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ABSTRACT
On the one hand, natural resources – particularly water and oil – are both indisputably running out and creeping in to account more for the probability of more violent than mere diplomatic conflicts among thirsty world powers.
On the other hand lies a rather downplayed albeit phenomenal opening for political re-orientation, economic transformation and social responsibility of the variety that is peculiarly unprecedented: hence, a clarion call to “all”.
Set as a live television broadcast, this essay attempts to initiate the inspiration for an indeed global transition from threats triggered by resource scarcity (the sticks) to opportunities that rarely ever make news headlines (the carrots).
Like Oil
“The world consumes two barrels of oil for every barrel discovered. So is this something you should be worried about?”
Most subscribers to The Economist will affirm that Chevron has cultivated a habit of almost always placing ‘food for thought’ of this kind around opening pages of every issue; if not, trust me, you might even find a differentiated version within a few pages ahead:
“It took us 125 years to use the first trillion barrels of oil. We’ll use the next trillion in 30. So why should you care?”
Like Water
“Some 41% of the world's population, or 2.3 billion people, live in river basins under "water stress," meaning they are subject to frequent water shortages.”
It’s the World Resources Institute taking the initiative this time. Still, in order to grasp the gravity of the situation, it may be crucial to take heed to the words of one Palestinian who conducts water negotiations with Israel:
“If we don't address the water issue in … a coherent way there will be a war. There's scarcity and when it comes to water it's a matter of life."
The World in 2007 : “The Power of Natural Resources” CNN Television Special, Global Satellite Broadcast
TAY: Good morning. I am Tay Hembar.
Today’s package brings water and oil to the fore as the most basic natural resources in today’s world for the latter and for eternity in the former. Ishima Omachi, a student participant at this year’s St. Gallen Symposium, joins us live from our St. Gallen studios with a summary of her thoughts on the implications of oil and water scarcity for political, economic and social development worldwide.
You’re welcome to the program, Ishima. You look stunning.
ISHIMA: Oh thank you, Tay! It’s a shame I cannot exactly say same for the state of the world’s natural resources.
Some “Unpleasant Truths”
Like my contribution to the Symposium went, the present configuration of the international order frowns at words like ‘scarcity’. Rapid industrialization is incompatible with such obsolete vocabulary because the intensity driving the world’s chase after express economic growth permits no such words lurking around. But today, when and wherever natural resources take centre stage, questions of water, then oil, invariably command a dominance that is not unfounded: they are running out, creating threats of growing scarcity as the threshold of 21st century conflicts.
Hitherto, I used to believe the world’s utmost challenge is no more than the odds of nuclear terrorism: the singular menace of international terrorism in combination with the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, particularly those nuclear things. But given that humanity, in accordance with many commentators, may have consumed more resources since WWII than in all of history prior to that time, diminishing natural resources are cunningly coming to account more for the probability of vicious conflict over water and the black gold.
It would be wrong though to assume that the gravity of this scarcity we speak of is same for both the traditional ‘haves’ and ‘have-nots’. As I undertook research, in the case of water for example, I realized that the world’s growing population will result in an entire half of humanity suffering from water shortages and scarcity. Yet it is not necessarily over-population causing water shortages or scarcity: “12 percent of the world’s population uses 85 percent of its water, and these 12 percent do not live in the Third World.” The availability of water is therefore a concern for some countries, but “the scarcity at the heart of the global water crisis is rooted in power, poverty and inequality, not in physical [un]availability”.
In its turn, global oil demand is soaring like never before. The world consumes about 84 million barrels of oil per day at a time when it is widely acknowledged that the age of easy oil is over. Now, escalating demand is faced with tighter supplies as international competition intensifies over the same resources. Having climbed to become the world’s second-greatest energy consumer, for instance, China’s widely proclaimed extreme consumption of oil is trivialized by estimates holding that if the average Chinese person lived as excessively as a US citizen, he would consume thirteen times as much. Controlling for populations, China would then daily require much more than is presently produced globally in a day. This shows that scarcity of energy supplies is no more a consequence of “Peak Oil” as it is an outcome of wasteful and irresponsible utilization of resources on the part of the affluent, advanced economies.
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Profiel van de Schrijver
Terhemba Aindigh
Terhemba Aindigh is currently with the Nigerian National Youth Service Corps. Having obtained a first degree in International Relations at Covenant University, Nigeria, with a flair for writing professionally, Terhemba enjoys making commentaries on issues that command worldwide relevance.
His essays have earned him an enviable reputation both nationally and internationally. Some of his writings have ensured his active participation in international conferences like the prestigious St. Gallen Symposium, South American Business Forum, and the Model World Trade Organization. He has also been awarded for exceptional writing by the World Bank and the World Federation of United Nations' Associations.
Most recently, Terhemba was announced as one of the 15 winners of an international essay, video and poster competition sponsored by the World Federation of United Nations Associations. This ensured his participation in the Students for a Nuclear Weapons-Free World Seminar, held at the United Nations Secretariat in Geneva, Switzerland. Consequently, he and the other winners were inspired to birth a global anti-nuclear weapons youth network.
As a founding member of the Students for a Nuclear Weapons-Free World Youth Initiative, Terhemba and his colleagues have taken up the immense responsibility to help in realizing a world free of nuclear weapons.
At present, he is doing what he loves to do best: writing more essays to compete in the likes of the Japanese Foreign Trade Council and Olusegun Obasanjo Presidential Library essay competitions, amongst others.
His ultimate ambition is to attain the heights of great men like Kofi Annan, who have made no little contribution to ensuring that our world is peaceful and just.
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