Energy Resources Management and Sustainable Development - Research Proposal Example

Research Proposal

Energy Resources Management and Sustainable Development

By

May 2016

Abstract

Natural energy resource management and sustainable development are intertwined; in other words, one leads to the other. For the two principles to be well understood they must be examined together; for instance, sustainable development requires the exploitation of resources with the aim to sustain the current generation,whose intention is to care about the next generation. However, there are situations where the population pressure is high and it may not leaveroom for future generations. It requires the two principles to be understood together for proper resource management. The mismanagement of natural energy resources may also cause controversy, because it must be ensured that people obtain the recommended standards of living. This because is the locals are not provided the required standards of leaving they end up encroaching on the natural resources and violating the principle of sustainable development. Therefore, this research intends to solve the complication between the two terms and demonstrate the differences and similarities between them.

Literature Review

Energy resource management is the art of utilising resources together with the population and ensuring resources are equally divided between both the current and future generations accordingly. Natural resource management also involvesthe proper utilisation of resources, such as natural energy,which avoids damaging the environment through, for instance, pollution or even public endangerment (Ali, 2007;Hens &Nath, 2005). On the other hand, the term sustainable development meansthe production system should not cause the undue depletion of natural sources, such as energy. It implies sustainability combines both environmental factors and a social system.

The principle of interdependence is elaborated on in the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development, which is responsible for the integration of development and the environment in decision-making (Bradbrook&Ottinger, 2012; United Nations &African Union, 2008). The summit resolved to emphasise particular areas in development,including environmental protections, the eradication of poverty and women empowerment in environment conservation, aswomen’s participation is fundamental to the achievement of sustainable development goals. The same position is also emphasised in the Beijing Declaration of 1995, which spearheaded the positive management of natural energy. Such ideologies are approaches aimed at promoting social and economic development in the long run without manipulating the natural resources of a country (Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action, 1995).

Based on the provisions of the Declaration of the World Summit on Sustainable Development held in Johannesburg in 2002, a duty and obligation are placed on the present generation to meet their own needs without in any way infringing on the ability of future generations to meet their needs. Based on the benchmark set in that particular Declaration, the current generation is not even close to fulfilling the obligations expected of them; hence, this research aims to identify ways of managing natural energy resources and to determine how sustainable development can be met (Bureau of National Affairs, 1987; UNCED Report of the United Nations Conference On Environment and Development, 1992). The Johannesburg Declaration (2002) requires cooperative accountability to improve and toughen the principle of interdependence, that is to say natural resource management and sustainable development, and to enforce reciprocally the mainstays of sustainable development (Carvalho&Afgan, 2007). There are various ways through which these conventions and declarations can be implemented, which will be discussed in the conclusion of thisresearch paper.

On the other hand, based on the principles outlined in the millennium development goals, sustainable development is determined through an improved quality of life that the population enjoys in an area compared with the transition they go through to meet independently their basic needs. The principle also sets an index against which the impact of sustainable development can be measured, and such indices include the development of education, income and health. However, based on the information provided by the federal government of Nigeria, a place whose natural resources have been drained without consideration for future generations, the population in that region is still living in poverty. That is an indication that even though the notions of managing natural energy resources and sustainable development have been set, they have not yet been appreciated by the majority of the population and other communities, which is the reason for this research: to devise a means to realise the principles of natural energy resource management and sustainable development.

In Africa, Nigeria has been used as an example of aregion needing massive improvements in the promotion of sustainable development. It is projected that 97% of Nigeria’s exports are obtained from energy resources; however, the United Nations World Commission on Environment and Development(1987) reports that drilling activities have not been based on the principles of the proper management of natural energy resources and sustainable development. For instance, a number of oil spills have been reported on several occasions; it is apparent that these kinds of drilling activities show little concern for future generations (Chinweze,Abiola-Oloke and Jideani, 2012; Ochola,Sanginga, &Bekalo, 2010). It is an indicationthat better methods have not yet been applied to implement the Beijing (1995) and Johannesburg (2002) Declarations. Therefore, there is a need to conduct more studies to determine why such areas, particularly in Africa, are still not abiding by the world-modernised principles, hence the reason for this research.

The other issue is the women question in relation to the environmentin the same region of the Niger Delta, because the region is highly gifted with both human and natural resources. It is still in this region where women rights have proven to be trampled by human activities (Feldman, 2007; Sterner, 1994). The reason is that most locals depend on such resources as agriculture, fishing and forests for energy, among others. In these kinds of activities, women dominate the sector, which has left them vulnerable to the consequences of pollution and deforestation, leading to the poor management of natural energy resources.

The other emerging challenge that has affected communities is the increasing population. This is an ever-growingproblem worldwide, especially in Africa, where countries such as Egypt and Nigeria continue to be ranked as havingthe highest populations in the world (Fox, 2004; Hettiarachchi and Ardakanian, 2016). The more the population increases, the more resources need to be exploited; for instance, reports indicate that in Nigeria, the need for power is so high due to the high population in the country. A survey was conducted on Nigeria’s power generation bodies, including hydro, solar and geothermal power, among others. The most supplied and preferred power seems to be hydro, which is used by the majority people who enjoy power (Federal Government of Nigeria, 2003;Great Britain, 2007). However, that is not an indicationthat the power supply is enough; a larger population implies a larger economy, which also means more electricity will be needed, because it may lead to a worse crisis if the economy lacks sufficient power supply (NAIR, 2010). This has causeda greater exploitation of the energy in Nigeria, as people in rural areas have resorted to wood energy and thermal power generators that require more energy, which has intensified oil drilling, leading to a disregard for the need for sustainable development. This research is aimed at finding conclusions that will solvethe problem of the population increase in relationto the supply of resources (Goodbody&Thomas-Hope, 2002).

However, the ecological sustainability of people within a settlement is part of the union between man and the environment, that is to say, natural resources and social resources, such as settlement. The term human ecology broadens the scope of the principle of sustainable development to include other determinants, such as health, food, water, shelter and education, among the other basic needs of a human being. The involvement of such needs makes the term sustainable development wider and more complex than simply assessing the level of its observation (Carvalho and Afgan, 2007; Information Resources Management Association, 2014). The study therefore intends to focus on the wider approach of the term sustainable development and define from all possible angles.

Research Aim

The main aim of the research paper is to investigate the relationship between natural energy resource management and sustainable development. For the two principles to be well understood they must be examined together. This research paper will further elaborate on sustainable development, which requires the exploitation of resources with the aim to sustain the current generation whose intent is to care about the generation. However, there are situations where the population pressure is high and it may not leave room for future generations; it requires the two principles to be understood together for proper resource management. The mismanagement ofnatural energy resources may also cause controversy because it must be ensured that people obtain the recommended standards of living. Therefore, this research intends to solve the complication between the two terms and demonstrate both thedifferences and similarities between them.

Research Objectives

• To investigate the role of energy resource management in sustainable development in a country;
• To identify the strategies used by countries to achieve sustainable development in the energy sector;
• To examine the laws and rules put in place by international bodies to promote energy resource management;
• To identify the role of policy makers at the federal level in influencing research agendas in energy management for sustainable development.

Key Research Questions

• What is the role of energy resource management insustainable development in a country?
• What are the strategies used by countries to achieve sustainable development in the energy sector?
• Whatlaws and rules are put in place by international bodies to promote energy resource management?
• What role do policy makers have at the federal level in influencing research agendas in energy management for sustainable development?

Methodology

Introductory overview

This section presents the methods that will be employed during data collection; under it, the study area will be described, including data collection techniques. In addition, the size of the population sampled, the design, the instruments of data collection, the type of data and the problems encountered in the field will be presentedin this section.

Researchdesign

According to Kim and Kang (2004), this is the layout mode or blueprint of choosing subjects, studying the sites and answering the research questions.

The design consists of a quantitative approach to obtaining primary data from the field, as well as a qualitative approach that will use an inquiry case study strategy, because it will provide data that would have been verified. The qualitative data collection methods will include a literature review, the review of primary documents and semi-structured interviews with researchers conducting the research.These research methods will allow an exploratory and descriptive approach for the better understanding of the relation between energy resource management and sustainable development and in turn assist in forming the creation of recommendations to improve energy resource management.

Data collection

Primary information data together with secondary data will be used in thisstudy, because both will help in understanding the topic and presenting relevant findings.

Primary information will be collectedby reaching out to the respondents using self-administered questionnaires.This will be done purposely to gauge the attitudes, preferences and opinions of the sampled population for the research study. Interviews will also be conducted to obtainhonest responses from subjects, from whom the researcher gathered more perspectives.

Secondary data will be used to generatedata from existing literature sources, such as textbooks, journals, newspapers and the Internet. The purpose of collecting secondary data will be to collaborate and strengthen the primary data.

Sample design/population:

The researcher will target one hundred and thirty (130) respondents who will be gathered through random sampling. The number is used because it will be manageable. The data will be collected and accumulated from different respondents in the oil and gas industry. A case study design will be used to lead to a qualitative approach.

Source of Data

Primary information data

These are facts gathered by the researcher specifically for the problem under investigation. Examples of primary sources are the questioners and interviews.

Secondary data source

Secondary data, on the other hand, is information obtainedfrom secondary sources, such as books, magazines, journal articles, newspapers and more.

Data collectionmethods

• Interviews

This will involve the physical collection of data from the (130) respondents through asking them questions directly. It will be used because it permits the clarification of questions, and it can be used to collect data from both illiterate and literate respondents.

• Observation

Usingthis method, the researcher will observe what is taking place in the field while he is noting and carrying out various practices to remember. This method is more realistic in that the data collected is limited in bias.

Tools of collecting data

The research will employ three methods of collecting the data and they includean interview guide and documentation.

Reliability and validity

The validityof an instrument will include the definition as the“extent to which the items in the instrument measure what they are set out to measure” (Kuma, 2010). The validity of the instruments was established by the supervisor.

The procedurefor conducting the research

The research will follow the formula generally used in researching.First, a letter of introduction will be presented to indicate the study will be for academic purposes, fully explaining the purpose of the research.

Data presentation and interpretation

• The presentation of data: after collecting data, errors will be corrected and frequency tables will be used to present the data for analysis. In addition, there will be a grouping of the qualitative data statistically in table form, highlighting frequencies for a better interpretation.
• The analysis of the data:in the analysis stage, both qualitative and quantitative methods will be used. With thequalitative method, tables showing percentages and frequencies will be used, while with the quantitative method, there will be a presentation of the data as provided by the respondents relating it to the study variables.

Ethical consideration

At the beginning of the research, the researcher will draft a letter of introduction to be presented to the authorities of the study area. The letter will include an explanation of the study purpose. Thereafter, the collected information shall be kept confidential.

Timeline/Research Planning

Activity

2016

Q3

2017

Q4

2018

Q1

2019

Q2

Identify area of research interest

Set the aim and objectives

Conduct literaturereview

Define research methodology

Approval of research

Hypothesis

Instrumentation plan of development

Sample selection

Data collection

Data analysis

Dissertation writing

Proofing and editing of dissertation

Dissertation submission

Dissertation defense