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https://theconversation.com/water-cooperation-is-essential-when-countries-share-lakes-and-rivers-yet-its-been-deteriorating-in-many-places-with-serious-consequences-251864>
"Just over half the world’s population shares a river or lake basin with at
least one other country. To sustainably manage those water resources for the
health of people, ecosystems and economies, neighboring countries must work
together.
However, many countries have been less willing to cooperate in recent years,
even to protect a resource as vital as freshwater.
This trend away from multilateralism isn’t unique to water. The world is seeing
a decline in the general willingness of countries to jointly solve many
interstate, regional and global challenges. It shows as countries, like the
U.S., pull out of the global institutions, such as the World Health
Organization, and drop their support for global climate goals.
The breakdown in cooperation can have severe consequences. If one country takes
more water than agreed upon, and builds dams or pollutes the water, its
neighbors and their people, cities, agriculture, energy production and wildlife
can suffer. That can ultimately destabilize local communities, deteriorate
relations between countries and endanger regional peace and stability.
We conduct research and work with governments and international organizations
on environment and water law, policy and governance. The shift we’re seeing
away from multilateral cooperation and rules-based order to more nationalistic
tendencies, in which a country prioritizes itself to the detriment of all
others, is raising concerns about the future."
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
