At a top political and economic level, globalization is the process of denationalization of markets, politics and legal systems, i.e., the rise of the so-called global economy. The consequences of this political and economic restructuring on local economies, human welfare and environment are the subject of an open debate among international organizations, governmental institutions and the academic world. This portal does not take part in this debate or offer any information on this matter.
At a business level, we talk of globalization when companies decide to take part in the emerging global economy and establish themselves in foreign markets. First they will adapt their products or services to the final user's linguistic and cultural requirements. Then, they might take advantage of the Internet revolution and establish a virtual presence on the international marketplace with a multilingual corporate web site or even as an e-business. In the context of this portal, globalization is the process of adapting software applications and web sites, so that they are linguistically and functionally suitable for use in more than one country. Overall, globalization requires a combination of linguistic, engineering and marketing knowledge that is not easily available.
Every day new technology and strategies are developed with the goal of finding the most cost-effective and efficient globalization solution. In such a hectic field, how can I keep up-to-date? People around the globe are more connected to each other than ever before. Information and money flow more quickly than ever. Goods and services produced in one part of the world are increasingly available in all parts of the world. International travel is more frequent. International communication is commonplace. This phenomenon has been titled "globalization."
"The Era of Globalization" is fast becoming the preferred term for describing the current times. Just as the Depression, the Cold War Era, the Space Age, and the Roaring 20's are used to describe particular periods of history; globalization describes the political, economic, and cultural atmosphere of today.
While some people think of globalization as primarily a synonym for global business, it is much more than that. The same forces that allow businesses to operate as if national borders did not exist also allow social activists, labor organizers, journalists, academics, and many others to work on a global stage.
Globalization is not a phenomenon. It is not just some passing trend. Today it is an overarching international system shaping the domestic politics and foreign relations of virtually every country, and we need to understand it as such.
As thoughtful people concerned about world affairs, our job is to pick up "globalization," examine it from all sides, dissect it, figure out what makes it tick, and then nurture and promote the good parts and mitigate or slow down the bad parts.
Just as capitalism requires a network of governing systems to keep it from devouring societies, globalization requires vigilance and the rule of law.
Anti-trust laws, the Securities and Exchange Commission, labor unions, charities, the Federal Trade Commission, and countless other agencies and organizations keep American capitalism in check. Similar transparent mechanisms are needed to make sure globalization is a positive force in the world.
One can be sure that virtually every one of the 2822 academic papers on globalization written in 1998 included its own definition, as would each of the 589 new books on the subject published in that year.
Many see it as a primarily economic phenomenon, involving the increasing interaction, or integration, of national economic systems through the growth in international trade, investment and capital flows.
However, one can also point to a rapid increase in cross-border social, cultural and technological exchange as part of the phenomenon of globalization.
The sociologist, Anthony Giddens, defines globalization as a decoupling of space and time, emphasising that with instantaneous communications, knowledge and culture can be shared around the world simultaneously.
A Dutch academic, Ruud Lubbers, defines it as a process in which geographic distance becomes a factor of diminishing importance in the establishment and maintenance of cross border economic, political and socio-cultural relations
Left critics of globalization define the word quite differently, presenting it as worldwide drive toward a globalized economic system dominated by supranational corporate trade and banking institutions that are not accountable to democratic processes or national governments.
Globalization is an undeniably capitalist process. It has taken off as a concept in the wake of the collapse of the Soviet Union and of socialism as a viable alternate form of economic organisation.
David Held and Anthony McGrew write in their entry for Oxford Companion to Politics that globalization can be conceived as a process (or set of processes) which embodies a transformation in the spatial organization of social relations and transactions, expressed in transcontinental or interregional flows and networks of activity, interaction and power.
There is no agreed starting point, but considering the following helps understanding of globalization.
The first great expansion of European capitalism took place in the 16th century, following the first circumnavigation of the earth in 1519 to 1521.
There was a big expansion in world trade and investment in the late nineteenth century. This was brought to a halt by the First World War and the bout of anti-free trade protectionism that led to the Great Depression in 1930. Some see this period as an interruption to the process of globalization commenced in the late 19th century.
A sense that the world was united was generated by the establishment of the International Date Line and world time zones, together with the near global adoption of the Gregorian calendar between 1875 and 1925. During that period, international standards were also agreed for telegraphy and signaling.
The end of the Second World War brought another great expansion of capitalism with the development of multinational companies interested in producing and selling in the domestic markets of nations around the world. The emancipation of colonies created a new world order. Air travel and the development of international communications enhanced the progress of international business.
The fall of the Berlin Wall and the collapse of the Soviet Union ended the cold war between the forces of capitalism and socialism with capitalism triumphant. The development of the Internet made possible the organization of business on a global scale with greater facility than ever before.
This global trade has both advantages and disadvantages. Supporters of trade argue that it creates jobs, as the large global needs more workers to produce more goods. It has also been credited with aiding economic growth. For example, countries such as Hong Kong and Taiwan has been dramatically increased their income per person by trading globally. And some have even suggested that globalization has contributed to the spread of democracy and an increased respect for human rights. This seems logical-as individuals gain more economic power, they seek more economic power, they seek more rights politically as well.
Opponents of globalization, on the other hand, denounce global trade as causing more harm than good. They believe that it is responsible for creating poor working conditions and poverty in developing countries. Wealthy corporations open factories in poorer nations, where labor is cheaper, and often exploit these workers. The workers may face horrendously long hours and brutal conditions, for wages that are typically less than $1 per day.
It has also been claimed that global trade encourages environmental damage. Developing nations often recklessly exploit their environment, in an effort to export to the global market. Lastly, there is the worry that globalization leads to cultural degradation. Rather than producing a greater choice of products in each nation, global trade may lead to the world becoming similar. Multinational corporations promote the same products the world over. Small local companies cannot compete with the high advertising budgets and low prices of these corporations, so they drop out of the market.
The expansion of world markets through increased flows of trade and finance has created unprecedented opportunities for wealth creation, yet the human development gains have been disappointing. The benefits of globalization have been disproportionately captured by rich countries and powerful transnational companies, while poor countries and poor people have been left behind. The gap between winners and losers is widening at an alarming rate. What is needed is a system of global governance capable of narrowing this gap and distributing opportunity more widely.
Globalization asks for transboundary arrangements. But democracy (parliaments) is territory based. There is no democracy at a global level. The globalized world is a world with a strong market, but weak democracy.
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