Globalization Discussion

Globalization refers to a trend in which the economies and cultures of countries are increasingly interconnected. Globalization has had a profound effect on the world, the likes of which are still being realized. The clearest effect is that of interconnected economies where the fortunes of one country, particularly that of a super power, have a significant effect on the fortunes of economies of other countries. A more subtle effect is that of globalized cultures, in which the sociological trends of the dominant countries (US, China) are exported through media and cultural exports. The textbook defines globalization as we know it as “the Internet, protests against the World Trade Organization (WTO), outsourcing of jobs and services, Walmart in Mexico, the dismantling of the Berlin Wall, Beyoncé selling out shows in China, and so on” (1011). Integration is one of the key terms to define globalization, which means “the process of creating a rising number of networks—political, social, economic, and cultural—that span larger sections of the globe” (1012). The world has been different due to globalization because it has changed the distribution of industries throughout the globe (1012). For example, “Asian nations in particular emerge as industrial giants and Western powers become increasingly dependent on energy resources drawn from former colonies” (1012). As you can see, globalization is something that impacts the world in both negative and positive ways and our nation as a whole would not be the same without it.