ANTONIO

"The exigency of this situation must not lead us to despair, rather it should propel
us into action."

- Mary Robinson

Yes, I do agree, Ms. Baja! I firmly believe that everything that we sow in this world will
reap at the proper time. If you look closely at the world we live in today, people are already
experiencing the effects of centuries of greenhouse gas emissions, thus the climate issue is not
an impending threat. The given statement, why environmental problems are of international
importance is because it has something to do with what kind of world we live in today, how our
future will look like, and how it affects the life of the generations yet to come.

As a matter of fact, we humans don’t react when we see light, we react when we feel the
heat. Ignorance of environmental problems can lead to poverty, disease outbreak, and worse
comes to worst death. According to the article published by Pettinger, T. (2021), real output
growth is a sign of economic growth (real GDP). Therefore, it is likely that the environment will
be compensated for increased output and consumption. The increased use of non-renewable
resources, higher pollution levels, global warming, and the potential loss of environmental
ecosystems are some of the environmental effects of economic expansion

According to experts at a virtual symposium organized by the MIT Center for

Transportation and Logistics, the Russia-Ukraine war is having a disproportionately large impact
on the world's supply chain, obstructing the movement of goods, driving sharp price increases
and product shortages, and resulting in catastrophic food shortages worldwide. With the
decreased supply of oil, western countries will demand more from oil-rich nations aside from
Russia. In turn, natural resources will be consumed faster which will lead to faster land
degradation.

Following the said war between Russia and Ukraine, last March 2022, the Department of
Finance (DOF) of the country stated that the local economy would not be significantly impacted
by the Russia-Ukraine conflict because neither nation is a significant commercial partner of the
Philippines. The Finance Secretary claimed that "instead, the Philippine economy will probably
suffer collateral harm; it's like we were hit by a ricocheting bullet." Given that Ukraine is the
fourth-biggest exporter of corn and that Russia is the top exporter of natural gas and wheat,
another area of impact would be on the pricing of fuel and food.

Therefore, environmental issues should be dealt with internationally since almost all of
the world will suffer if one suffers. And if one prospers, most likely the others will prosper as
well.

References:

Pettinger, T., Tari, M., Lightness, save_ecosystems, Vaidya, S. C., Morgan, Brahme, R.,
Dandadzi, T., Y2, Mp, Njokwana, L., Kambulu, R., & sahu, L. (2022, July 21).
Environmental impact of economic growth. Economics Help. Retrieved October
23, 2022, from
 https://www.economicshelp.org/blog/145989/economics/environmental-impact-of-
economic-growth/#:~:text=The%20environmental%20impact%20of
%20economic,cause%20damage%20to%20the%20environment.

Climate change. Climate Change | The Elders. (n.d.). Retrieved October 23, 2022, from
https://theelders.org/programmes/climate-change?
gclid=CjwKCAjwzNOaBhAcEiwAD7Tb6HzzsU_MQx1IIoLLtIkGidIj0viXT7g8zhgIoP
fhwBc4Q91N7RN3lBoCNeAQAvD_BwE

Stackpole, B. (2022, June 28). Ripple effects from Russia-ukraine war test global
economies. MIT Sloan. Retrieved October 23, 2022, from
https://mitsloan.mit.edu/ideas-made-to-matter/ripple-effects-russia-ukraine-war-
test-global-economies#:~:text=The%20Russia%2DUkraine%20war%20is,MIT
%20Center%20for%20Transportation%20and

Dofweb. (2022, March 8). Effects of russia-Ukraine conflict temporary, measures in

place to cushion its impact-dominguez. Department of Finance. Retrieved October
23, 2022, from https://www.dof.gov.ph/effects-of-russia-ukraine-conflict-temporary-
measures-in-place-to-cushion-its-impact-dominguez/