ABSTRACT
The natural environment is composed of air, land, and water resources.From these resources, human life and biodiversity are sustained. Theidea that the environment ought to be protected seems obvious, but how to manage the earth’s global resources is as contentious an issue as development. The environment directly relates to development and to the operation of the global economy. Natural elements provide food, energy, and the raw materials necessary to support the world’s population, which is estimated to be approximately 6.8 billion people. The protection of global resources is controversial because economic activity involves the exploitation of natural resources to produce goods and services. How are societies to balance the growing resource needs of industrial societies with the natural environment? How do societies promote development and continue to support their people in the manner they have grown accustomed without destroying their natural habitat? In this chapter, we examine international efforts to protect the environment and to manage global resources. We look first at collective action problems associated with environmental protection, then at the structure of IGOs involved in managing land and sea resources. Our case studies cover international efforts to combat climate change and the International Whaling Commission (IWC) and its efforts to protect the whales.
