Vanishing Borders �� Protecting The Planet In The Age Of Globalization. - Review - book review

Hilary French

W W NORTON & CO, NEW YORK AND LONDON/[pounds]12.95

Hilary French is vice-president for research at the World watch Institute in Washington, DC. In Vanishing Borders she provides a clear and well-reasoned plan of action for ensuring environmental stability in the wake of runaway globalisation.

At the dawn of the 21st century, our world is shrinking fast. Nation states are surrendering their sovereignty to transnational corporations and global institutions who make up their own rules and answer to no civil authorities. As national borders are erased, environmental issues are steadily gaining a more important role on the international political agenda -- much as arms control agreements once dominated world politics during the Cold War. The author convincingly argues that the only viable long-term solution is to revamp international treaties and institutions so as to integrate ecological considerations into the myriad conflicting rules now governing global trade.

She presents a clear and concise blueprint for what can be done to restore and safeguard environmental stability by such diverse groups as businesses, shareholders, consumers and NGO activists -- a rapidly growing political presence on the world stage.

Perhaps the main thrust of the author's argument is the need for greater oversight of the often self-serving and arbitrary agendas of the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the World Trade Organisation (WTO) and similar supranational institutions. She is optimistic that last year's 'Battle of Seattle' marked a watershed in the public's perception of a trend which heretofore had been accepted as a logical consequence of economic expansionism.

In chapters with such provocative titles as 'Nature Under Siege', 'Trade Wars' and 'The Export of Hazard' Hilary French castigates some of the most insidious abuses resulting from globalisation. In the words of the author: 'Not only is trade in hazardous products thriving, but recent decades have also seen hazardous industries... becoming concentrated in the developing world, where safety practices and environmental enforcement are often rudimentary.'

Among other targets for her critique is the illicit trade in endangered animals and plants, which is contributing to the greatest extinction of species since the dinosaurs. And she takes obvious delight in noting that attempts by Monsanto and other chemical giants to foist GM grain and meat upon unwilling farmers and consumers is being met with resolute resistance, not just in the EU but in 'developing' nations as well.

In the final chapters, she makes suggestions for integrating environmental concerns into global policymaking. If any fault is to be found, it is that -- like most writers on economics and ecology -- she does not sufficiently take into account the impact of an exponentially growing population on our fragile planet.

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