Huntington

“A Universal Civilization? Modernization and Westernization”: 

against cultural globalization

Chua

“Why They Hate Us”

pro political globalization

Fukuyama

“ The End of History?” 

pro political globalization

Bhagwhati

“In Defense of Globalization”  

pro economic globalization

Stiglitz

“The Promise of Global Institutions”

against economic globalization

World Trade Organization WTO

An intergovernmental organization that manages worldwide trade – was created as part of the 1994 round of GATT.

International Monetary Fund IMF

Created as one of the two Bretton Woods institutions following WWII.  It’s primary role has been to lend money to developing countries to stabilize currencies

World Bank

The other Bretton Woods institution – loans money to developing countries for building infrastructure.

GATT

The General Agreement on Trade and Tariffs – a worldwide effort begun after WWII to reduce tariffs throughout the globe by the use of trade agreements and treaties

NAFTA

The North American Free Trade Agreement – a free trade agreement between the U.S., Mexico, and Canada

Emerging markets

The countries of the developing world who are adopting free market economic policies and liberal democratic principles in order to more fully participate in the global economic system

GDP/GNP

Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is the total output from within a country’s borders.  Gross National Product (GNP) is the total output of a country’s economic activity everywhere in the world.

Free flow of capital

The absence of any restrictions on the transfer of capital across national borders

Constraints on the free flow of labor

Bretton Woods

This was the Post-WWII conference of the allied world powers that established the parameters fro economic growth. It created the World Bank, the IMF, and fixed the dollar as the global currency pegged to the gold standard.

Keynesian economics

Generally understood to mean support for government intervention in the economy in order to minimize inflation and stabilize unemployment.

Deficits vs austerity

Two ways for cash strapped governments to balance their budgets – either run deficits (borrow) or reduce spending (austerity).

Expansionary policies

Economic policies aimed at stimulating economic growth

Redistribution policies

Taxation that shifts wealth from one class in society to another

Direct Foreign Investments

A private company from one country who makes an investment in another country, e.g., Toyota investing in a manufacturing plant in Georgetown, KY.

Conditionality

The insistence by the World Bank and the IMF that countries adopt specific economic and political reforms as a condition of receiving loans

Subsidies

Payments by governments to producers to in some way limit their production

Free trade

The elimination of tariffs between countries

Fair trade

Trade that doesn’t favor one country over another

World Economic Forum WEF

A large influential group of private companies that attempts to influence political and economic policy worldwide with an eye toward free markets, trade liberalization, and democracy.

Liberalization

A reduction of government intervention on markets

Competitive Advantage

Countries and/or companies that possess advantages in markets

Privatization

Private ownership of the means of production

Cultural Globalization

Increasing integration and convergence, sharing and acceptance of language, beliefs, values, religion, ideas, practices, social norms, expressions, promoting increased interdependence, through communication, technology, and contact between people.

Cultural Globalization Mechanisims

• Technology (Mass media/Internet/ Social media) and Communication                                                          
• Trade and  Multinational corporations 
• Colonialism                                            
• Education and Language                           
• Food, Fashion, Sports, Movies, (popular culture)                                                          
• Religion and mission work                       
• Aviation, Travel and Tourism                           
• International aid, medicine, adoption, 
• NGO's                                                                   
• Arts and scientific exploration

Cultural Globalization Issues

• When information is easily spread, what information is correct?                                                     
• Information leads to education, which raises expectations.                                                                           
• There are cultural claims to disputed lands.                                                                                                              
• Internal conflict can be due to cultural discrimination.                                                                                       
• Cultural discrimination can lead to restricted access to resources.                                                              
• Culture is empowering so if culture is extinguished people can lose power to self-determination.  
• Cultural imperialism and neocolonialism is the imposition of one culture over another.                        
• Culture can suffer when borders are governed by supra-national forces.                                             
• Tension between a desire to retain a cultural self-identity versus a collective society and culture.  
• Ethnocentirsm or Western arrogance - cultures that believe they are superior think they have influence and provoke animosity.                                                                                                                  
• Immigration leads to a loss of cultural identity especially among youth, refugees, and the impoverished.
• Resources can become cultural icon such as pandas in China.                                       
• Trade disputes can be cultural.

Economic Globalization

The increasing integration of national econmies into one international economy

Economic Globalization Mechanisims

• Trade
• Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) 
• Intergovernmental Organizations (IGO's) such as the U.N.                                                 
• Non-governmental organizations (NGOs) like Oxfam and Heifer International           
• The flow of technology, workers, and capital                                                                 
• Higher Education and Business Schools    
• The World Bank                                                   
• The International Monetary Fund (IMF)    
• The World Trade Organization (WTO) 
• Multinational Corporations (MNC's)

Economic Globalization Issues

• Unfair trade advantages and disadvantages including Balance of Payments, embargoes, and tariffs                                                                                                                                           Devaluation of currencies                                                                                                                      
• The increasing power of private organizations                                                                                    
• The sequencing and pacing of economic reforms (Stiglitz)                                                       
• Regional reform can cause problems in unaffected areas                                                        
• Market interdependence can lead to a snowballing decline (and other effects) 
• Exploitation of developing countries (natural resources)

Political Globalization

Increasing, shared, conviction that all people should be governed by their own consent and a rule of law.

Political Globalization Mechanisms

• Inter-Governmental Organizations (IGO's): the United Nations, The EU.                                          War and Reconsruction (military coercion) 
• Economic development                           
• Technology                                                    
• Hegemonic leadership (U.S. and Britain)                                            
• Education

Economic Globalization Issues

• Territorial struggles and sovereignity - Who defines a "state?"                                                                                   
• Who has the force of law?   There is no enforcement.     
• What about oversight and investigation of abuses?                                 
• Transparency around issues and information flows (social media)                                                              
• Changing of agencies                                            
• Capitalism and the connection to economics 
• Westernization?                                                       
• Transition wars take time and provoke counter revolution                                                                      
• religious conflict and the separation of church and state                                                                                   
• cultural obstacles educational obstacles                                                     economic antecedents (does democracy require a certain standard of living?)                                              And do some countries lack the economic resources for democracy?                                                                       
• the level of cultural commitment to democracy linking economic reform with political reform