There are a lot of reasons we should be thinking about transitioning to a green economy. One is that current American energy policies chain us, and the countries who supply us with oil, to a whole host of problems.

Take Nigeria, whose oil woes have worsened this week.

Attacks on pipelines by the militant group MEND (Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta) have cut into Shell's exports, and a five-day strike of white collar workers that began last Wednesday has crippled ExxonMobil: today they announced that all of their oil output from Nigeria has been shut down. The losses are already threatening to knock Nigeria from its status as Africa's top oil producer, according to The Guardian. In that case, Angola would take its slot.

Nigeria's losses, along with the closure of a pipeline in the North Atlantic following a strike in Scotland, have pushed the price of oil to nearly $120 a barrel.

Now, a lot of analysts have talked about the "curse of oil," especially in African countries like Sudan and Chad. Oil does not always spark conflict in these countries, but it certainly fuels it. The temptation of state actors to seize oil wealth for themselves - and the temptation of other players to challenge state control over oil wealth - has contributed to the destabilization of several countries.

Nigeria has not been an exception to that process. Prior to last year's elections, The Independent reported on how oil under Obasanjo and many of his predecessors had engendered a staggering level of corruption:

Successive military dictatorships have been accused by Nigeria's anti- corruption commission of embezzling $400bn in oil windfalls .

According to the Berlin-based anti-corruption watchdog Transparency International, Nigeria is one of the most corrupt countries in the world - where graft is seen as "rampant".

Against the backdrop of endemic corruption, Nigeria is sitting on the brink of a west African oil boom that will see billions of pounds flow into government coffers - and could see the situation becoming even worse. "Oil tends to supercharge corruption," said Nicholas Shaxson, a fellow of Chatham House think-tank and author of the forthcoming book Poisoned Wells: The Dirty Politics of Africa's Oil. "Governments don't tax their citizens, so there's no accountability - it's part of the 'oil curse'."

The 2007 elections, regarded by many (including myself) as a farce, did little to dispel Nigeria's image of corruption. And this week we learn from the BBC that despite promises of reform from President Yar'Adua, democracy activists in the country are deeply pessimistic about the chances of effecting meaningful change in the electoral system. Apathy and disenchantment already run deep amongst the population. Prolonged political deadlock and economic difficulty will only drive more people outside of the system, into the arms of rebel groups like MEND, who after all are fighting mostly for control of resources.

I don't want to draw a straight line from oil to suffering, because that cuts out a lot of complexity, but I think we can safely say that patterns of resource consumption in America are linked to political and socioeconomic problems in Africa. And from that we can hazard the guess that if we altered our approach to energy issues here, we could help alter the situation of countries like Nigeria.

Some might say that reducing our dependence on foreign oil would hurt Nigeria, at least in the short term. I'm not so sure. Switching to a green economy doesn't necessarily have to mean yanking all foreign investment and income out of Nigeria - or Saudi Arabia. If we think carefully, progressively, and globally about how to manage these transitions, everyone could benefit. For example, Saudi Arabia is trying to develop a technology sector, because they even more than we do realize that change must come, and that oil supplies won't last forever. We have a choice about whether to encourage transitions like that, or dig in our heels. For Nigeria the solution will be different, but that doesn't mean there isn't one.

We don't often think of these connections when we're standing at the pump. But with gas prices rising, we should be. The green economy holds out the promise not just of a brighter future for us, but also the chance to remake our relationships with countries around the world. This moment represents an opportunity of sorts. After all, the American people and the Nigerian people have at least one thing in common - very few of us are benefiting from the oil industry right now.