GG: The 'Global Commons' Flashcards
When was the term ‘global commons’ first used
In the World Conservation Strategy, a report on conservation published in 1991 by the international Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN) in collaboration with the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO), the United Nations Environment programme (UNEP) and the world wildlife fund (WWF). It stated:
The report stated that all people on the planet have a right to the benefits of the global commons. It also stated that, bearing in mind the right of all people to sustainable development, the global commons requires protection.
Define Global commons
The earth’s shared resources, such as the deep oceans, the atmosphere, outer space and Antarctica.
In the report first using the term global commons - what did it say they were
“A commons is a tract of land or water owned or used jointly by the members of a community. The global commons include those parts of the earth’s surface beyond national jurisdictions- notably the open ocean and the living resources found there, or held in common, notably the atmosphere. The only landmass that may be regarded as part of the global commons is Antarctica.”
More recently, what has been linked to the concept of the global commons
The internet and the resultant notion of cyberspace have been linked to the concept of the global commons. It will be interesting to see if global governance is, or can be, enforced in this aspect of human living.
What’s the key challenge of the concept of the global commons
The design of governance structures and management systems capable of addressing the complexity of multiple public and private interests.
What does the management of the global commons require
Requires a range of legal entities, usually international and supranational, public and private, structured to match the diversity of interests and the types of resource to be managed. They should be stringent but with adequate incentives to ensure compliance. The purpose of such global management systems is to avoid a situation whereby the resources held in common become overexploited.
What is resource degradation of the commons likely to be as a result of
In general, many of the global commons (the atmosphere, Antarctica) are non-renewable on human time scales. Thus, resource degradation is more likely to be the result of unintended consequences that are unforeseen, not immediately observable or not easily understood. For example, the carbon dioxide and methane emissions that drive climate change will continue to do so for at least a millennium after they enter the atmosphere, while species extinctions last forever.
What form do environmental protocols usually take
Several environmental protocols have been established as a form of international law. These have tended to be intergovernmental documents intended as legally binding with a primary stated purpose of preventing or managing human impact on natural resources. International environment protocols have come to feature with the governance of trans-boundary environmental problems, such as acid rain in the late 1950s and 60s.
Are environmental protocols a panacea (a solution for all) for global commons issues
No. Often they are slow to produce the desired effects, and lack monitoring and enforcement. They also take an incremental approach to solutions where sustainable development principles suggest that environmental concerns should be mainstream political issues.
Antarctica is the most _________ continent
Southern continent, containing the geographic South Pole
Antarctica is almost entirely south of the …..
Antarctic circle
Antarctica is surrounded by the …… ocean
Southern ocean
Note: the AQA specification includes the southern ocean as far north as the Atlantic convergence.
How big is Antarctica
It’s size is estimated to be 14 million km^2, making it the fifth largest continent. It is twice the size of Australia
How much of Antarctica’s land is covered by ice
A total of 98% of the land area is covered by ice, which averages almost 2km in thickness, and this ice extends to all but the most northern reaches of the Antarctic peninsula.
Antarctica is the….., …….., and …… of all earth’s continents and has the ……….. ………. ……….
Antarctica is the coldest, direst and windiest of all of earth’s continents, and has the highest average elevation.
Climatically, what is Antarctica
It is a desert, with an annual precipitation of only 200mm along the coast and lower totals inland.
How does the climate very in different seasons in Antarctica
Around the coasts temperatures are generally close to freezing in the summer months (December-February), or even slightly positive in the northern part of the Antarctic peninsula.
During winter, monthly mean temperatures at coastal stations are between -10 and -30 degrees C but temperatures may briefly rise towards freezing when winter storms bring warm air towards the Antarctic coast.
What are conditions like on the high interior plateau
Conditions are much colder as a result of its higher elevation, higher latitude and greater distance from the ocean. Here, summer temperatures struggle to get above -20 degrees C and monthly means fall below -60 degrees C in the winter.
How is the distribution of precipitation over Antarctica varied
With several metres of snow falling each year near the coast, but the interior only getting an annual snowfall of a few centimetres, thus officially making much of the continent a desert.
After the snow has fallen, how does the wind redistribute it
After the snow has fallen the wind redistributes it, particularly in the coastal areas where downslope katabatic winds blow.
What are the winds like in Antarctica
The continent generally experiences moderate winds, with mean wind speeds of around 6m/s, but in gales, which can occur on over 40 days a year, mean speeds can exceed 30m/s with gusts over 40m/s.
The strong katabatic winds, caused by the flow of cold air off the central plateau, make some coastal sites around Antarctica the windiest places in the world.
