Jon Barnett Takes On The Military-industrial Interests Of Those In The Establishment To Reveal How Ordinary Human Beings Must Have A Safe Environment In Which Security Is Subordinate To Care Of The Planet And Its Delicate Ecosystems. Locating Environmental Security -- Environmental Insecurity: Ecological Exacerbations Of Underdevelopment -- Environmental Degradation -- Environmental Insecurity -- The Defence Of Environmental Insecurity -- Security: From What And For Whom? -- The Concept Of Security -- A (very) Brief History Of National Security -- National Security And Strategy -- New Security Issues: The Old Guard Looks For New Targets -- Energy Security -- Economic Security -- Food Security -- The Environment As A Security Issue -- Common And Comprehensive Security -- Redefining Security: What's At Stake? -- Environmental Degradation And Conflict: Conscripting The Voice Of Dissent -- Resource Wars -- Water Wars -- Population, Environment And Conflict -- The Project On Environment, Population And Security -- Theoretical Deficiencies -- Policies For Pollution And The Pollution Of Policy -- The Us National Security Strategy -- The Us Department Of Defense -- The Us State Department -- (re)securing The State -- The Biggest Of Institutional Challenges: The Military -- War And The Environment -- Preparing For War And The Environment -- Meeting The Challenge -- Risks, Risk, And Some Opportunities -- Ecological Security: An Alternative Security Strategy -- Ecology And Security -- Ecology, Resilience And Security -- Ecology And Sovereignty -- When Ecological Problems Become Security Problems -- Concepts And The Contestation Of Security -- Environmental Security For People -- Reclaiming Security -- Environmental Security As Human Security. Jon Barnett. Includes Bibliographical References (p. 161-176) And Index.

Barnett, Jonathan

Zed Books Ltd

United Kingdom and Ireland, United Kingdom

May 4, 2001

PS, 2001

[curator]associate-francis-boyer@archive.org[/curator][date]20170525174649[/date][state]approved[/state][comment]199[/comment]

At least two things are certain about world politics environmental problems are important, and discourses on security remain powerful. Environment and security have been progressively linked in theory, and environmental security is now manifest in policy. But the meaning of environmental security is ambiguous and open to appropriation, and an examination of its various interpretations and applications reveals much about the state of global environmental politics.
This book offers a comprehensive critical discussion of environmental security. It discusses the origins and implications of a wide variety of approaches to the subject. Barnett argues that ultimately environmental security is driven more by the power of security-makers than by the need to address environmental problems. By systematically uncovering the deficiencies of existing discourses on environmental security, Barnett goes beyond critique and develops an alternative approach with practical implications.

Concern over environmental degradation has impacted in many other areas, including notions of security in international relations. The problem, as this author cogently argues, is that the concept of environmental security, which has become so popular since the end of the Cold War, has been highjacked by traditionalist scholars and the military. They take it to mean simply that environmental problems can threaten national security. They worry about a new generation of violent conflicts growing out of struggles over scarce natural resources. This book suggests a more humane and radical interpretation: environmental security should be seen as only one dimension of the wider problem of human security where the livelihoods, health and welfare of people are being undermined by environmental degradation

2023-06-28