International Role of U.S. Geoscience (1987) / Chapter Skim
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2 International Geoscience Activities in U.S. Foreign Policy
2 International Geoscience Activities in U.S. Foreign Policy
Pages 7-15
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From page 7... ...
Issues such as international trade, foreign investment, raw material inventories, mining of seabed resources, and international boundary demarcation involve geologic assessment of natural resources -- energy, mineral, and water. Issues such as disposal of hazardous waste, minimizing environmental degradation, land utilization, and hazard identification and control require extensive knowledge of geologic and hydrologic processes.
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From page 8... ...
geoscience activities abroad receive relatively little support in times when the importance of science and technology in general has been recognized in American foreign policy issues. The importance of these disciplines in foreign relations was spelled out in the National Science, Engineering, and Technology Policy and Priorities Act of 1976 as follows: Fostering leadership in the quest for international peace and progress toward human freedom, dignity, and well-being by enlarging the contributions of American scientists and engineers to the knowledge of man and his universe, by making discoveries of basic science widely available at home and abroad, and by utilizing technology in support of United States national and foreign policy goals.
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From page 9... ...
And, based on Germany and Japan's aggressive quest for raw materials during and after World War I, the experts foresaw -- accurately as it turned out -- that the competition for strategic materials could thwart efforts to stabilize Europe and restore global prosperity. Debate within the League of Nations regarding unequal distribution of mineral resources kept the issue in the news and generated serious concern within the United States during the years between World Wars I and II.
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From page 10... ...
In 1975, the program was reorganized and enlarged, and foreign service officers were assigned to the positions of resources officers. Despite fluctuating support and frequent changes of staff, the program has generally been an effective mechanism for obtaining information regarding resources and related programs, although most resource officers are not geoscience professionals.
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From page 11... ...
The foreign assistance program, which was a major vehicle for providing effective help in geologic work in the 1950s and 1960s, no longer offers significant support in the geosciences. The Korean War revived interest in the problems of raw material supply and generated new demands for a realistic national mineral policy.
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From page 12... ...
In the 1950s and 1960s, geoscience activities were a major component of the U.S. foreign assistance program, conducted successively under the Economic Cooperation Administration, Foreign Operations Administration, International Cooperation Administration, and Agency for International Development.
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From page 13... ...
On the positive side is support, under the foreign assistance program, for participation in geologic and hydrologic hazard assessment, mitigation, and training. A number of regional and bilateral projects in earthquake monitoring and risk analysis have been developed, and a new program of geologic and hydrologic hazard training has been developed jointly by the USGS and the AID Office of Foreign Disaster Assistance.
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From page 14... ...
Maintaining contact with leaders of agencies concerned with the geosciences and resources abroad is of primary importance in promoting mutual understanding of policy issues, encouraging collaboration in programs of mutual interest, and stimulating exchange of information. This seems to be recognized by other industrialized countries, who have developed various mechanisms for maintaining such contacts.
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From page 15... ...
World history for the first half of this century shows that the United States needs information about -- and access to -- mineral resources if we are to survive economically and politically as an industrialized nation.
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