1. Globalisation 5: The Impacts of Globalisation
3.1 Development
Globalisation 5: The Impacts of Globalisation

2. The Impacts of Globalisation
Impacts of Globalisation on a Global Scale

3. Important Terms Global City: Cultural Diffusion: Loss of Sovereignty:
a city that is judged to be a significant nodal point in the global economic system. These are major financial and decision- making centres.
Cultural Diffusion:
the process of the spreading of cultural traits from one place to another.
Loss of Sovereignty:
this results from the ceding of national autonomy to other organisations.

4. Changing world economic order
The rapid growth of NICs has brought about major changes in the economic strength of countries.
The decline in the share European countries was particularly sharp over this time period. In contrast the share of NICs (e.g. Brazil, India, China) has been very significant indeed.
In 1990 the developed world controlled about 64% of the global economy as measured by GDP. This fell to 52% by 2009.
Some countries have benefited much more than others in the changing world economic order.

5. Changing global share of GDP

7. Development of a global city hierarchy
The emergence of a network of global cities has been an important part of the process of globalisation.
The number of global cities has increased as the process of globalisation has advanced, and so has the level of competition between major cities since attracting more business creates jobs and wealth.
New York, London and Tokyo are examples of major global cities.

9. International movement of workers
In recent decades the international movement of workers has spanned a much wider range of countries than ever before.
This refers to both countries of origin and destination.
There are now over 100 million migrant workers around the world.
Migration of labour is a key feature of globalisation, but in some countries it can be a very controversial issue.

10. Global movement of commodities

11. Global movement of commodities
People around the world have a greater choice of international commodities than ever before, although in many developing countries the prices of such commodities are out of the reach of many people.
However, even though people may not have the money to purchase a commodity, they become aware of the lifestyle it attempts to portray because of advertising (again due to globalisation).
Relatively cheap products from China and other NICs have helped to keep inflation low in many developed countries and allowed far more people to buy consumer goods.

12. Increasing uniformity of the global landscape
Globalisation has undoubtedly had a significant impact on the increasing uniformity of landscapes.
Many common urban characteristics have diffused around the world.
Industrial, agricultural, tourist and transport landscapes have also become more uniform as similar processes worldwide have influenced their development.
This will result in many places losing their ‘uniqueness’.

13. Aspects of global urban uniformity

14. Environmental degradation
In many parts of the world the processes associated or stemming from globalisation such as :
industrialisation,
urbanisation,
capital intensive farming etc.
are having a devastating impact on the environment.
Major issues include:
air pollution
deforestation
land degradation and desertification
salinisation and contamination of water supplies
landscape change and
decline in biodiversity.
More trade means more transport which uses more fossil fuels and causes pollution.
Much more decisive action will need to be taken to limit the environmental impact of globalisation.

15. Cultural diffusion
The mixing of cultures is a major dimension of globalisation.
This has occurred through:
migration, which circulates ideas, values and beliefs around the world,
the rapid spread of news, ideas and fashions through the mass media, trade and travel,
the growth of global brands such as Coca-Cola and McDonald’s, which serve as common reference points,
the internet, which has allowed individual and mass communication on a scale never available before
the transport revolution, which has facilitated the mass movement of people and products around the world.

16. Development of mass tourism
Recent decades have witnessed the globalisation of international tourism.
International tourist arrivals reached just over 1 billion in 2012, over 40% higher than in 2000.
This is an average of almost 4% a year, marking it out as a high-growth industry.

17. Development of global civil society
The development of global civil society (environmental groups, protest movements, charities, trade unions etc.) has been an important aspect of the diffusion of ideas around the world.
It has spawned new networks of communication which are not government and company based.
These networks monitor the actions of governments and companies, spreading their criticisms rapidly to all those who want to take an interest.
Political protests now occur almost simultaneously in countries far apart because of the power and effectiveness of instant global communication.

18. Development of global civil society
There is a growing awareness of the negative impacts of globalisation.
People have begun to realise that globalisation can be challenged by communities supporting each other in business and society and through public protest and political lobbying.

19. The Impacts of Globalisation
Impacts of Globalisation on a National Scale

20. Loss of sovereignty
People in many countries are concerned about the apparent loss of sovereignty of nation states.
The loss of sovereignty results from the ceding of national autonomy to other organisations, such TNCs or the IMF.
The American sociologist Benjamin Barber views the changes taking place as anti-democratic and threatening the very foundations upon which the United States were built. This was a major factor during the just concluded US presidential elctions.
Within the EU, many people are concerned that individual countries have given away too many powers to the European Parliament and other EU organisations.

21. Global and religious societies
Loss of sovereignty
However, in many countries the power of national governments has also been lost to TNCs and global civil society.
Nation States
Shift of power
NGOs
Global Civil Society
TNCs
Global and religious societies

22. Loss of jobs/job security
TNCs have increased their influence in many countries and become major employers.
However, TNCs can close operations in one country and open up in another very quickly. This is a worry for governments as many jobs can be lost in major business closures.
Some governments have found it difficult to collect what they think is a fair amount of tax from TNCs. This has become an increasingly controversial issue.

23. Loss of jobs/job security
In the global economy jobs are becoming more temporary and insecure.
A survey of American workers showed that people now hold 7 to 10 jobs over their working life.

24. High levels of international migration
High levels of international migration have increased the cultural diversity in many countries, bringing advantages and disadvantages to the host country.
Disadvantage:
Tensions can arise when economic conditions are difficult and there are not enough jobs to go round.
Advantage:
For many countries the growth in international tourism has made it an important source of foreign currency and a more important source of employment.
However, an increase in tourism can have costs as well as benefits, including exploitation, stereotyping and economic dependence.

25. Increased regional tensions
As the scale of economic activity expands, increasing consumption of resources, particularly water, can cause tensions between neighbouring countries.
Competition for energy and other resources drives prices upwards, making life particularly difficult for low-income countries and the poor in higher-income countries.
As the scale of global economic activity has increased, concerns about trans-boundary pollution have grown. A major pollution incident in one country may have significant consequences in a neighbouring country.
Anti-globalisation movements have developed in many countries to voice concerns over a range of issues associated with globalisation.

26. The Impacts of Globalisation
Impacts of Globalisation on a Local Scale

27. Increased competition for local businesses
Small local businesses have found it hard to compete with major global companies and are forced to close. As a result many local areas have mounted ‘support local shops’ campaigns.
The unique character of shopping areas can be damaged if too many local shops close and valuable jobs can be lost.
replacing

28. Increased cultural diversity
The populations of many local communities have become more multicultural and in the process more culturally diverse.
For example there is a greater variety of foreign restaurants and ethnic shops today compared with 20 years ago.
In urban areas of a significant size, a number of ethnic ‘villages’ may be recognised.
However, as the world becomes more unified, diverse cultures are being ignored.

29. Increased mobility
Increased international migration might mean that families in a region are now more likely to be spread over different countries.
For younger people the motive is often to enhance career prospects and improve their quality of life, but retirement migration is also an important trend.
People are more mobile than ever before.