NS-08,NS-07 and NS-final assig.

In recent years the international community has thrived on crude oil and natural gas. The markets for these resources have always followed an established framework created mainly by the US and other industrial nations. The International Energy Agency (IEA) was created as somewhat of a formal oil consumers “regime” to constitute global energy architecture (Alexandroff & Cooper, 2010). Throughout most of the 80’s and 90’s the US sponsored the global energy architecture but has always relied on international oil, especially throughout the middle east. The US continues to become dependent on oil rich countries and has drug the US into the Middle East. The US has also drilled within its own boundaries for both oil and natural gas. The argument heard by many is that, the US depends too heavily on other countries for oil, when the US could be using their own resources to fuel their nation. There has always been a political push for being independent of other countries. But the costs to our planet are too high to continue to contribute to eliminating our natural resources. Taking every environmental rule out of the mix, the idea of relying solely on the US to fuel the US economy sounds like a good idea. But, it isn’t and the US must think about preserving their lands, pushing back on carbon emission products and focusing on the future. The world as we know it is running out of natural resources.

Other countries like Sierra Leone have suffered through internal conflict with the fight over “conflict diamonds”. Sierra Leone, the small west African country has seen war, death, and the displacement of millions of people, caused by the rebel group, RUF. According to Holstine, Lesson 7, “there is the reality that controlling access to diamonds and other precious minerals can be used by groups to fuel continued violence as part of a criminal enterprise.” It has transformed this country into one of the poorest, at the same time holding the world’s richest diamonds. Can the example of Sierra Leone’s diamond conflict be futuristically transferred to oil and natural gas reserves within north america? The world is slowly running out of natural resources. If perhaps the US energy policies did move toward a more homegrown resource economy, this could easily create hostility within US borders, like in Sierra Leone. If you add in the diminishing natural resources, hostilities would grow even further. If the US were to become more self reliant, oil rich Middle Eastern countries may take a plunge, as that is one of their only sources that keeps their economy growing. Tapping into renewable energy and finding more solutions for our slowly dying global resources is what we need to do. We need to look to the future, using new and upcoming technologies that are environmental friendly, if the US wants to lead the way in energy management.  

References

Holstine, Jon. "Security Issues. Lesson 7." Https://edge.apus.edu. 2017. Accessed 2017.

Alexandroff, Alan S. and Andrew F. Cooper, eds. 2010. Rising State, Rising Institutions: Challenges for Global Governance. Washington, D.C.: Brookings Institution Press and Centre for International Governance Innovation.