Environmental Security in Greece establishes stakeholders' perceptions of environmental security and energy security taking a Q methodology and Digital Media Research Framework approach. In-depth individual viewpoints and opinions of policymakers, energy-industry leaders, NGOs' members and the public are described throughout.

Economic development, population growth and poor resource management have combined to alter the planet’s natural environment in dramatic and alarming ways. For over twenty years, considerable research and debate have focused on clarifying or disputing linkages between various forms of environmental change and various understandings of security. At one extreme lie sceptics who contend that the linkages are weak or even non-existent; they are simply attempts to harness the resources of the security arena to an environmental agenda. At the other extreme lie those who believe that these linkages may be the most important drivers of security in the 21st century; indeed, the very future of humankind may be at stake. This book brings together contributions from a range of disciplines to present a critical and comprehensive overview of the research and debate linking environmental factors to security. It provides a framework for representing and understanding key areas of intellectual convergence and disagreement, clarifying achievements of the research as well as identifying its weaknesses and gaps. Part I explores the various ways environmental change and security have been linked, and provides principal critiques of this linkage. Part II explores the linkage through analysis of key issue areas such as climate change, energy, water, food, population, and development. Finally, the book concludes with a discussion of the value of this subfield of security studies, and with some ideas about the questions it might profitably address in the future. This volume is the first to provide a comprehensive overview of the field. With contributions from around the world, it combines established and emerging scholars to offer a platform for the next wave of research and policy activity. It is invaluable for both students and practitioners interested in international relations, environment studies and human geography.

As the importance of environmental security increases worldwide, colleges and universities are evaluating how well they are preparing the next generation of environmental scientists and managers and developing new educational approaches. In this volume, we examine: (1) current educational practices and the need for change, (2) educational needs from the perspective of employers and professionals, and (3) new practices in higher education in environmental fields. The contributors were carefully selected by an international coordinating team based on their international reputations in the field of progressive educational approaches and understanding of the global employment market in environmental science. Although the focal geographic areas are North America, Europe and the former Soviet republics, the ideas and strategies discussed are universal to all institutions of higher education. We highlight specific non-traditional approaches such as using the university as a curricular tool, developing permaculture programs, and applying sustainability pedagogy, and document their success from both a student and employer perspective. We also include case studies on risk assessment and eco-efficiency education to illustrate why and how transdisciplinary education can be accomplished. We conclude that it is imperative that our educational systems teach environmental security at the university level within a transdisciplinary context; and that opportunities, such as internships and other methods of applied learning, are included in the curriculum.

The protection of our environment is one of the major problems in the society. More and more important physical and chemical mechanisms are to be added to the air pollution models. Moreover, new reliable and robust control strategies for keeping the pollution caused by harmful compounds under certain safe levels have to be developed and used in a routine way. Well based and correctly analyzed large mathematical models can successfully be used to solve this task. The use of such models leads to the treatment of huge computational tasks. The efficient solution of such problems requires combined research from specialists working in different fields. The aim of the NATO Advanced Research Workshop (NATO ARW) entitled “Advances in Air Pollution Modeling for Environmental Security” was to invite specialists from all areas related to large-scale air pollution modeling and to exchange information and plans for future actions towards improving the reliability and the scope of application of the existing air pollution models and tools. This ARW was planned to be an interdisciplinary event, which provided a forum for discussions between physicists, meteorologists, chemists, computer scientists and specialists in numerical analysis about different ways for improving the performance and the quality of the results of different air pollution models.

The causes of the current Greek-Turkish rapprochement progress are explored in this book in relation both to the international environment, which is increasingly conducive to this progress, and significant domestic changes.

Ecosystem services and human welfare / W.G. Kepner.

The present work is a fine contribution to the broad field of environmental security in the context of risk assessment and management of obsolete pesticides for the region of Southeast Europe. The purpose of this book is to evaluate the existing knowledge of improper disposal of obsolete pesticides in the region, to estimate the associated impact on environmental health, and to develop recommendations to mitigate or eliminate threats posed to the environment, biodiversity and human life. The issues discussed in the book include: reviews of the transport and fate of pesticides and associated contaminated materials in different environmental media and identification of the principal sources, emission routes and patterns of environmental pollution with pesticides; a recognition of the most suitable methods for environmental sampling analysis and sample preparation; an evaluation of the current methods and techniques for chemical and mass analysis of environmental and biological samples and discussion of the metrological and quality aspects of trace analyses; a characterization of the environmental and human health impacts of pesticide pollution, the health effects associated with acute and chronic exposure and the use of epidemiological data for risk assessment; a revision of the existing chemical safety regulations and strategies for protection and management of obsolete pesticide stocks; a survey of the international conventions, directives and standards concerning pesticide use.

Authored by international experts from academia, international organizations, governments and NGOs, this book highlights the main environmental security issues in the South-East European (SEE) countries, with a particular focus on climate change and water management. The common goal of the authors was to provide a reliable evaluation of whether existing legal regimes and correct implementation of applicable international treaties may contribute to reducing environmental security risks in the region. In-depth analyses and assessment of major challenges in compliance, serve as a firm ground which such evaluation is based on. This volume is recommended for public officials, legal practitioners and consultants. Its interest may also extend beyond the SEE countries, serving as a case-study of a broader and paradigmatic relevance of the analysis and management of environmental and security issues in a trans-boundary context.

The current volume provides examples of how environmental hazards such as landslides, earthquakes, mountain processes, cold climate processes and tidal flows and currents can affect the energy supply infrastructure. In times of uncertainty, the security of the European cross-border energy supply infrastructure, such as pipelines, has great importance. Whilst the potential effects of political disagreement, economic inequalities and social differences are relatively well understood, the impact of environmental change is often poorly appreciated by decision-makers. New approaches have been examined for monitoring of hazardous landslide processes, including early warning systems, and near-real-time 3D data processing and visualization. The scientific problems of environmental systems design have been discussed and approaches for their implementation have been suggested. New integrated remote sensing techniques consisting mainly of hyperspectral and radar imagery are presented together with the processing of monitoring data using GIS techniques and, in particular, dynamic visualization. Attention is also given to conceptual issues of environmental and energy security and the role of education, to help resolve environmental problems through cooperation in the development of the European energy supply infrastructure.

The concept of “environmental security” has emerged as one basis for understanding international conflicts. This phrase can mean a variety of things. It can signify security issues stemming from environmental concerns or conflicting needs, or it can mean that the environment is treated as a resource for the long term, and the question is what should be done today to preserve the quality of the environment in the future. In the same way that energy security is about ensuring access to energy for the long run, it can also mean that pressing environmental concerns create a situation where different countries and communities are forced to collaboratively design a unified response, even if cooperation is not generally in the logic of their relations. Over the last several years, the authors of this book and their colleagues have tried to demonstrate the power of risk assessment and decision analysis as valuable tools that decision makers should use for a broad range of environmental problems, including environmental security. Risk analysis is almost more a state of mind or a way of looking at problems than it is a kind of algorithm or a set of recipes. It projects a kind of rationality on problems and forces a certain degree of quantitative rigor, as opposed to the all too common tendency of making environmental recommendations based on anecdotal evidence.