by Priscilla Gati

Created on: March 02, 2008   Last Updated: January 10, 2011

Is it fair to ask underdeveloped countries to "go green" when many advanced industrial countries owe their success to destructive environmental practices? While we talking about the word "fair" in this question; let me ask you a question; "Why would it be fair to allow only countries who keep practicing destructive behavior to "go green"? Even in the more advanced cities of the world you see all kinds of litter lining the streets and highways. Toxic smoke billowing out of unclean industrial plants. New York and other bigger cities still have lots of homeless people living in the streets. Why can't something be done to help them get off the streets and improve the environment? They need help too besides the people overseas. I would say "yes, why wouldn't it be fair to let underdeveloped countries also have a slice of the pie in spite of the way the more advanced countries reached their success". To deny underdeveloped countries the right to "go green" because of another country's hardships to improve theirs would be considered discrimination.

Discrimination means to observe or mark the difference between; select; to make different or distinctive. All countries can conserve resources and do something to preserve their environment such as practicing better waste management programs and building cleaner industrial plants. Some green ideas may make more sense in certain regions or countries but no matter how a country got their success story shouldn't have any bearing over another country maybe getting theirs. No matter where you live you've got options about "going green". I see commercials every day on TV asking people in the US to send money overseas to help impoverished children living in shanties and starving to death to improve their environment. These already destructive areas have that option to benefit from the more developed countries to grow by leaps and bounds without the worry of an outbreak of war or uprising between opposing countries protesting their newfound independence. These places could ask the wealthier nations to send them grants to help them build better homes, businesses and schools to learn how to make a better living environment.

Economic development is the development of economic wealth of countries or regions for the well-being of their inhabitants. From a policy perspective, economic development can be defined as efforts that seek to improve the economic well-being and quality of life for a community by creating and/or retaining jobs and growing incomes. One writer said, "We shouldn't have to ask underdeveloped countries to "go green", they should glady green up for their own benefit and their own future" but they also have to be willing to accept help from the wealthier nations to make that change for the better.

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