Analysis of an Issue - please score

[cmr209]

Analysis of an Issue:

It is unrealistic to expect individual nations to make, independently, the sacrifices necessary to conserve energy. International leadership and worldwide cooperation are essential if we expect to protect the world's energy resources for future generations.

Discuss the extent to which you agree or disagree with the opinion stated above. Support your views with reason and/or examples from your own experience, observations, or reading.

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With today's global economic climate and globalization, it is unrealistic to expect individual nations to make sacrifices on their own to conserve energy. This is like asking a kid to conserve his Halloween candy until Christmas arrives. Although in theory it could be done, however, in practice it is near to impossible unless there are real incentives.
Assuming that a nation could make sacrifices to conserve energy, it wouldn't be an overnight project. Steering a nation to conserve energy by making sacrifices needs to be defined as what type of energy is being conserved, and what kind of sacrfices will be needed to reach that goal?


Using the economic rational that gross poluting countries people often live in impoverished conditions, and that humans are selfish by nature, one can further assume that the energy being used to light their homes and cook their food is of natural resources such as coal and or wood. With that logic, it can be said that unless there are good incentives for people to use cleaner burning fuel rather than coal or wood in their homes, there will be little change. Given that impoverished conditions have limited resources and little help from the government, there will not be any change coming anytime soon. Even if the nations' own government stepped in to help would take more resources than what it is worth. One example is China's Great Leap Forward. This can be used to show that government mandates, especially in a communist country, do not always work, and are very slow to create, and even slower to see any change, and can cause more harm to natural resources and future generations.


International leadership along with worldwide cooperation in the form of cap and trade carbon emissions, will be a start in the right direction, but that does not help the argument. Using the Kyoto Protocol as a benchmark of success to protect the world's energy resources for future generations, we still have a long way to go. The Kyoto Protocol has taken years to even get agreed upon by leading nations within the United Nations. So it can be said that it is unrealistic to expect a country to pull themselves up by the boot straps to conserve energy while making personal sacrifices for future generations.

[hedonist123]

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