Development Process, Planet Earth Resources And Environmental Change

Abstract

This paper provides an exploratory account of the vital importance ofunderstanding the role of the Planet Earth as a complex system and asreservoir of natural resources essential for human development from local,through national, to global levels. Its analytical framework is the politicalecology discourse, which holistically interrogates natural resources,resource use systems, forms of ownership and labour regimes as well astypes of commodity chains to underscore the role of power and wealthrelations in explaining human well-being and environmental health with aview to equitably allocate scarce resources among and between competingindividuals, groups, classes and institutions. Aware that environmentalchange is inevitable given the forces of both nature and humankind, andthat the current unequal terms of trade at the local level, as well asbetween the developed and developing countries, are in disfavour ofsmallholders, the paper argues that these should be the burning issues ofconcern to the new generation of geographers. It advances that aconsortium of committed scholars composed of social scientists, on the onehand, and the natural scientists and technologists, on the other, coupledwith community-based development partners should be instituted. Thepaper concludes by advocating citizens ' protection against natural resourceuse systems subjected to extreme socioeconomic-political-ecologicvicissitudes to be treated by the government as human rights issues.