The environmental issues plaguing the world today have led to many calls to save the environment. While environmental protection is necessary, many believe that going green is a luxury that only rich nations can afford. However, it can be contended that this perception is flawed. Going green is not a luxury but a responsibility that both rich and poor nations should shoulder together as both these groups have damaged the environment.
Developing nations believe that rich nations can have the luxury to go green because they are economically strong. Developed nations have undergone rapid industrialisation which has equipped them economically to adopt programmes and strategies to protect the environment. For example, countries like the United States have invested $150 billion dollars between the year 2009-2015 in renewables and other forms of cleantech. Such a luxury cannot be afforded by poorer or developing nations. Furthermore, the developing nations lack the technical know-how and the expertise to build complex infrastructure to accommodate alternate sources of energy like hydroelectrical powerplants and nuclear plants. Apart from the US, countries like Japan and Germany have invested billions in undertaking environmental protection programmes and strategies. This is only possible because these countries are already industrialised and have the necessary economic power to efficiently implement these programs. Therefore, going green is a luxury that only rich nations can afford because developing nations do not have the necessary infrastructure.
However, this is a myopic view of a serious issue that concerns everyone from rich as well as poor nations. It is unfair to put all the responsibility on the rich nations while the developing nations continue to act irresponsibly towards the environment. Developing nations too need to shoulder the responsibility of going green because it is not a matter of luxury but survival. For example, developing economies like China is the largest carbon emitter in the world both in terms of production and consumption. Similarly, in Brazil man-made fires in the Amazon for clearing land cause CO2 emissions that are detrimental to the environment. In such cases, it becomes clear that expecting rich nations to go green is unjust, especially when developing nations continue to pollute and damage the environment. Thus, going green is not a luxury but a responsibility that both rich and poor nations need to afford.
Some might argue that the damage to the environment is not that serious. Moreover, as developed nations have caused the most environmental damage through industrialisation, they should be the ones to afford the luxury of going green. They also argue that developed nations can implement green policies and build green estates. Rich nations collectively can afford to go green while giving the developing nations their chance to build the necessary cash reserves. Therefore, going green is not a luxury that developing nations cannot afford.
However, this argument is flawed because the environmental damage is not only affecting the developed nations. Many studies have shown how climate change and global warming is affecting the world. For example, a study by NASA has found that the rate of global sea-level rise has been accelerating in recent decades, rather than increasing steadily. This put several nations at risk of being completely submerged. Countries like Brazil are already facing the challenges of global warming with long droughts, excessive rains, and uncontrolled fires are all becoming a normal part of life. The rapid environmental damage is showing the consequences all across the world. All these consequences are a testament to the fact that going green is not a responsibility of only rich nations. Therefore, going green is a luxury and responsibility that both rich and poor nations need to undertake.
In conclusion, there is a need for collective efforts from both the rich and the poor nations. It is true that green technologies cannot be adopted by all nations. However, all nations can implement necessary strategies to mitigate environmental damage with proper policies and political will. It is essential that instead of blaming each other both rich and poor nations put in a joint effort to save the planet from the environmental catastrophe.
