'Failure of imagination' seen on environmental problems

ISSUE46: JUNE-AUGUST 2007

The newsletter of United Nations University and its international
network of research and training centres/programmes

Policy-makers and governments have not matched the pro-environment shift in public attitudes and it's time to act on environmental problems that are now well-documented by environmental scientists, according to Zafar Adeel, director of UNU International Network on Water, Environment and Health (UNU-INWEH).

Speaking on Earth Day, April 22, Adeel (right) said that a common shortcoming was failure to see (that) environmental problems represent major developmental, security and human well-being challenges.

"For example, desertification in Africa, left unchecked, will continue to drive large-scale movements of environmental refugees to Europe and elsewhere," he said.

"For human well-being, no issue ranks higher than access to safe drinking water and adequate sanitation. People with scarce water resources tend to be the poor and suffer some of the world's highest infant mortality rates (50 to 65 per 1,000 births, versus five per 1,000 in Canada), among many other health problems.

"A failure of imagination by policy-makers has led to the situation where safe drinking water is unavailable to about 1.2 billion people, almost a quarter of the world's population.

"Earth Day reminds us that we have ... innovative technologies, superb management approaches and ample financial resources. Let's stop the analysis, hand-wringing and lip service."

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