Globalization and the Environment

After analyzing the forestry problem described earlier, the problems are clearly linked domestic government policy and not only the giant multinational corporations as Ellwood has posited. The incentive for corporations to conduct cross-border trade is not the unperturbed environmental laws, it is the comparative advantage they would gain from cheap labor and resources. LeGrain advances the argument that approximately 80% of polluting industries are in industrial nations, such as America where Greenpeace affirms that oil corporations receive billions of dollars in subsidies for their production purposes which does the most environmental damage that affects the rest of the world with it. Initiatives should be started to reduce the Global South’s dependency on the Global North because it is their high debt-GDP ratios which keep the prices of natural resources (often tied to their currency) low enabling large consumption. There is a clear incentive for the international community to reduce the Global South’s dependency because it is widely agreed that as the GDP per capita of a nation increases the residents are able to afford environmental remediation products and

As the world looks on, people start to realize that the problem of environmental pollution is a global

Contrastively, globalization itself has great damage to the environment. Due to developed countries going into developing countries to exploit their resources, the natural resources is depleting at a rapid speed, yet we are still not doing enough to stop it. As there are strict laws regarding the environment in developed countries, these companies turn their eyes onto developing countries whose environmental laws are more relaxed in comparison. As these developing countries also want to earn revenue and income that these companies bring, they open the door to them, but destroying Mother Earth at the same time.

Globalization is the process of integration arising from the interchange among people, ideas, and culture. Globalization shows that international trade between other countries has impacted the way the U.S is now. Most of the products we use today is made in other countries such as China, Indonesia, and South Korea. As beneficial it may sound to have products made cheap in other countries and sold in the United States at a much higher price. This is also known to have a problem to the factory workers.

Narrowly defined, globalization refers to the breakdown of barriers to Foreign Trade and investment, especially through such vehicles as the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade, the World Trade Organization, the European Union, and the North American Free Trade Agreement. More generally, globalization involves the worldwide flow of capital, ideas, and information made possible through the rise of modern technology and the mass media, including the

Developing countries tend to have “the most fragile environments” (Baker 197) which is due to the flow of resources dictated by the core. The core, taking advantage of the developmental level developing countries are on, exploit their lack of laws restraining harm to the environment, setting up factories causing even more environmental damage. Thus when comparing the environmental status of a developed country to a developing country there are major differences. These differences are the interaction of the people with the environment, in terms of needs, and the number of factories profiteering from the use and exploitation of natural resources. When this difference is identified then it is easier to assess not only the source but also to create laws prohibiting this exploitation and constructing programs to reverse environmental damages to specific circumstances, helping developing countries to move forward on the developmental scale instead of backwards. If this is taken into account then why is the source causing environmental damage, the core, not stopped? This is due to the dominant ideology stating that with infinite economic growth, eventually the sustainability of the environment will be achieved. The developing countries reinforces this by inviting and encouraging organizations to base their factories in their country which has immediate results, creating a smoke screen

Globalisation is the process of allowing goods, financial and investments markets to operate across national borders due to deregulation, improved communications, infrastructure and technology.

Global environment readily impacts businesses all over the world, as any change originating in one country can affect several others. Such examples include the use of

In general, this report discusses the successes and failures overall, analyzes sustainable development, institutional gaps, and also a call to action. Both Lomborg and The Brundtland Report agree that “...infant mortality is falling; human life expectancy is increasing; the proportion of the world’s adults who can read and write is climbing; the proportion of children starting school is rising; and global food production increases faster than the population grows.” (Brundtland 93) In conjunction with all the positive actions being taken; there are also environmental trends that threaten to radically alter the planet, that threaten the lives of many species upon it, including the human species. There has also been a growing realization in national government and multilateral institutions that it is impossible to separate economic development issues from environmental issues. Nevertheless, “humanity has the capability to make development sustainable to ensure that it meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.” (Brundtland 95) Furthermore, the goal for sustainable development and the integrated nature of the global environment/development challenges pose problems for institutions. “There is a growing need for effective international cooperation to manage ecological and economic interdependence.” (Brundtland 97) Last but not least, “To achieve the needed changes, we believe that an active follow-up of this report is imperative. It is with this in mind that we call for the UN General Assembly, upon due consideration, to transform this report into a UN Programme on Sustainable Development.” (Brundtland 99) There are many environmental issues occurring to our beautiful planet right now and will

The global decline of the environment is readily observable. Today, the quality of air, water and land resources is increasingly compromised because of the pollutants that contaminate the environment. For the sake of industrialization and economic development, some countries are willing to risk their natural resources. Environmental degradation can be seen anywhere. According to some observers, environmental degradation is more rampant in countries with poor economic conditions as compared to more affluent countries (Ambler, n.d.). China and India, for instance, are developing countries yet it is among the biggest contributor to air pollution in terms of carbon dioxide emission ( PBL Netherlands Environmental Assessment Agency, 2014). Most often, leaders of developing economies are willing to

Frequently, people are unclear of exactly what Globalization means. Globalization is the tendency of the world's economies to act as a single interdependent economy. It can be described as the increased movement of people, knowledge, ideas, goods and money across national borders to make the world more unified in a sense. Globalization is often thought of in economic terms but as we know there are other components with this idea like, economics, and cultures. There is a huge debate of whether or not globalization is positive or negative.

Along with the world trying to prevent a world collapse of major environmental problems, countries such as

Globalization have some positive impacts on the environment to some extent but there are still some crucial negative impacts of globalization in play. The negative impacts are mainly export-orientated* destruction on the environment whilst the positive impacts are increase awareness and multinational corporations’ research into eco-friendly technology.

Environmental issues have become more apparent in today’s society leading to an increased awareness; however, further consideration is needed for global solutions. Air pollution is one the largest environmental issues targeting the Earth’s entire population. Energy efficiency plays an important role for promoting renewable energy so without it, resources for non-renewable energy are declining. All over the world fossil fuels, like coal and oil, are harvested to fuel factory production in order to meet consumer needs and releasing dangerous greenhouse gases. Corporations often outsource to developing countries for cheaper labor and a higher profit margin where environmental laws are less strict compared to other countries. Since the laws are so lax, factories can continuously emit a surge of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere depleting the air quality and ozone. Deforestation has also allowed the entry of more greenhouse gases into the Earth’s atmosphere furthering the threat of global warming and climate change. Not to mention, it has destroyed many of the Earth’s tropical rainforests leaving millions of different species without homes increasing the extinction of already endangered animals. Global pollution is a serious problem and some potential solutions are converting to energy efficient fuel, focus on renewable energy sources, and reduce deforestation.

Before analysing the implication of the WTO rules on international environmental governance, it is important to define international environmental problems and understand the history behind it, internationally and domestically. International environmental problems can be defined as ‘those impacts on the natural environment of