The Concept of “Global Commons” as a Factor of Global Instability

Environmentalism as a global environmental ideology in its various aspects has had a serious impact on world politics; as a result, comprehensive international agreements were signed. Thus, environmental ethics has become a practical imperative. But at the same time, the implementation of many provisions of environmental doctrines faces sometimes tacit but tangible resistance. This is due to the fact that global environmental ideologies are often perceived as a challenge to the sovereignty of states and the competitiveness of corporations. Over the past decade, the term “global problems” crystallized into a new concept of “global commons”, understood both in a narrow ecological sense and in a broader social one. The modern development of mankind and global inequality raises the question of access to the public domain, which in the future will lead to a fundamentally new type of conflict. Already, the most acute problems arise in the context of the interrelation of global ecology and demography. The contradiction between natural and social aspects of the “global commons” is becoming increasingly apparent. In particular, calls for limiting consumption due to the exhaustibility of the Earth’s natural resources conflict with the right for development (including the right to develop the middle class) in countries of the Global South. Furthermore, the emerging value of planetary unity and equality within human society as a social “global common” is transformed into the right for equal access to global benefits arising from it. Thus, the ideology of “global commons” can lead to a clash between the dynamics of environmental regulation and social development of a global society. Therefore, the international community is faced with the question of joint efforts to find a very delicate balance between these areas and to prevent possible conflicts in the future.