2007年VOA标准英语-Environmental Degradation Seen as Contributing

By Valer Gergely
Washington, D.C.
11 April 2007
 
Watch Environment Exhibit  

The effects of environmental degradation¹ have been increasingly seen as contributing to conflict in various parts of the world.  The growing scarcity² of natural resources as a threat to human security and political stability is the focus of an exhibit at the Woodrow Wilson Center in Washington, D.C.  For producer Valer Gergely, VOA's Jim Bertel has more on the showcase titled: Environment, Conflict and Cooperation.

 
Picture of child soldier from exhibit
Natural resources provide a living and shelter for hundreds of millions of people in the developing world and are an elementary part of survival.  As those life supporting natural resources come under threat so does the personal security of millions who rely on them.  Climate change, water scarcity and population growth are some of the most powerful and least understood environmental challenges.

Using the subjects of water, climate, land, forests and minerals, the exhibition shows not only the ways in which environmental degradation can lead to conflicts and new security threats, but also how environmental cooperation can contribute to security and stability.

The exhibit, assembled by the Berlin based think-tank, Adelphi Research, focuses on how man-made environmental changes affect both foreign and domestic policy.  It draws a direct connection between natural resources, poverty and stability in various parts of the world, according to Adelphi Research Director Alexander Carius.

 
Alexander Carius
"We use examples, like impacts of climate change in terms of the increase of droughts, extreme weather events, such as floods and storms,” he explains.  “We also look at the economic damage climate change has, and [how it] indirectly³ effects economies, especially [those of] vulnerable states."

The exhibition also demonstrates that the sustainable use of natural resources across national borders can contribute to conflict prevention and confidence building. 

"Armenia and Azerbaijan, for example, still have several border disputes, mainly over Nagorno-Karabakh," says Mr. Carius. 

But the European Neighborhood Policy Initiative creates a political framework to both address environmental issues and to bring neighboring countries closer to EU standards.

"Within this political framework, government agencies and NGOs [non-governmental organizations] started to initiate⁴ trans-boundary environmental projects, both water and nature protection,” Carius says.  “There are some very promising⁵ examples at the moment where not those three countries [directly], but bilateral⁶ activities between Georgia and Armenia, and also between Georgia and Azerbaijan, proved to be fruitful because normally those countries, especially Armenia and Azerbaijan, don't cooperate with each other."      

The exhibition displays the linkage⁷ between environment and security in Central Asia, the area of the southern provinces of the former Soviet⁸ Union.  The map shows the radioactive, chemical and biological hazards, waste disposal and pollution in the region.  The exploitation of two main rivers in Kazakhstan led to the reduction of the water level and the desiccation of the Aral Sea.  National interests emerged after the collapse⁹ of the Soviet water allocation system.  The continued use of intensive irrigation practices and environmental pressure raised tensions between ethnic¹⁰ groups and states

 
Exhibit shows how climate changes will alter usable agricultural lands
Speakers at the exhibition predict that climate change will alter our lives.  Great climate pattern changes will alter available water resources, as well as the availability of usable agricultural land.  A number of extreme weather events may render cities and tidal regions uninhabitable, resulting in mass migration¹¹.  They believe that the traditional patterns of our lifestyle and economic behavior must change and that we have to accept the fact that we live in a global village where we all rely on each other.  

The exhibition has been brought to the Woodrow Wilson Center with the support of the German Embassy, as Germany continues its efforts to take the lead in environmental issues.  After Washington, D.C., the exhibition will be presented in Houston and Austin, Texas.

1 degradation   

n.降级；低落；退化；陵削；降解；衰变

参考例句：

• There are serious problems of land degradation in some arid zones.在一些干旱地带存在严重的土地退化问题。
• Gambling is always coupled with degradation.赌博总是与堕落相联系。

2 scarcity   

n.缺乏，不足，萧条

参考例句：

• The scarcity of skilled workers is worrying the government.熟练工人的缺乏困扰着政府。
• The scarcity of fruit was caused by the drought.水果供不应求是由于干旱造成的。

3 indirectly   

adv.间接地，不直接了当地

参考例句：

• I heard the news indirectly.这消息我是间接听来的。
• They were approached indirectly through an intermediary.通过一位中间人，他们进行了间接接触。

4 initiate   

vt.开始，创始，发动；启蒙，使入门；引入

参考例句：

• A language teacher should initiate pupils into the elements of grammar.语言老师应该把基本语法教给学生。
• They wanted to initiate a discussion on economics.他们想启动一次经济学讨论。

5 promising   

adj.有希望的，有前途的

参考例句：

• The results of the experiments are very promising.实验的结果充满了希望。
• We're trying to bring along one or two promising young swimmers.我们正设法培养出一两名有前途的年轻游泳选手。

6 bilateral   

adj.双方的，两边的，两侧的

参考例句：

• They have been negotiating a bilateral trade deal.他们一直在商谈一项双边贸易协定。
• There was a wide gap between the views of the two statesmen on the bilateral cooperation.对双方合作的问题，两位政治家各自所持的看法差距甚大。

7 linkage   

n.连接；环节

参考例句：

• In their monographic treatment of linkage,they have emphasized this especially.他们在论连锁的专题文章中特别强调了这点。
• Occasionally,problems with block inheritance or linkage are encountered.有时会遇到区段遗传或连锁问题。

8 Soviet   

adj.苏联的，苏维埃的；n.苏维埃

参考例句：

• Zhukov was a marshal of the former Soviet Union.朱可夫是前苏联的一位元帅。
• Germany began to attack the Soviet Union in 1941.德国在1941年开始进攻苏联。

9 collapse   

vi.累倒；昏倒；倒塌；塌陷

参考例句：

• The country's economy is on the verge of collapse.国家的经济已到了崩溃的边缘。
• The engineer made a complete diagnosis of the bridge's collapse.工程师对桥的倒塌做了一次彻底的调查分析。

10 ethnic   

adj.人种的，种族的，异教徒的

参考例句：

• This music would sound more ethnic if you played it in steel drums.如果你用钢鼓演奏，这首乐曲将更具民族特色。
• The plan is likely only to aggravate ethnic frictions.这一方案很有可能只会加剧种族冲突。

11 migration   

n.迁移，移居，（鸟类等的）迁徙

参考例句：

• Swallows begin their migration south in autumn.燕子在秋季开始向南方迁移。
• He described the vernal migration of birds in detail.他详细地描述了鸟的春季移居。