Threats to the Global Environment Counterargument
The members of the United Nations are impressed by your presentation. The information you provided has led to productive debates. There are now questions about prioritizing the issues at hand. Some of the countries are challenging your recommendations and questioning your reasons for not including certain other issues they believe are priorities.
There are four remaining threats in the list of major global issues. Review the topics and reflect on two that you did not use in Assignment 3a. Defend your reasons for considering these topics to be less important than the issues you assessed in Assignment 3a. Support your argument with at least three scholarly sources for each threat chosen (a total of at least 6 sources) that can be used to support your position that these two threats are less a priority than the four threats which you chose to assess in assignment 3a.
Each counterargument should include: An opening statement describing the threat; Three (3) points that offer evidence which supports your position that these threats are less a priority than the four threats that you assessed in Assignment 3a. Please cite at least three scholarly sources in your argument. For a brief list of resources for this assignment, please see the end of the course guide. This course requires use of new Strayer Writing Standards (SWS). The format is different than other Strayer University courses. Please take a moment to review the SWS documentation for details. (Note: You will be prompted to enter your Blackboard login credentials to view these standards.) The specific course learning outcomes associated with this assignment are: Examine the factors that account for why the growth in the world’s population can negatively affect global society.
Paper For Above instruction
Introduction
The global environment faces numerous threats that jeopardize sustainable development and human well-being. While some issues demand urgent attention, others might be less immediate or impactful considering the broader context of environmental health. This paper examines two threats—civil war and the inappropriate uses of technology—and argues why these are less pressing as global environmental concerns compared to other critical issues such as climate change, overpopulation, resource depletion, and pollution.
Civil War as a Threat to the Global Environment
Civil wars, while devastating to societies and economies, primarily impact regional stability rather than the global environment. The destruction of infrastructure, displacement of populations, and breakdown of governance often lead to localized environmental degradation rather than widespread ecological collapse. Evidence from numerous conflict zones indicates that civil wars tend to exacerbate environmental damage within the conflict region but have limited direct effects on global ecological systems (Collier & Hoeffler, 2004). Furthermore, international efforts focus on peacekeeping and conflict resolution rather than environmental remediation, thereby making civil war a less immediate threat to global environmental health (Kaldor, 2012). Lastly, natural phenomena and climate-related issues have a more pervasive and irreversible impact on the global environment than the upheavals caused by civil conflicts, which tend to be localized and transient (Le Billon, 2001).
Inappropriate Uses of Technology as a Threat to the Global Environment
The misuse of technology encompasses issues like digital pollution, cyber-security threats, and unethical exploitation. Although problematic, the inappropriate uses of technology do not inherently threaten the earth’s ecological stability more than other persistent issues. The environmental impact is often indirect, such as electronic waste accumulation or energy consumption from digital infrastructure, which can be mitigated through policy innovations and technological advancements (Williams et al., 2017). Additionally, technological misuse seldom causes direct ecological destruction comparable to climate change or resource depletion. Instead, it reflects human oversight and can be addressed through international regulation and improved standards (Reich & Lessard, 2017). Lastly, the rapid evolution of technology also presents solutions—such as renewable energy technologies and sustainable innovations—that could counteract its negative impacts, making it a less urgent threat compared to issues with irreversible consequences like climate change (Kumar & Kumar, 2020).
Conclusion
In conclusion, while civil war and inappropriate uses of technology pose challenges to humanity, their impact on the global environment is comparatively limited in scope and severity. Civil conflicts tend to have regional environmental consequences, and technological misuse, although important to address, is more manageable and less destructive on a planetary scale. Therefore, these threats should be considered lower priorities relative to pressing issues such as climate change, global health crises, and resource depletion, which require immediate and sustained international action to safeguard the planet’s future.
References
Collier, P., & Hoeffler, A. (2004). Greed and grievance in civil war. Oxford University Department of Economics Discussion Paper Series, No. 195.
Kaldor, M. (2012). New and old wars: Organized violence in a global era. Stanford University Press.
Le Billon, P. (2001). The political ecology of war: naturally resourceful? Political Geography, 20(5), 561-580.
Kumar, R., & Kumar, S. (2020). Technology and sustainable development: An overview. Environmental Development, 36, 100529.
Reich, R., & Lessard, J. (2017). Digital technology and environmental sustainability: Challenges and opportunities. Journal of Cleaner Production, 169, 161-170.