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Foreword The term “United Nations,” substituted for “Associated Powers” in an early draft of the Atlantic Charter, was coined by Winston Churchill while he was sitting in the bath, a place where the British prime minister was known to do some of his best thinking. No longer in the bath, Churchill showed Roosevelt the text of Byron’s Childe Harold, which read in part: Here, where the sword United Nations drew, Our countrymen were warring on that day! And this much—and all—which will not pass away; The two agreed the term was fitting; after all, security was the preoccupation of the time. But of course the United Nations as it has evolved seeks to fulfill functions quite distinct from the maintenance of military peace and security. The extent to which it has influenced, directed, and contributed to the management of natural resources is the subject of examination in this book. The sustainable management of natural resources is one of the greatest challenges facing governments and peoples. For governments, the management of resources is a long-standing concern, but with increasing awareness of the need to protect and preserve the natural environment and the knowledge of the inevitable dramatic consequences of a failure to do so, management of natural resources is increasingly becoming a concern of all. Professor Schrijver’s study addresses the ways the United Nations has contributed to the development of the law, practice, and policy relating to management of natural resources and the extent to which the concepts so developed have tended to become universalized: development, sustainability, peace and security itself. Attempts to regulate management of natural resources confront tensions between environmental protection and economic development, between sovereignty and communitarian objectives, and between conservation and exploitation. His study provides a valuable survey of the work of the United Nations in this field, but it also exposes the limitations of that work, which can produce solutions only with the cooperation of member states. Professor Schrijver’s thorough account of the achievements of the xvi                     Foreword organization across the field of natural resource management enables him both to assess that contribution and to make realistic, practical suggestions for improvement. His thoughtful and well-researched contribution to the problem of the management of natural resources is a contribution both in itself and in adding to an appreciation of the work of the United Nations more generally. James Crawford Lauterpacht Centre for International Law Cambridge August 2009 ...

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