Human security - from the economic notion of scarcity viewpoint

Shahab Sabahi

Energy and Environment for Development – Policy Analysis Research Group

The economic notion of resource scarcity differs from what scientists consider for physical abundance of resources. For economists, the net value of resources over the course of time is a measure for making judgment for resource scarcity. From an economic point of view, if marginal costs increase as remaining reserves decline, but market price does not increase as fast as the costs, then the net value is declining and it indicates NON growing scarcity. The fact that remaining reserves are declining would indicate geologic scarcity, but unless market price increases fast enough than marginal cost, the resource is not becoming economically scarce.

Indeed from an economic perspective market forces; technology costs, future demands, substitute commodities prices and their availability will determine the level of scarcity for resources rather than geologic and physical availability of resources.

What about environmental quality; fresh water and clean air? What about species face the danger of extinction? Could we apply this commodity-based and private goods notion of economic scarcity to public and environmental goods? Can this notion guarantee the irreversible exploitation of the life-support resources?

Scarcity is an economic fact of life and can be manageable for commodities that flow through organized institutions such as markets. However where the case is about the scarcity of life support resources and human security may another institution should be in play. In the latter case, interchangeability, market price and demand fluctuation are not applicable.

Having the reality of limited capital and human resources and necessity of their optimal allocations, we need a framework to help us to effectively prioritize our environmental objectives. The more non-market the environmental service, the harder it will be to adapt this economic notion of scarcity. It is suited to private commodities that exchanged in markets.

The existing value system cannot appropriately calculate the real value of environmental goods. Furthermore the prevailing and dominated development model for societies cannot accommodate all aspects of human security.

These all may require the development of new economic value system within new global governance, with focus on effective regional cooperation and conservation efforts, to fulfill the human security needs.        

Social norms resistance to change

Shahab Sabahi

Energy and Environment for Development – Policy Analysis Research Group

Social norms are evolved inside societies. The norms are being defined by specific group of people who share values, world view, principles and perceptions of new ideas. The norms are formulated based on the group’s real time needs, experience from past and cultural beliefs. When real time needs cannot be satisfied and societies cannot effectively adapt to new external forces, trust fades away from the effectiveness of norms. Frustration among the members of societies grows and pushes the societies to their limits. Society so often comes to a standstill. The phenomenon is so-called ideological trap happens. This situation drafts society from realm of realities and disables it to adapt to new contexts. To solve the issues, some members of society are basing their arguments on society’s glories in the past and strongly support a backward move to re-establish the old system structures. Among this group, some project the data in the past into future with taking into account the real time boundary conditions, and prescribe some sort of short term solutions. There is a group who looks for solutions out of the norms and view the norms themselves as obstacles for solving problems. They, at least in part, do not deny the dynamism of norms. But they believe the norms should be changed in the means to address the real time needs. Those of them who are radical reject the importance of norms dynamics and moderates keep searching for better norms to replace. The moderates usually fail to explain how society’s norms changes occur. What is the driving force behind the changes? What is the cost of the changes?          

Creating norm changes is triggered by changing the mindset of society’s population. Social progress requires a radical shift in society’s dominant value system and review the validity of the existing objectives in accordance with the new defined values. Norm change does not necessarily require breaking with the past. Infant norms rest over the outgoing ones and being consistent with the past. Shifting mindsets requires more than rational arguments and should bring about clear visions of a better life (Purpose) and are inspired to pursue it (Passion).

Norm change is a hard task. It requires a whole society commitment. It takes a big deal of time and has losers and winners. However it is unavoidable. Smart societies recognize realities and take action to change their value systems prior to external forces compel them to admit the changes