Conclusion

Afghanistan’s near constant conflict over the past 30 years has resulted in an environment that is inherently political. Safety has been commodified. The cultural view of land (and its safety) has transformed. The natural abundance of water is disrupted in various ways, for various motives. Health, inextricably tied to environment, has likewise suffered. The way international organizations, countries, and the Government of Afghanistan act to fix these issues are laced with complicated motives and changing circumstances, such as political alliances, national legitimacy and efficacy, and terrorism.

After the Soviet’s indiscriminate mining policy, and the landmines laid in the following years, Afghanistan emerged as one of the most heavily mined countries in the world. As such, it is known as the birthplace of humanitarian mining efforts. While the recent commercialization of de-mining poses many benefits, it is inherently commodifying safety and creating unsafe work practices. As casualties from landmines continue to rise, the presence of mines is continuing to shape the Afghan environment, as well as the political, social, economic, and humanitarian development that is currently underway.

The education of children and young adults has served as one method to bring individuals back in contact with their environments even though the landmines remain in the ground. Solutions are being implemented both by international organizations such as the UNHCR, but also by Afghans who feel a responsibility to fix a land they never asked to be made inaccessible in the first place.

Like land, water has been transformed by various actors in Afghanistan. Despite the abundance of water in Afghanistan, it is a highly contested resource. Conflict has not only damaged resources and infrastructure, but is a constant threat in the further development of these resources. With environmental issues only making more unpredictable Afghanistan’s supply of water, their relation to natural resources is in tumult.

As people are further cut off from travel, agricultural land, water resources, public health issues become more prevalent and more devastating. The way environment is defined is thus not so clear-cut, and the ramifications of war take many forms. Infectious disease becomes more prominent, more women will choose to give birth away from approved medical centers, and less and less effort will be put into addressing these issues. Though there is some positive movement in the Afghan health sector with the introduction of the Balanced Scorecard, public health remains a serious issue.

Environmental interaction is thus inherently political: there are domestic issues of poverty and corruption, but also international actors as various foreign governments and non-governmental organization have their own motivations, including combating terrorism. In combating opium, there is a fear of aggravating U.S.-Russia relations in not providing enough funding, but also pushing Afghani people in poverty towards the Taliban. Deforestation likewise shows this issue of implementation, as corrupt officials profit off an illicit trade they are charged to enforce. The Environmental Law, a product of the UN and the Government of Afghanistan, constructed a framework that left many practical holes.

If the question is why Afghanistan’s environment is still struggling despite international aid and over a decade of effort, the answer might be simple: there has been real progress, but what is written cannot always be translated into action.

Further Reading

For those interested, this website details issues of political legitimacy in education in Afghanistan, as well as the role of Islam. Like environmental issues, education in Afghanistan has been used for various political mechanisms, and is reflected in part of the ability of the Government of Afghanistan's ability to reach its populace.

Another interesting article details American clean up efforts after the use of Agent Orange during the Vietnam war, 44 years after the war. Issues of accountability of environmental destruction after war are not unique to Afghanistan, nor are the political motivations of clean up efforts. Conflict has long lasting effects on the environment, and it is important to note that the Afghani situation parallels a lot of others; issues of implementation, and struggles to recover, after decades of war.

Finally, find here a profile on Farkhunda Ateel, an Afghan woman, former child refugee, and winner of the Equator Prize on behalf of the Rural Green Environment Organization (RGEO). She is in part responsible for the construction of 5 kilometers of irrigation canals, the creation of some 6,000 jobs, as well as the planting 200,000 trees. There is hope for optimism, yet, for Afghanistan. Grass root organizations exist in which Afghani people intervene in their own environment. Women, too, are not invisible in Afghanistan, or passive apolitical actors. The focus of this web module has in part been foreign countries and nongovernment organizations, but there are many Afghani conservationists who exist, with the same concerns raised in this module.