Environmental policy recommendations for the new US President.

Abstract

As Senior Editors of a global publication devoted to bridging the gap between science and environmental policy at the Society of Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry (SETAC), we encourage academia, business, and government to be visionary and to adopt a forward-looking approach to tackling the environmental challenges that face our global community of nations in the 21st century. Major shifts of leadership are currently occurring globally. The election of a new US President is one of many recent political developments in the European Union, Africa, South America, and Asia, that are likely to have a profound influence on regional and global environmental policy during the next decade. New leadership reminds us of the importance of investments in science education and environmental protection. Collaboration among the academic, business, and government communities is essential to foster the capacity to manage natural resources effectively and sustainably, and to address the threats posed by environmental pressures and resource scarcities that increasingly affect global prosperity. Environmental problems know no borders, and addressing the most pressing challenges demands worldwide collaboration. Reflecting on 13 years of publishing environmental science research and policy analysis in Integrated Environmental Assessment and Management (IEAM), we see an opportunity for political leaders to forge a common vision for the future and to build an agenda that recognizes the interdependence of economic vitality, environmental quality, and social equity. The Editorial Board at IEAM has concentrated on several global environmental challenges since its inception. Together with our authors from the global academic, business, and regulatory communities, we are committed to deepening the understanding of the environmental impacts from multiple stressors caused by human activity and that affect an ever-evolving natural environment. For example, we seek to publish innovative approaches for improving chemicals management and managing the life cycle of materials and consumer products that are distributed around the world. We also seek to improve knowledge and best practices that incorporate the concepts of ecosystem services into environmental assessment and planning. In doing so we also strive to strengthen scientific capabilities in developing countries. Recently, SETAC's Global Horizon Scanning Project called on scientists and engineers from around the world to identify our most pressing environmental quality research needs. Climate change, food safety, sustainable and safe water supplies, and ecological integrity are critically important to global security. Unfortunately, sustained efforts to understand and manage the subtle yet powerful consequences of environmental degradation tend to be deferred during hard times and overlooked in good times. When they are not deferred or overlooked, they are too often politicized to serve short-term interests. This is a global, systemic problem that cannot be solved without broad engagement of political leaders from around the globe. The Senior Editorial Board at IEAM is committed to heralding the information and ideas of talented environmental scientists and engineers that could be harnessed by political leaders to promote global security through sustainable ecological productivity. The time is right for our public- and private-sector leaders to use integrated environmental assessment and management as an engine to drive us towards a new era of global security through enlightened ecosystem management. Senior Editorial Board Integrated Environmental Assessment and Management Sabine Apitz Roberta Attanasio Thomas Backhaus Lawrence Barnthouse Graeme Batley Kate Brauman Bryan Brooks Peter Chapman Michael Griffin Lawrence Kapustka Wayne Landis Kenneth Leung Igor Linkov James Meador Stig Olsen Lawrence Tannenbaum John Toll Glenn Suter Richard Wenning