For much of the 20th century, the United States has been looked upon as a world leader. From the development of manned flight at the start of the last century, through the Space Program in the 1960s, to the massive technological boom that closed out the 1900s, America has been the worldwide gold standard—quite literally, in fact, with many nations fixing the value of their currency to the US Dollar—in prosperity, productivity and quality of life.

Perhaps even more amazingly, though, the U.S. has always managed to temper the pace and power of its industrial achievements with concern for the environment. From Johnny Appleseed to John Muir, Teddy Roosevelt to Rachel Carson, environmentalists have always managed to hold impressive sway in the United States, and this has paid massive dividends for the nation. Despite developing some of the most polluting technologies ever conceived, the U.S. has largely avoided disasters brought on by them, due in no small part to thoughtfully constructed and carefully enforced controls and restrictions.

On the other hand, the United States is hardly a paragon of intelligent environmental restraint. It’s no secret that the plush lifestyles enjoyed by many in the most developed nations have come at the expense of the rest of the world, and even George W. Bush, the “big oil” President, has admitted the U.S. has something of a problem with its astronomical rates of consumption. 

As the world proceeds further into this new century, it’s important that developed nations like the U.S. choose exactly which of their aspects they choose to export to the developing world. With 80% of humanity now living in so-called “developing nations”, the course these countries take as they approach modernization will have an unimaginable impact on the rest of the world—and so far, environmentalism hasn’t proven all that popular an export.

“Overshopping”, or purchasing well beyond one’s needs, is already present in emerging economies; roughly one-third of all food purchased in South Africa is thrown away, even as the world faces an increasingly dire food shortage. While GDP and purchasing power are reaching all-time highs in nations across the world, lists of “most polluted cities” never seem to include anywhere in American or Western Europe. The same can be said for gridlock , while fully-developed nations have a virtual lock on the ranks of the world’s cleanest.

This isn’t to say that developing nations are pushing toward modernity without any care at all for the environment. Indeed, many places with rapidly emerging economies are miles ahead of the United States on curbing their carbon emissions, and on far more sustainable means of transportation, such as bicycles and mass transit. But in the interests of sustainability, and the fate of the environment worldwide, the US and other developed nations must make a more concerted effort to export the virtues of environmental consciousness over the allure of consumerism.