Overview

This chapter steps back from the usual focus on states and wars to look at two forces that are reshaping world politics: the environment and the struggle for natural resources. The central argument is that these are no longer side issues — they have become core drivers of conflict, cooperation, and justice in international relations.

The chapter opens by tracing the rise of environmentalism from the 1960s onwards. This was not a single movement but a wave of diverse concerns — from pollution and wildlife loss to nuclear energy and dams — that gradually forced governments and international bodies to pay attention. The book examines several important environmental movements in a comparative way, showing how different societies have responded to similar threats.

A key conceptual distinction the chapter makes is between two types of resources:

• Common property resources — these are resources owned collectively by a community (like a village forest or a local fishing ground). The community itself manages access and use, often through traditional rules.
• Global commons — these are resources that belong to no single nation but to all of humanity. Examples include the earth's atmosphere, the oceans beyond national jurisdiction, Antarctica, and outer space. The challenge here is that no single country has the incentive to protect them, leading to the famous "tragedy of the commons" problem.

The chapter then turns to India's position in recent environmental debates. India has consistently argued for "common but differentiated responsibilities" — the idea that developed countries, having polluted more during their industrialisation, should bear a greater burden in fixing environmental problems. India also stresses the right to development for poor nations.

Next comes the geopolitics of resource competition. This section looks at how the scramble for oil, water, minerals, and land is creating new tensions between countries. Control over resources is now a direct source of power, and conflicts over water in particular (rivers that cross borders) are becoming more frequent.

Finally, the chapter brings in the voices of indigenous peoples — communities that live at the margins of modern state systems. These groups often bear the heaviest costs of resource extraction (displacement, loss of livelihood, cultural destruction) while receiving the fewest benefits. Their struggles for land rights and recognition form an important, though often overlooked, part of contemporary world politics.