GLOBALIZATION 

• 'Globalization' is a favourite catchphrase of journalists and politicians
  
• Globalization' is commonly used as a shorthand way of describing the spread and connectedness of production, communication and technologies across the world. '
  
• WHAT IS GLOBALIZATION? 
  Globalization has powerful economic, political, cultural and social dimensions.
  
  Globalization involves the diffusion of ideas, practices and technologies.
  
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• EXAMPLE OF GLOBALIZATION
  
• If you look at the tag on your shirt, chances are you would see that it was made in a country other than the one in which you sit right now.
  
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• Before it reached your wardrobe, this shirt could have very well been made with Chinese cotton sewed by Thai hands, shipped across the Pacific on a French freighter crewed by Spaniards to a Los Angeles harbour. This international exchange is just one example of globalization, a process that has everything to do with geography.
   
• Improved Technology in Transportation and Telecommunications
  
  The ever-increasing capacity and efficiency of people and things to move and communicate. In years past, people across the globe did not have the ability to communicate and could not interact without difficulty. Nowadays, a phone, instant message, fax, or video conference call can easily be used to connect people. Additionally, anyone with the funds can book a plane flight and show up half way across the world in a matter of hours. In short, the "friction of distance" is lessened, and the world begins to metaphorically shrink
   
• Integration of Economies
  
• The increasing reliance of economies on each other
  
• The opportunities to be able to buy and sell in any country in the world
  
• The opportunities for labour and capital to locate anywhere in the world
  
• The growth of global markets in finance
  
• Integration of Economies is made possible by:
  
  • Technology
    
  • Communication networks
    
  • Internet access
    
  • Growth of economic cooperation – trading blocs (EU, NAFTA, etc.)
    
  • Collapse of 'communism'
    
  • Movement to free trade
    
• Benefits of Trade:
  
  • Increased choice
    
  • Greater potential for growth
    
  • Increase international economies of scale
    
  • Greater employment opportunities
   
• Disadvantages of trade:
  
  • Increase in gap between the rich and the poor
    
  • Dominance of global trade by the rich, northern hemisphere countries
    
  • Lack of opportunities for the poor to be able to have access to markets
    
  • Exploitation of workers and growers
    
•           Corporate Expansion
  
•           Multi-national or trans-national corporations (MNCs or TNCs) – businesses        within one country but with business operations in a number of others.
• Characteristics:
  
  • Expanding revenue
    
  • Lowering costs
    
  • Sourcing raw materials
    
  • Controlling key supplies
    
  • Control of processing
    
  • Global economies
    of scale
    
• Corporate Domination
  
• Key Issues:
  
  • Damage to the environment?
    
  • Exploitation of labour?
    
  • Monopoly power
    
  • Economic degradation
    
  • Non-renewable resources
    
  • Damage to culture.
   
•         Other Issues:
  
•       Accountability of Global businesses?
  
•      Increased gap between rich and poor fuels potential terrorist reaction
  
•      Ethical responsibility of business?
  
•      Efforts to remove trade barriers.
  
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•      Is Globalization a Good Thing?
  
• At its core globalization is an easing of borders, making them less important as countries become dependent on each other to thrive.
  
•  Let's look at the positives and negatives of globalization, and you can decide for yourself whether or not it is the best thing for our world.
   
• Positive Aspects of Globalization
  
• As more money is poured in to developing countries, there is a greater chance for the people in those countries to economically succeed and increase their standard of living.
  
• Global competition encourages creativity and innovation and keeps prices for commodities/services in check.
  
• Developing countries are able to reap the benefits of current technology without undergoing many of the growing pains associated with development of these technologies.
   
• Governments are able to better work together towards common goals now that there is an advantage in cooperation, an improved ability to interact and coordinate, and a global awareness of issues.
  
• There is a greater access to foreign culture in the form of movies, music, food, clothing, and more. In short, the world has more choices.
  
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• Negative Aspects of Globalization
  
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• There is little international regulation, an unfortunate fact that could have dire consequences for the safety of people and the environment.
  
• Large Western-driven organizations such as the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank make it easy for a developing country to obtain a loan. However, a Western-focus is often applied to a non-Western situation, resulting in failed progress.
   
• Outsourcing, while it provides jobs to a population in one country, takes away those jobs from another country, leaving many without opportunities.
  
• Although different cultures from around the world are able to interact, they begin to meld, and the contours and individuality of each begin to fade.
  
• There may be a greater chance of disease spreading worldwide, as well as invasive species that could prove devastating in non-native ecosystems.