“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 reasons and/or examples from your own experience, observations, or reading.

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From gasoline prices to heating bills, energy consumption is one of the hottest topics in politics today, both within a country and on the international scene. Individual nations constantly try to cope with supply and demand, while being mindful of what others are doing. Putting aside the political notion of countries and states, we cannot disregard the fact that we all live on the same planet, and therefore protecting the Earth--and our livelihood--requires international leadership and worldwide cooperation.

Individual nations cannot be relied on to solve the problem of energy conservation. The real problem underlying the world's energy shortage has always been the problem of commons: namely, a problem that affects everyone is not up to any particular party to resolve. It's always someone else's problem. This type of thinking makes it difficult for governments to persuade their own people to alter their long-established gas-guzzling behaviours. While a few eager European nations have spearhead the movement, North Americans are delaying the change for as long as possible, or at least until everyone else is on board. The Kyoto Accord suffered such a setback because the United States, a leader among nations, was hesitant to sign on to the cooperation, leaving the rest of the group with a feeling of injustice at their own sacrifice and futility of the entire treaty.

Relying on individual countries to make the sacrifice to conserve energy is not only an unrealistic expectation, but also a wasted effort because those countries that neglect that duty may offset the efforts of the diligent ones. Several progressive northern European countries have been active in reducing automobile usage, but at the same time, developing countries like China and India are increasing their gas consumption at an alarming rate. While more developed countries are exploring alternative energy sources such as wind and nuclear power, many still rely on burning coal. Without a multilateral agreement, the environmental impact resulting from these resource-wasting states who clearly do not share the green vision or cannot carry out changes will greatly undo any good the other, more environmentally conscious countries manage to accomplish through great sacrifices in domestic policies.

Natural energy resources are not renewable, and therefore are limited in quantity. The more our generation taps into and drains the reservoir, the less is left for our children, and the more they will have to struggle to cope with the shortage. Furthermore, since these resources are not distributed evenly across political boundaries, the dimishing supply and agressive demand of energy on this planet will have an even larger impact on our children's lives, no matter where they live. It is only through internationally collaborative efforts on policy, technology, and trade can we hope to manage what is left of the energy resources on which we are still vitally dependent.