A Marshall University professor said that environmental issues such as ocean pollution, water scarcity, and climate change are all important on an international level in a lecture Tuesday.
Jess Morrissette, who received his Ph.D. from the University of Georgia and specializes in International Relations, Comparative Politics, and Politics of Water Rights, explained to his class that, “If there is a common resource with no regulation over that resource, generally that resource will be over-used and exploited.”
During his explanation of water scarcity around the world, Morrissette explained that 1/3 of the developing world, lacks access to clean water. This scarcity leads to difficulties in growing food, sustaining health, and preserving proper sanitation.
Morrissette also focused on some areas of climate change that are having a direct affect on international relations. Global warming is the biggest area of concern when it comes to climate change, and Morrissette explained that, “It has been directly linked to flooding, diseases from insects, and also has been a factor in the rise of irregular and extreme weather.”
He also offered a statistic from the U.N., which stated that, “300,000 people each year die from global climate change related issues.”
Morrissette also told the audience about some barriers to environmental cooperation that are keeping countries from working together to help fix these problems.
One such barrier is known as a collective action problem. According to Morrissette, self-interest of each individual country takes over and makes cooperation very difficult.
Also, competing priorities is a barrier to advancements in environmental cooperation. Morrissette said that, “Many countries usually have higher priorities than the environment, such as the economy, or education.”
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