keep getting poorer but this would hardly find a mention in such parameters of progress. Another aspect that would not be factored in, in such statistics is the condition that such progress leaves the environment in. The environment may be battered at the end of a fiscal year but as long as the country achieves a certain rate of growth, everybody would be happy. In this regard, noted economist, Amartya Sen argues that the improvement in the fortunes of a nation needs to be measured in terms of the freedom that the people of that nation are able to achieve. His argument focuses on the achievement of progress in parameters that are different from those that had been in place till then (Sen 2008, 12). For instance, the development of green cover in a particular area would enable underprivileged sections of a society to live off the produce of that cover even if they do not have the means to acquire white-collar jobs at that point in time. This is exactly what has been put in place in a country like Bhutan where progress is measured in terms of the happiness of the people. Absurd though this may sound to those who are unaware of the concept, it is able to map out how people live their lives everyday and how that can contribute to real happiness. It also reveals an understanding of the differences in the parameters that people may use to acquire happiness. More importantly, it would also mean that the environment would not be looked upon as merely another tool to achieve high rates of growth but an ally in a quest for sustainable development (Kelly 2012). The concept of Gross National Happiness addresses this very lacuna in modern day economics and planning. It points to the need for sustainable development in underprivileged areas that takes into account the needs and dreams of the local communities of that area. Another fallout of environmentalism is the use of environmental issues for electoral purposes. On many occasions, the use of environmental issues such as the use of nuclear energy and the disposal of its wastes have been issues that have been used by political parties. This has resurfaced after the disaster that happened at Fukushima. Apart from this, the use of recycled products has also been a major poll plank in several nations over the past few years. This is apart from the use of such issues by corporate in order to generate goodwill amongst their clientele and the general public. Corporate social responsibility has more often than not manifested itself in the manipulation of environmental issues that then have great political implications such as the use of funds at the macroeconomic and microeconomic level. This means that the funds generated and used by governments, corporate and individual consumers are affected by environmental issues. While this is a positive development, it needs to be approached with caution and the fallout needs to be analysed at a closer level. The rise of environmentalism is thus, an important one. It has had a positive impact upon the use of natural resources in the world. It has also, however, given rise to opportunism in certain ways. Since the decline of the environment affects the whole of the world, the issue needs to be tackled keeping everybody in mind and with a holistic approach in mind. It is only then that the issue can turn into a unifying rather than a divisive force. References Montesquieu, B. D.. Of Laws in Relation to the Nature. [WWW] Available from http://www.lonang.com/exlibris/montesquieu/sol-14.htm [Accessed 12/11/13] Reynolds, A. A Brief History of Environmentalism. [WWW] Iowa State University. Available from www.public.iastate.edu/~sws/.../HistoryofEnvironmentalism.doc?. [Accessed 12/11/2013] Carson, R. (1962). Silent Spring. New York: Mariner Lear, L. (1962). Introduction. In: Carson, R. Silent Spring. New York: Mariner. Pp-x-xi. “Earth Summit.” [WWW] Available from http://www.un.org/geninfo/bp/enviro.html. The United Nations Official Website. [Accessed 12/11/2013] Warren, K. J. and Cheney, J. (1991). Ecological Feminism and Ecosystem Ecology. Hypatia 6 (1) pp. 179-197. Muidio, R. (2013). Shea butter nourishes opportunities for African women. Africa Renewal. [WWW] Available at http://www.un.org/africarenewal/magazine/august-2013/shea-butter-nourishes-opportunities-african-women. [Accessed 12/11/2013] Sen, A. (2008). Development as Freedom. New Delhi: Oxford University Press.. Kelly, A. (2012). Gross national happiness in Bhutan: the big idea from a tiny state that could change the world. [WWW] theguardian. Available at http://www.theguardian.com/world/2012/dec/01/bhutan-wealth-happiness-counts [Accessed 12/11/2013] Read More