GLOBALIZATION Globalization is a processof interaction and integration among the people, companies, and governments ofdifferent nations, a process driven by international trade and investment and aided by information technology. This process has effects on theenvironment, on culture, on political systems, on economic development and prosperity, and on human physical well-being in societies around the world. Globalization,while showing itself in new ways, has been a part of the human history.
Withregards to the history of globalization,globalization first took form during the time of initial migration by humansout of the African continent and into other lands. As human history continued,due to local conditions, humans lacking access to hunting and finding food hadto move for new resources. Then, as they continued to spread throughout theearth and establish additional communities, they then started to produce moreadvanced tools, and then, in time, began trading with other communities. Butpolicy and technological developments of the past few decades have spurredincreases in cross-border trade, investment, and migration so large that many observersbelieve the world has entered a qualitatively new phase in its economicdevelopment. Since 1950, for example, the volume of world trade has increasedby 20 times, and from just 1997 to 1999 flows of foreign investment nearlydoubled, from $468 billion to $827 billion. Distinguishing this current wave ofglobalization from earlier ones, author Thomas Friedman has said that todayglobalization is “farther, faster, cheaper, and deeper.” This current wave ofglobalization has been driven by policies that have opened economiesdomestically and internationally.
In the years since the Second World War, andespecially during the past two decades, many governments have adoptedfree-market economic systems, vastly increasing their own productive potentialand creating myriad new opportunities for international trade and investment.Governments also have negotiated dramatic reductions in barriers tocommerce and have established international agreements to promote trade ingoods, services, and investment. Taking advantage of new opportunities inforeign markets, corporations have built foreign factories and establishedproduction and marketing arrangements with foreign partners.
A defining featureof globalization, therefore, is an international industrial and financialbusiness structure. There are many types ofglobalization. The four that we shall primarily five on are: EconomicGlobalization, Environmentalism Globalization, Military Globalization, CulturalGlobalization, and Political Globalization.
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EconomicGlobalizationEconomic Globalization has been defined by Gao Shangquan as “the increasinginterdependence of world economies as a result of the growing scale ofcross-border trade of commodities and services, flow of international capitaland wide and rapid spread of technologies. It reflects the continuing expansionand mutual integration of market frontiers”. Historically, economicglobalization was barely different from other forms of globalization; ofteneconomic, political, and cultural globalization were interconnected. As we see,economic globalization is happening all around us. Technologies are advancingat a rapid rate, which shapes how we do business.
Transactions can be made withthe click of a button, and markets can be monitored around the clock. Inaddition, companies can set up shop in any part of the world, as well as havinga very established internet presence with extensive online activity. And with economic globalization is alsothe issue of how states and non-state actors can help address challenges suchas economic development.
Here, we see international organizations,as well as non-governmental organizations actively trying to help states interms of building infrastructure, increasing jobs, as well as introducingcapital (Smallman & Brown, 2011). But as we shall see, it is debated as towhether some of these developments are always positive some worry that withglobalization, powerful states and multinational corporations have used thesystem to further their own power and influence at the expense of other weakeractors. The internet and Television has had an important role inthe globalizing the economies of Asia. The ease in which information can bepassed from one person to another has provided many benefits to Asian society.
It has created tighter cooperation within regions dealing with natural disasteras well as improving education and quality of living for children and adults.It is also the case that improved networking and information systems posesignificant risks, such as the spread of dangerous ideologies, such as IslamicRadicalism. The Globalization of media has helped stop thepractice of non-intervention in East Asian countries and instead has sparked anattitude of regional co-operation. This collaborative attitude, provedto be effective in dealing with disease control, in particular the SARSoutbreak in 2003 as well as the bird flu outbreak of 2004. International mediacoverage assisted in publicizing the Indian Ocean Tsunami disaster and madestates more able to react in an efficient and effective manner. CableTelevision has had a massive effect on the spread of information in Asia, andis becoming one of the most important medians of knowledge.
In Pakistan,Television has become the most popular form of entertainment. Now many Pakistanisare able to access scientific information and canbe notified of important events happening all over the globe. These factorshave not only increased awareness, but improved quality of life, as well. Adisadvantage of this heightened availability of knowledge is that it can spreadideas that can be damaging to society. The internet has allowed the spread offundamentalist movements such Islamic Radicalism throughout parts of South-EastAsia, particularly in Indonesia, Malaysia and the Philippines. These extremistgroups pose a significant threat to the national security to South East Asiancountries.
This was especially relevant to the social unrest in Indonesiaduring the 1990s. Radical groups had become aware of terrorist activities in otherparts of the globe, which lead to copycat methods of terrorism in their owncountries. There is also a lot of evidence that suggests that the internet hasaffected traditional merchandising businesses and services in Asia.E-commerce websites that provide internet users with the luxury of beingable to view catalogues and purchase productsover the internet, pose a massive threat to large portionof the less-developed retail sector. There are even claims that internetcommerce destroys jobs and reinforces inequality in developing nations.
Take web maps for example. Businesses utilizethis popular form of navigation as an advertising platform. Looking at rich,industrialized city on Google Maps, you will notice that the landscape ismarked full of restaurants and places of interest, whereas more impoverished,but no less populated areas show up with nothing. Environmentalismand Globalization Environmentalismcan be described as a social movement or as an ideology focused on the welfareof the environment. Environmentalism seeks to protect and conserve the elementsof earth’s ecosystem, including water, air, land, animals, and plants, alongwith entire habitats such as rainforests, deserts and oceans. Concepts dealingwith environmental issues include the management of natural resources,overpopulation, commercial logging, urbanization and global warming. Theeffects of human development ad activity have harmed and altered the earth’snatural state.
Environmentalism works to correct the damage as well as preventfuture destruction. Environmentalism began as a movement in the 1960s and1970s. However, humanity’s relationship and dependence on the earth forsurvival has existed since the beginning of time. Many cultures includingNative Americans, Aborigines, Africans and South Americans have understood thisinterconnection with the natural world. Western cultures had a poorunderstanding of this relationship as they separated themselves from the landthrough technology and development. Beginning in the nineteenth century, theIndustrial Revolution caused many changes; Western people realized theirbehavior had a negative impact on the environment (Stradling and Thorsheim1999). In the growing industrial cities of London, New York and Chicago, coalburning factories polluted the air and water while the need for lumber to buildfactories and homes caused mass deforestation and subsequent destruction ofanimal life. In the years proceeding World War II,America experienced an economic boom.
New technologies introduced atomicenergy, synthetic materials and chemicals, such as pesticides, which led to advancementsin agriculture and consumer products. The booming economy allowed the averagefamily to afford a house, automobile and other amenities at soaring rates.Lands outside of cities were bulldozed for suburban development, new factoriesemitted more pollution due to the production of more goods and larger numbersof cars discharged additional exhaust; “pollution was the price ofeconomic progress” (Rome 2003, 525). As the prosperity of the postwaryears continued, the environmental consciousness of Americans awakenedregarding the effects of environmental destruction . Scholars andenvironmentalists believe the beginning of the modern environmental movementcan be attributed to the 1962 publication of Silent Spring , a book by RachelCarson. Carson wrote a stunning cautionary book about pesticides and theconsequences to animal and human life. Today, debate surrounds the line wheregovernment environmental control ends and the beginning of free-marketpractices.
Corporations were blamed as the biggest culprits in pollution anddestruction of land; pressure from the government, consumers and activistsforced corporations to clean up their behaviour and contamination. Costlylegislation imposed changes on corporations, but the consumer triggered a moreefficient market shift for environmentally-friendly companies. After all,corporations depend on the consumer dollar. Negative publicity from activists,increased media coverage and environmental sympathies caused consumers toquestion from which companies to buy products.
Many companies discovered newtechnologies allowed decreased industrial waste and lowered manufacturingcosts; this pleased the consumer and improved the bottom line (Kharif, 2003).While corporate motives to become more environmentally conscious have not beenentirely altruistic, corporate America has advanced the environmental cause. Environmentalism, althoughaccused of using fuzzy math and scare tactics, has become a highly acceptedmovement by the American public.
Fortunately, the advocacy of environmentalismhas evolved from t radical tactics and alienation into a complex andinterdependent relationship existing between environmentalists, corporationsand the government. Willingness of all three groups to cooperate, negotiate anddiscuss solutions to problems has driven innovative concepts such asmarket-based environmental reforms and sustainable economic developments. Environmentalismhas spawned numerous environmental groups in America and around the world. In1972, the first major worldwide discussion on environmental issues was held ata United Nations conference in Stockholm, Sweden, and attended by 114 nations(Encyclopedia.com). The Stockholm conference was followed by The United NationsConference on Environment and Development, or Earth Summit, where discussionsrevolved around the global conflict between economic development andenvironmental protection (ibid.). America is a world role model as a politicaland financial leader and its participation in world environmental efforts isvital to the success of a healthier planet.
Military Globalization Military globalization is the increaseof range within which military power can be projected through the progress ofmilitary organization and technology and the increasing strategic interrelationfirst of regional systems and later of the global system. Similarly, toeconomic globalization, military globalization involves sw integration of asystem as expressed in network of alliances. Contrary to economic andsocio-cultural globalization, strategic integration entails centralizationunder a single command.
