Monday, May 18, 2015

Environmental Security: Which is More Pressing the Far Future or the Near?

The Institute for Environmental Security doesn’t differ in its approach to “ Environmental Security” from any other organization that is out there in the main metropolitan areas. The Institute for Environmental Security focuses all of its energy and resources on a "threat” that will happen within “10 years” from now, ignoring the current threat that the U.S paid dearly due to ignoring it.
In Afghanistan, the timber policy, and by timer I mean wood, resulted in a proxy war led by Taliban in Pakistan against the U.S soldiers in Kunar and Nuristan. The U.S soldiers were getting killed, in an area they called “ the Valley of Death” due to an ill-designed environmental policy. The timber policy utilized an absolute language prohibiting all timber cutting without any consideration to the supply and demand. Thus, Taliban launched a proxy war to smuggle the timber, fund its criminal activities and killing our soldiers because they get in the way. Taliban hit three birds with one stone. The security threat and the blood that our soldiers shed went unnoticed and was not even mentioned in their document titled “ What is Environmental Security?” The Institute for Environmental Security focused only on what will happen with “ 100 years” from now.

In Iraq, the American soldiers were getting killed or worse, kidnaped in Sadr City by Al-Mahdi Army, the strongest and most powerful Shiite militia. Interestingly, Sadr City suffered and still is suffering from an ill-designed environmental policy related providing basic services. As Major General Chiarelli points out in his diagram most active insurgency cells come from areas that lack basic services in Sadr City. Fallujah City, the heart of the Sunni insurgency, was and still is suffering from lack of basic services. In both cities, the U.S soldiers incurred heavy losses due to ill-designed environmental policies. Nevertheless, the Institute for Environmental Security didn’t mention a word about these current and pressing threats. To be fair, it is not only the Institute for Environmental Security, it is also the majority organizations, the term “Environmental Security” is attached to the far future, while immediate threats are just ignored.
As always, I have a recommendation, expand the concept of “Environmental Security” to include immediate and current threats. You will be amazed of how many threats are there surrounding us.

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