Political Ecology

The recent crisis due to Covid 19 has brought about an incredible focus on matters public health and particularly social issues and how they affect humanity. While it is essential to focus on public health as an immediate issue affecting the people, it is also vital to address Covid 19 from an environmental and ecological perspective. It is crucial to identify the existing link between Covid 19 and the crisis on the environment as a meant to address the issues affecting society. Some of these issues include migration from the rural areas, abandonment of farming, destruction of natural resources, and industrial approach to agriculture. Covid 19 has forced us to hit a pause button, and this has revealed various challenges with our current order with several adverse effects on humanity and the environment (Gatti, 2020).

With the rapid decline in tourism, there have been far-reaching implications on wildlife. Their ecological system had been far interfered with by human beings, with millions of tourists flying the world over into these ecosystems. However, Covid 19 has put a stop to most of these visits with tourism in some spots dropping to near zero. Despite the loss of millions of jobs, especially in the hospitality industry, it has brought about a new life to the environment. There has been minimal interference, and the animals can live with less interference. The fact that the environment is slowly improving and becoming better is an indication of the effects of over-tourism and their impact on the environment (Fletcher, Murray, & Blazquez-S, 2020).

Many governments are struggling to control the rapid spread of Covid 19 with the urban areas presenting the biggest challenge. The fact that many people have come together has made it difficult to control the spread of the disease. Being an airborne disease, it is recommended to maintain social distance to minimize the chances of contracting the disease. However, the urban setting is such that several people share most of the services for the instance transport system, health systems, education facilities, shopping malls. In such a situation, interactions are more likely to happen because people meet frequently compared to rural areas. Covid 19 has revealed this challenge, and the issue of rural-urban migration is a matter that should be addressed to encourage people also to occupy the rural areas and create opportunities for themselves instead of moving to the urban regions.

The results from the various socio-economic and ecological impacts of Covid 19 have resulted in several instances of inequality being witnessed in society. The unprecedented lockdowns and cessation in the movement have rendered a majority of the population jobless, with some unable to take care of their daily needs. Some of the people depend on regular earnings for survival, and the decision to cut down on these jobs has created a crisis in their lives. This has been evident in India, one of the most populated countries in the world. The 14-hour regulated movement and the 21-day curfew have caused several unprecedented effects to many people depending on daily earnings. Some of them are already going without meals, with the government unable to cater to the needs of the large population. This highlights the issue of social protection in society. Most people are vulnerable to pandemics due to their inability to cater for their social services. This is one area that has been ignored for many years, but given the effects of the pandemic, it’s an area the governments need to emphasize. The rapid mass testing and hospitalizations have further exposed the vulnerability of poor people. The public healthcare system needs more support from the government to successfully care for all the people equally and not isolating the poor due to their limited financial capabilities.

The Covid 19 wave has caused a slowdown on industrial activity all across the world, with production dropping by more than 50 percent. This has seen a decline in the consumption of resources with lesser exports of resources being done. For instance, the slump in oil prices has been partially associated with a decrease in oil demand. This has resulted in a go-slow on drilling since the demand for oil in the world has fallen by more than 70 percent. This highlights the extent of damage man has caused to natural resources. Whereas these resources are used to maintain human life and grow economies, this is an issue that governments should be revisited for the benefit of future generations. Covid 19 has seen the atmosphere clear of industrial pollution evident from the satellite images. This indicates the level of damage that has been caused by man to the environment and need to reconsider industrialization due to its impact on the environment.

Conclusively, Covid 19 has opened our minds to understanding that living is typically not the best thing in the world today. The crisis has revealed several issues on public health, one area that has received less funding. The pressure on the limited resources is an indication that more emphasis ought to be placed on the public health system with more investment in infrastructure, an area that seems underfunded. It is also evident that more focus should be placed on the environment and ecological perspectives. There has been a rapid decline in pollution and destruction of the environment with the Covid 19 pandemic. With fewer industries, the rate of smoke emission has declined, which is an indication of the adverse effects of industrialization.

Similarly, the destruction of the environment was evident, with a go-slow of industries, there was a decline in the rate of natural resource consumption, which has helped safeguard the environment. This was evident with the decline in oil consumption, an issue that has raised concerns. Rapid migration into urban areas is also evident; the rural areas have been vacated with most people preferring working in urban areas. This has seen a rapid decline in the agricultural and rural area associated activities. With the abandonment of farming for industrial work, this has resulted in the deterioration of food reserves in the world. Evident from the various challenges that have been revealed through Covid 19 pandemic, the world needs to hit a pause button and change the current order owing to the negative effects this has caused to humanity.

References

Fletcher, R., Murray, I., & Blazquez-S, M. (2020, March 24). Tourism, Degrowth, and the COVID-19 Crisis. Retrieved from Political Ecology Network: https://politicalecologynetwork.org/2020/03/24/tourism-degrowth-and-the-covid-19-crisis/

Gatti, F. (2020). COVID-19 | A political ecology of epidemics: why human and other-than-human diseases should push us to rethink our global development model. Retrieved from Bliss: https://issblog.nl/2020/05/04/covid-19-a-political-ecology-of-epidemics-why-human-and-other-than-human-diseases-should-push-us-to-rethink-our-global-development-model-by-fabio-gatti/