The main reason why third-world countries struggle to initiate any type of environmentalism is mainly rooted in two things economic policies and environmental policies. First, I will start with the economic problem which according to Energy Policy Institute at the University of Chicago comes from a number of different things. One of those being that third-world countries just don’t have the infrastructure to switch over from fossil fuels to green technology, which means putting thousands at risk of starvation in already poor conditions. The University of Chicago also points out that weak property rights also mean that people who have the means to switch to greener energy don’t have any incentive because they might be allowed to reap their investments. Another problem pointed out in the article is corruption in third-world countries also prohibits green energy solutions from taking root as the people don’t trust their officials. Also, corruption leads into another problem which is if policymakers don’t efficiently collect tax revenue that also raises the cost environmental investments too. Breaking Energy also talks about how sub-Saharan countries depend almost exclusively on their natural resources like coal, oil, and gas for revenue and foreign exchange. So, one can imagine how halting these harmful environmental procedures might undermine an already extremely poverty-ridden countries economic growth. Also, in their article Breaking Energy makes the same point as the University of Chicago did which was that these countries don’t have the same resources that developed countries do. Then there is the problem of how third-world countries are stuck in a cycle of continual environmental pollution, because as the continue to pollute their country the effects of climate change in third-world countries worsen which sends them into deeper poverty, which then leads back to them needing to pollute more in order to support their citizens. Vice in an article they wrote in 2013 talk about how if these third-world countries are to ever transition to green technology that they will need help from developed countries to facilitate that transfer.
I have commented on Patrick and Heather’s posts and I should have 35 points.
The developed world can't expect struggling developing countries to abandon "organic" development depending for now on continued fossil fuel consumption But as Klein pointed out, many of those countries--with a little help from the developed world--are in a position to leapfrog into a new green era. We owe them the help.
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