GS 5

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I. Introduction

From tsunamis in Asia to hurricanes on the American coast to water wars in the Middle East, environmental issues are frequently the top global news stories. Although the international community has been wrestling with environmental issues for several decades, it wasn’t until the turn of the last century that environmental concerns were catapulted to the forefront of many states’ policy agendas.  The chapter from An Introduction to Global Studies that has been assigned for this week focuses on several complex and often interrelated environmental issues, beginning with a discussion of global climate change. Note that one of the issues assigned for this week also touches on this issue.  It then looks at the role of greenhouse gases in other environmental problems, including deforestation, ozone depletion, and the health of the world’s oceans.  The chapter then examines a series of other global environmental issues and the challenges they pose to the international community, including clean water, air pollution, desertification, disappearing habitats and species, and pesticides. Next, the chapter focuses on waste production, including e-waste, military waste and other miscellaneous human waste products. It then moves to a discussion of environmental discrimination and its effects on indigenous peoples and minority cultures. Finally, the chapter concludes with a discussion of international efforts that have been undertaken to address global environmental problems. Having read the chapter, you should be able to assess the following questions: