Geoscience Reference
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recognize that they can protect their own national interests only when the com-
munity of nations is able to protect the commons through sustained international
collaboration. EPA has identified a variety of objectives for international col-
laboration, including building strong science institutions, improving access to
clean water, and improving urban air quality. The agency works to achieve those
objectives by establishing collaborations and partnership with other nations and
international organizations. EPA provides resources, tools, and technologies to
support international initiatives. Its involvement in international collaboration is
not simply one of supporting developing nations but learning from both devel-
oped and developing nations about the most innovative technologies and ap-
proaches for environmental protection.
For example, EPA is a leading partner in the Partnership for Clean Indoor
Air, to which almost 600 partner organizations from over 120 countries are con-
tributing their expertise and resources to reduce exposure to combustion prod-
ucts of fuels used in household cooking and heating (The Partnership for Clean
Indoor Air 2012). Indoor smoke from solid fuels poses one of the top 10 health
risks globally, contributes an estimated 3.3% of the global disease burden
(WHO 2009), and is a source of effects on global climate through emissions of
black carbon (Bond et al. 2004; Venkataraman et al. 2005). Since 2002, the
partnership has made profound and broad progress in providing clean, efficient,
affordable, and safe cooking technologies through commercial markets; reduc-
ing indoor air pollution by adopting improved cooking technologies, fuels, and
practices; and monitoring and evaluating the health, economic, and environ-
mental effects of the new energy technologies. The Partnership for Clean Indoor
Air has also led to better understanding of indoor air pollution due to smoke
from burning solid fuels. The mitigation strategies from the partnership have
clearly shown both health and environmental benefits (Smith et al. 2009; Wil-
kinson et al. 2009).
EPA maintains a leadership role in developing science and technology and
in translating scientific results to practice and daily life. Maintaining that leader-
ship role can be accomplished by setting priorities for international collaboration
with an emphasis on long-range concerns and long-term partnership; establish-
ing multitier collaborations and partnerships with not only foreign governments
but industries, academic institutions, and nongovernment organizations in other
countries; and maintaining strong leadership in the dissemination of information,
the provision of technical expertise, the implementation of policy, and the ability
to receive such information globally and to integrate it into practice. As existing
challenges persist and new ones emerge, opportunities and challenges for inter-
national collaboration will also evolve for EPA. International collaboration is no
longer an option; it is a necessity for global solutions to global concerns. Inter-
national collaboration should be viewed not as a public service or an aid to de-
veloping countries but as a crucial mechanism for improving the domestic envi-
ronment and to gain critical research and implementation skills. It is about
maximizing global resources to protect the environment globally and domesti-
cally at the same time.
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