This week’s reading felt like an accumulation from the earlier readings of this semester.We revisited the familiar analogy of spaceship earth, as well as Malthusian theories. Chapter 11 examines the role of the population in terms of power and the important role that demography plays in population trends. I appreciated learning about Haiti in these two chapters, specifically about the catastrophic convergence Haiti has been dealing with for decades. In the case of Haiti, the military provides human security but it is also responsible for introducing Haiti to the cholera epidemic, which in itself detrimental to human security. During one of my visits to Haiti, I saw a group of Americans giving out solar ovens to residents in suburb of Port-Au Prince. At the time, I thought it was great how people came to Haiti to give out sustainable new technologies. However, as I think about it now, I wonder how many of the people taking these solar ovens had places to live, access to healthcare, clean water, and other basics of human security. I may be stretching this, but I believe it is important to access environmental security in regards to the environment in a case by case manner. If one does not have the ability to survive by means of food, water, national safety, can environmentalist prioritize the earth.
However, Chapter 11 also introduces the notion of environmental security as human security, stating that “human security is relevant for national security, as without the security of individuals and the environment they live in, the state itself is insecure.” In chapter 12, Upreti argues that environmental governance is the missing key component in achieving environmental security. I particularly agreed and enjoyed Upreti’s definition of environmental governance because it was beyond the environment, and took the conversation away from the usual climate change dooms talk we are used to hearing. Upreti took to aspects of security that have the ability to actually evoke a promising environmental future. Focusing on a core set of values, policies, institutions and procedures in a global sense could set the stage for environmental security discussions in the future.