The New Generation Society

Paul Addison

Paul Addison, an NGS member reading Politics at Salford University, gives an in depth analysis of the positive changes that the New Generation can harness from globalisation.

Globalisation is often peddled as a threatening, confusing and undesirable journey into an international environment riddled with uncertainties and powerlessness. Uncertainties are plentiful in such a rapidly changing world; however it is of fundamental importance to recognise the inevitability of global interdependence, and it is from this perspective that our generation should harness the immense economic, social and cultural advances globalisation has to offer.

Opposition remains strong to the economic nature of globalisation and there exist many ironically labelled “international movements against globalisation”. However these movements tend to remain the exclusive reserve of extreme political factions and instead of obsessing over the uncertainties and doomsday scenarios it is worth focusing on the inevitable nature of globalisation and how we can shape it to the benefit of future generations.

Globalisation is the international integration of economic, cultural and social systems of the world – and its pace of development is unparalleled to that of any other phase of human history. Technology and wealth are spreading across the globe – the Internet, and the financial markets it has nurtured over the last ten years, are testament to a rapidly changing world where communication and exchange can take place in an entirely abstract environment. It is a unique moment in a planet’s history when its inhabitants wire up its innumerable parts to make one large machine – enabling them to communicate within an instant, maintain social relationships through a complex system of networks, or utilise any one of a plethora of online functions. It is this time, the time of globalisation where such inevitable and beneficial advances take place.

This is a tiny part of what has been coined by international social scientists as the “planetary phase of civilisation”. This relates to an historical transition where the world of capitalist nation states and consumerist societies transform into a world of increased global connectivity, which results in the formation of global institutions and results in mankind having a direct and collective impact on its international environment.

Globalisation, if harnessed correctly, is the key to major advancements in important areas of human need, such as health and education. The rise of free trade and free labour markets will allow for more efficient allocation of resources which will lead to lower prices, more employment and advanced productive technologies allowing for higher standards of living for those in developing countries. If we combine this with increases in wealth across the globe, there is a huge potential to advance the economic exploitation of knowledge by allowing all citizens across the globe to receive an education – thus furthering our collective advancement.

It is also this economic expansion that will result in major advancement in funding of medical research paving the way toward cures for HIV/Aids and one day Cancer – and with the global interdependence of nation states there is no reason why vital life saving treatments cannot be delivered around the world.

These things can be delivered within our lifetime, and it is our generation that has to meet the challenge; but it is only through globalisation that it can be met. Life expectancy has almost doubled in the developing world since World War II and is starting to close the gap between itself and the developed world where the improvement has been smaller. Even in Sub-Saharan Africa, the least developed region, life expectancy increased from thirty years before World War II to a peak of about fifty years before the AIDS pandemic and other diseases started to force it down to the current level of forty-seven. Between 1950 and 1999, global literacy increased from 52% to 81% of the world. Women made up much of the gap: female literacy as a percentage of male literacy has increased from 59% in 1970 to 80% in 2000. International debt is being written off to the poorest countries.

There is no reason why this trend cannot continue to eventually provide the global community with equality in heath and education. Joseph Stiglitz, a Nobel Prize winner in economics, aptly summarised that “Globalisation has reduced the sense of isolation felt in much of the developing world and has given many people in the developing countries access to knowledge well beyond the reach of even the wealthiest in any country a century ago”.

Democracy has increased dramatically from there being almost no nations with universal suffrage in 1900 to 62.5% of all nations having it in 2000. The most fundamental basis of these achievements and the potential to spread economic wealth lies in democracy and human rights, which arrives intrinsically with globalisation.

There are, of course challenges that exist which, if left untouched, could destroy any positive development of globalisation. An effective way for globalisation to move forward will be to address these challenges, whilst simultaneously strengthening world citizenship. First there exists the seemingly unavoidable paradox of expansion and environmental decline. Emissions must be reduced and new technology must be developed. China and India are rapidly expanding – with China preparing to become the biggest economic power in the world alongside incomprehensibly high emission levels. This remains an international problem with only an international solution – that will further strengthen our global citizenship. Indeed, international treaties and targets, carbon trading schemes as well as mutual technological development are already the approach that is beginning to define the way we tackle such an immense challenge.

International terrorism is spreading with a recent IISS report claiming that Islamic terrorism is on the rise with Al Qaeda maintaining 2,000 existing operatives. These beliefs are spreading and some nation states are becoming increasingly hostile. This has become an evil abstraction, existing in direct opposition to the values that globalisation offers; democracy, international wealth creation and technological advancement.

Another fundamental challenge is ensuring that a globalised future remains entirely democratic and, that as a result, wealth redistribution is equitable, fair and a priority. A careful balance must ensure that in the future 20% of the world’s population does not own 80% of its wealth, or that 225 of the richest people combined maintain the equivalent wealth to 2.5billion of the poorest people. Wealth must be created, but it must be distributed in order to stimulate further growth. It is this that will allow the entire globe to pursue educational advancement as well as major advances in healthcare.

The uncertainties of interdependence remain, but with its inevitability globalisation should be approached not with fear and hostility but as an opportunity to enrich the globe and create a world in which free trade allows for the ultimate balance of successful wealth production and redistribution. Our generation can use this powerful force to shape humankind for the better, and a positive and confident international approach will see the next hundred years as the most important we have yet to embrace.