Environmental experts need to know if resources are under pressure from settlement patterns or other threats. And as we speak, the United Nations is preparing to demarcate the disputed border between Eritrea and Ethiopia as part of the peace settlement between those two countries. We hear a lot about blue helmets and relief workers out there in the world's war-zones and disaster areas, but we should not forget that geographers are on the front lines, too. So I was very eager to meet you all today. The United Nations and the community of professional geographers have a great deal in common.
Borders figure heavily in our work.
So does science. Most of all, geographers routinely fill in the blanks of terra incognita, enabling people to update their views of the earth and its inhabitants. The United Nations also tries to get people to see the world in new ways. As you know only too well, the signs of severe environmental distress are all around us. Unsustainable practices are woven deeply into the fabric of modern life.