ABSTRACT
This chapter focuses on the views put forward by anti-globalisation activists. The environment comprises the four gifts of nature: land, water, air and the living organisms. Environmental protection still remains a challenging issue most particularly in developing countries. Over the course of the 1990s, sustainable development has gradually become one of the national and international fundamental principles guiding the formulation of most public policies. Rising international trade and worsening environmental problems are stoking the debate between free traders and environmentalists. A key characteristic of economic globalisation is the rapid growth in international trade that has been taking place since the Second World War. Globalisation has also been characterised by accelerating financial flows particularly in the form of increased foreign direct investment (FDI) and portfolio investment. Liberalisation, privatisation and tighter intellectual property rights are shaping the path for the new technologies, and determining how they are used.
