> Why can't our lives/the world be improved by banning the exploitation of natural resources in Africa?

> i'm constantly reading news of horrible spills from corruption and lack or regulation in the region.

We don't mine or drill for resources for the purpose of spilling them into the nearby forest. We extract resources so that we can use them to improve our quality of life. Stop extracting them, and quality of life will necessarily drop.

I disagree with that premise.

I get it's hard to transition and that poor countries do gain money from exploitation.

But almost always, almost all the money goes to the few while the local communities are poisoned. often times, like in the sources I provided, traditional industry/food production is decimated.

So first point is quality of life for the actual locals is often reduced, sometimes greatly. Corporations and developed nations have increased our quality of life at the expense of others for centuries.

Second, once we scale up renewables we won't need to extract nearly as much carbon fuel from the ground. We NEED to stop extracting almost all of it so we can IMPROVE quality of life for everyone.

Maybe we start by banning harmful exploitation where we are first, not somewhere else?

We're trying to do both at the same time. And there's no reason not to do both at the same time. a) We are all pissing in the same bed, and b) if we truly believe the Mbuti and Twa are people just like we are and, ipso facto, deserve the same protections, then we must fight for both. We can't carve out an "exploit pygmies" exception and be consistent.