Globalization, logically, has the greatest impact on global issues. And the original "global" issue is nature itself. Long before humans invented "environmentalism" -- and long before humans -- the planet was chugging along as a well-balanced if brutal eco-system. Fresh oxygen was pumped into the atmosphere by huge rainforests; the big fish culled the little fish; and natural fires managed to prairies.

Now humans are increasingly aware of the way the Earth's environment has been changed by human activity. And we are also aware that nature pays no attention to national borders. While laws attempt to control the flow of capital, goods, and labor around the globe, no legislature, committee, or king can control the way winds blow greenhouse gasses or where ocean currents carry oil or waste.

One nation might pass strict environmental protection laws. But they will have little affect if neighboring countries don't pass similar laws. Only global agreements, therefore, can truly get all nations to act together to improve the environment. Because of this, some of the first truly global civil movements have been those which intend to protect the environment.

Here are some great resources for exploring the connections between globalization and the environment.

• Earth Science Enterprise, the latest facts on global environmental changes from NASA.
  
  
• ISO 14000, the International Standards Organization has issued these standards from environmental management similar to the ISO 9000 standards for quality management.
  
  
• The United Nations Environment Program.
  
  
• Trade and Environment, the World Trade Organization offers these resources.

Contributed by Keith Porter. Reprinted with permission from globalization.about.com.

To read another Global Envision article about globalization and the environment, see The Environmental Benefits of Globalization.