Globalization facts for kids
Globalization is the way that local or national ways of doing things become global, that is, done together around the world. It is about economics or trade, technology, politics, and culture. People feel differently about globalization: some think it helps everyone while others think it hurts some people.
Definition
It describes the way countries and people of the world interact and integrate. Globalization has many sides and can be economic, political and/or cultural.
Economic globalization is how countries are coming together as one big global economy, making international trade easier. In the late 20th century, many countries agreed to lower tariffs, or taxes on goods that are imported from other countries. The way Internet and other communication technologies makes it easier for people to buy and sell products from around the world is an example of globalization. Herman E. Daly has said that there is an important difference between internationalization and globalization. Internationalization is about nations working together for the same goals. These are things like treaties, alliances, and other international agreements. Globalization is about international trade being less obstructed by national borders.
Political globalization is how institutions and countries can influence the whole world. The United Nations are an example of globalization because most countries of the world are members of its General Assembly. This international organization can make countries follow rules and apply economic sanctions to a country that doesn't. This means the countries in the U.N will punish them by not talking or trading with them so they don't benefit from globalization.
Cultural globalization is how culture is becoming homogeneous, which means that people from all over the world act in similar way. For example, many people around the world write with the Latin alphabet, wear T-shirts and jeans and watch Hollywood movies and other media.
Criticism
Some people, like Noam Chomsky, do not like globalization because they feel it only helps rich people get richer by making poor people poorer. Offshore outsourcing, where companies hire workers in cheaper countries, is often a part of globalization. This sometimes means that some people lose their jobs. Joseph Stiglitz said that international groups like the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) have made it harder for poorer nations to get richer. Globalization also means that problems from other countries will affect your country. For example the Global Financial Crisis of 2008 started in the United States but ended up affecting the entire world.
Many countries also dislike it when international organizations tell them what to do. However they have to do so because of sanctions. Many people also criticize the fact that globalization means that fewer people are deciding what happens to everyone when they don't always represent the people they're acting for.
Some critics of globalization also feel that it leads to global brands, like Coca-Cola and McDonald's, taking over smaller, local shops and businesses. They criticize the fact that powerful countries have bigger influence on world culture than others. For example, the United States is the biggest cultural exporter, which means that countries around the world are becoming like the United States. However, this hurts local cultures. Jean Baudrillard believes that globalization hurts local cultures and is the cause of most terrorism. He also believes that most supporters of globalization just want to stay in power.
Support
Others, like Thomas Friedman, believe that globalization can bring people together and make everyone richer without getting rid of local cultures. People who support globalization also believe that it makes war less likely because it is bad for business. Francis Fukuyama also argued that globalization would eventually lead to a system of world governance which would cause wars to end.
Many believe that globalization helps out poorer nations by bringing them business. A report by the World Bank said that poverty in India and Indonesia was cut in half because of globalization. The report also said that people in poorer nations are living longer and better because they were making more money.
Related pages
Images for kids
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Portuguese carrack in Nagasaki, 17th-century Japanese Nanban art
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The Silk Road in the 1st century
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Lisbon in the 1570s had many Africans
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The 1843 launch of the Great Britain, the revolutionary ship of Isambard Kingdom Brunel
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During the 19th and early 20th centuries, the United Kingdom was a global superpower.
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D.H. Comet, the world's first commercial jet airliner, entered service in 1949
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With a population of 1.4 billion, China is the world's second-largest economy.
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U.S. Trade Balance and Trade Policy (1895–2015)
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Dividends worth CZK 289 billion were paid to the foreign owners of Czech companies in 2016.
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Shakira, a Colombian multilingual singer-songwriter, playing outside her home country
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McDonald's is commonly seen as a symbol of Globalization, often called McDonaldization of global society
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Use of chili pepper has spread from the Americas to cuisines around the world, including Thailand, Korea, China, and Italy.
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Scheduled airline traffic in 2009
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2010 London Youth Games opening ceremony. About 69% of children born in London in 2015 had at least one parent who was born abroad.
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The global digital divide: Computers per 100 people
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The European Union–Mercosur free trade agreement, which would form one of the world's largest free trade areas, has been denounced by environmental activists and indigenous rights campaigners.
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Hu Jintao of China and George W. Bush meet while attending an APEC summit in Santiago de Chile, 2004
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As of 2017, there were 2,754 U.S. dollar billionaires worldwide, with a combined wealth of over US$9.2 trillion.
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Of the factors influencing the duration of economic growth in both developed and developing countries, income equality has a more beneficial impact than trade openness, sound political institutions, and foreign investment.
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Worlds regions by total wealth (in trillions USD), 2018
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Barack Obama and Dmitry Medvedev after signing the New START treaty in Prague, 2010
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Anti-TTIP demonstration in Hannover, Germany, 2016
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World Bank Protester, Jakarta, Indonesia
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Differences in national income equality around the world as measured by the national Gini coefficient, as of 2018.
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Countries by total wealth (trillions USD), Credit Suisse
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Global share of wealth by wealth group, Credit Suisse, 2017
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Immigrant rights march for amnesty, Los Angeles, on May Day, 2006
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Deforestation of the Madagascar Highland Plateau has led to extensive siltation and unstable flows of western rivers.
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See also
In Spanish: Globalización para niños
