Introduction: Confronting Environmental Change: Lessons from East and Southeast Asia

In an essay entitled ‘The Filthy Earth’, Nicholas Kristof poignantly portrays what he describes as an ongoing ‘war’ in Asia:

It kills 3 million people each year, mostly children and the elderly, and yet it is scarcely noticed. It is the war between humans and the environment, and it is one that both sides are losing. The environment is one of the bleakest prisms through which to view Asia, for it is becoming a brake on development and a challenge to the rest of the world as well. This environmental catastrophe is one reason to temper one's optimism about Asia (Kristof, 2000, p291).

Kristof's comments emphasize what environmental analysts have been saying for several years: as their economies and populations expand, almost all Asian countries are experiencing profound ecological deterioration and degradation of natural resources. It is therefore imperative that they confront environmental change.