The Globalization of Environmental Dangers

 The Globalization of Environmental Dangers

 

 

Mari Khotivrishvili

Research Fellow of the Center for International Studies 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Contents

 

Introduction. 1

Globalization as a Political, Economic and Legal Process. 2

Historical Passage about Globalization and Its Advantages. 3

The Impact of Globalization. 4

Understanding the Environment and Its Dangers. 5

The Connection between Globalization and Environmental Dangers. 7

Analysis and Summary. 9

References: 11

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Introduction

 

Globalization is a phenomenon which can be analyzed as a process that has encompassed global scale in political, economic, social, cultural and environmental spheres. Globalization is a global fact or continuing process which can be witnessed and analyzed through different angles, starting from political sphere, economics, social aspects, cultural part is nevertheless important, technology, and, what is more central, environment has also come on stage as a sphere which needs to be paid attention to.

Starting from the twentieth century, the effects of globalization can be felt in different parts of the world, by different peoples and cultures but with the same processes. For example, one can take the First and the Second World Wars as global conflicts which brought effects to the whole world. It encompassed continents of Europe, Asia, North America, Australia, had effects on African and Latin American continents as well. Similarly, one can bring Cold War, which was confrontation between two major powers or superpowers – the United States and the USSR. The conflict between the two sides was the war of not only these two, but it was a conflict between two worlds – two differing political ideologies, economic systems, social and cultural understandings and so on. So it, again, covered the global scale and had its influence on global world and not only two countries or their blocs.

Globalization as a process and as a consequence leads to higher interaction among populations of the world. This process makes easier to exchange cultural values, ideas, traditions which are essential part of cultural representation of peoples. As a political process, globalization creates more clarity what certain political ideologies stand for. For instance, democracy is seen as a model of system which is adopted by the West and developed countries and carries the character of liberalism and personal freedoms. In comparison, dictatorial regime which is in North Korea, for instance, is absolutely different from it; or Chinese communist system which is strictly expressed in politics. We can compare these systems with the help of globalization – we can assume what happens in North Korea in case of freedom of expression and calculate what kind of harsh methods will be followed if one dares to express his or her opinion openly; in difference, in democratic systems, the feature of freedom of expression is one of the most important fundaments. So globalization makes it clearer and more visible what certain political ideologies and systems stand for.

 

 

 

 

 

Globalization as a Political, Economic and Legal Process

 

The role of international or regional and interregional organizations in the process of globalization is also vital. Several examples can be brought, for example the United Nations, or the UN, has been an international acting player since its birth on October 24^th of 1945. It has been actively engaged in political processes around the world and has rights and powers which make it truly powerful organization. For instance, without the permission of the Security Council and its veto countries, a state cannot interfere in matters of another state, unless the UN gives permission and unless there are the cases of ethnic cleansing, genocide, war crimes or crimes against humanity. Adding to the fact that UN has 193 members, its features are truly all-encompassing.

European Union, which was developed since the first idea of the Coal and Steel Community back in 1951, now plays an important political role in the region and continent of Europe. Its leading member states like Germany and France are the ones which decide much on political matters and have influence not only in European sphere but have say on international arena as well.

In economic sense, globalization has played its role in promoting capitalist ideology and laissez-fare economy. Capitalism and free market economy, which have been adopted by western and developed states, claimed to be guarantee for strong economy of the state, economic development and welfare. Even China, after being communist since the formation of People’s Republic of China in 1949, had to adopt capitalist economic ideas in order to survive with high demand and needs and wants of its large population.

Globalization also fostered the understanding of human rights, basic rights and freedoms of people and the international law is justification of that.

International Human Rights Law protects human rights in domestic, regional and international arenas. United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights which was ratified in 1948 is an international document under the UN umbrella. Another example can be Geneva Conventions which set rules for conflicts and how to behave in an armed conflict.

So, as a political, economic and legal process, globalization has been an important influencing factor in shaping the world in these three spheres as it is now.

 

 

 

Historical Passage about Globalization and Its Advantages

 

Historically, we can bring several points in human development where elements or forms of globalization were seen and practiced. The ancient Silk Road was a trade route which connected the West and the East. This trade was not only about economics, it encompassed cultural, political and religious exchanges and interconnections in the second century BC covering countries like Chinese Empire, India, Persia, Arabic peninsula and connecting to Europe. Route via water also connected Indian Ocean with the Mediterranean Sea and encompassed Eastern part of African continent as well.

Another important stage came with the Great Discoveries or the Age of Discovery in the early fifteenth century which continued until early seventeenth century. In this significant period, strong and powerful European states and empires sent their ships for search of new roads of trade, new lands and explorations which themselves would bring more power, resources, luxury like gold and silver, new foods and spices to them. The infamous discoveries by Columbus, Vasco da Gama, Bartholomeu Dias, Magellan, Cook and others can be mentioned as significant determinates for spreading and interconnecting political views, ideologies, cultural visions and so on.

Another nevertheless important effect which globalization brought and through which globalization can be seen is industrialization and urbanization.

The rapid industrialization is a significant result since the period of Industrial Revolution during which countries globally and especially Europe and North America experienced massive urbanization, which brought more jobs and development of trade. The transformation from agricultural form of living and economy towards manufacturing was characteristic to industrialization. Even though it caused criticism and got harsh reaction from Marx and gave fundament to Marxism later, still, industrialization played important role as development of Europe and later, other continents like Asia and South America also started to adopt patterns of industrialization.

Today, one can say that China tries to industrialize Africa and invests there, for their interests too. In 2017, according to the China Africa Research Initiative (2020), trade between Africa and China cost around $185 billion and since 2005 the value of Chinese companies and businesses in Africa are worth more than $2 trillion. Another interesting fact is that China has been planning to revive the Ancient Silk Road via Belt and Road Initiative which can become future form of globalization as well.

 

 

The Impact of Globalization

 

Even being positive in many terms such as social, technological, digital, transport development and so on, on the other hand, there are disadvantages which are brought by globalization as well.

One of notable disadvantages is the so-called domino effect (Fernando, 2020) of economic hardships. For instance, if one country and more importantly big and influential one has economic hardship then its effects will be felt worldwide. The pure example is the 2008 financial crisis which started early in the United States and eventually spread to the whole world and brought global economic crisis. Especially, European countries like Spain, Greece, and Portugal had most severe results. All of them are member states of the EU which itself had negative outcome on the European Union wholly as an organization and region likewise.

The role of large companies and brands in the process of globalization has to be mentioned in this regard as well. Sometimes, globalization can be viewed as “Coca-Colization” or ”McDonaldization” for their effect and massive spread as well. Other influential companies like Nike, Nestle, and Starbucks are holding the largest stacks in business industries. However, they can fit nations and states according to own sense of cultural understanding of that country and nation as such which may go under the term of “Glocalization”.

Globalization, on the other hand, is directly linked to the environment as its effects are straightforwardly reflected on natural environment. Firstly, globalization has caused high consumption of products or goods and services. Logically, if one wants to produce more, more sources are needed. These sources therefore are taken from nature. It also causes shortage of food and especially healthy food and that is why genetic food now replaces much of natural food which negatively reflects on our health as well.

In order to better understand the effects of globalization let us introduce the understanding and analysis of environment itself.

 

 

 

Understanding the Environment and Its Dangers

 

Natural environment cannot only be understood as just ecological or physical environment that is surrounding us. Environment is an all-encompassing concept and we should understand that is contains all living and non-living things and creatures which are natural and not human-made or artificial. Namely, environment includes climate, earth, water in forms of oceans, seas, rivers, lakes and other types, whole flora and fauna with wildlife and all creatures living under water, energy and its types like solar or wind energy, the habitat and living areas of animals and plants and the list can be prolonged.

Environment, at the same time, can be understood as a natural surrounding which has served the Earth as a fundamental bloc for life. Environment is the foremost resource which has been used by the humanity and this usage and its effects are the outcomes which we are witnessing now.

It is not news that environment has many problems and we feel them on every step of our life. Air pollution, shortage of water and food, plastic in oceans and seas, deforestation, biodiversity and thinning of the ozone layer are just a few of lots of issues which can be named.

According to environmental platform of Britannica (2020), the four most important environmental problems are pollution, water crisis, global warming and biodiversity loss. To be more precise, data and statistics are not hopeful.

WHO (2020) suggests that seven million deaths annually are ascribed to be the result of polluted air; accordingly, stroke, heart disease and lung cancer are effects of indoor and outdoor air pollution. Asia is not surprisingly the most polluted continent with India being the leader. Again, according to WHO (2020) out of 30 most polluted cities globally 21 are Indian. In 2016 as it is accounted, at least 140 million persons living in India breathed the air which was tenfold over the safe standard.

Food waste is another alarming issue. In developed countries food waste happens at the levels of consumerism and throwing what can actually be used as food.

Another significant topic is biodiversity. Biodiversity is the fundamental factor in preserving the Earth climate, flora and fauna and biodiversity loss can lead to crucially devastating results in near future. According to the WWF and Britannica (2020), the population of all mammals, birds, reptiles, fish and amphibian taken together has seen the reducing line as a percentage of 68% just between 1970 and 2016. Even though the period may seem long, the percentage is still too much and too high. Their population has declined more than half which is a devastating number. The biggest effect from here is felt by the wild animals and fish such as species of sharks, seahorses and rare birds and reptiles who are just a few in numbers. Tiger is also under danger, rhinos and other endemic and exotic animals are in the list as well.

Britannica (2020) also suggests that many scientists, biologists and environmentalists claim that the sixth mass extinction is going to happen soon or is even happening right now. More than five hundred species of animals on land are under the danger of being extinct and quite soon, within twenty years it is likely to happen. Similar number was lost just in the course of twentieth century and much of its reason is undoubtedly attributed to the activities of humans, poaching, illegal trade and so forth.

It will not be an exaggeration to say that water is the resource which makes the world alive. When we talk about water, plastic pollution is major problem which has to be underlined. The Nature (2020) suggests that just in 1950 more than two million tons of plastic annually was produced globally; and just by 2015, the number swelled to 419 million tons of plastic every year. Also, 91% of plastic produced ever, has not been recycled. Re-usage and recycle is one of the core components for bringing hope for future, but when it does not happen, it will surely cause harsh problems in near future. Even if we just analyze that plastic needs 400 years to be mouldered and destroyed, then we should truly think of dangers of what it means when it is not used properly and is not recycled.

The shortage of water is a global problem with its only 1% being usable to drink. Africa is the dry continent which in most of its part does not have access to water and especially, clean water. Water is not renewable resource; it has its limits and we have to think wisely about it, because water has created much of the world as it is; the water itself contributed to birth of humanity and civilizations.

According to Ostle, et al (2019), eleven million tons of plastic go to oceans annually. This is a catastrophic number which directly hits fish and other inhabitants of seas and oceans, harms wildlife, water quality and underwater space. Future theoretical prospects and predictions are not hopeful, so the only solution lies in our own actions and restrictive measures which we have to take as soon as possible.

Transportation is the thing the effects of which can be felt even without any kind of knowledge or discussion. The amount of carbon dioxide and fuel is disastrous, especially when it comes to Asian countries like India again. Millions of factories worldwide, especially in China and industrialized countries along with transportation with fuel contribute to problems like heart disease and causes shorter life.

Global warming, just to be generally mentioned, is the process which is characterized by high temperature, creation of deserts, rise of sea levels and other consequences which in all lead to global environmental negative effects worldwide.

So these major environmental issues like air, water and land pollution, biodiversity loss, global warming and climate change, along with crucial problems like deforestation, genetically modified foods, too much plastic - all contribute to the environmental dangers and have connection to globalization.

 

 

The Connection between Globalization and Environmental Dangers

 

The connection between globalization and environmental dangers is that, first of all, globalization brought wider awareness and understanding of environmental problems and need for their solution. Globalization brought countries and nations all around the world to come together and think of these global problems which are common and similar for everyone in the world.

Kyoto Protocol can be brought as a clear example. The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change was extended by the international Kyoto Protocol back in 1992 which concentrated on reducing gas emissions and the issue of global warming. The agreement was adopted in 1997 and came into force in 2005 with 192 parties to the Protocol (UN, 2020).

Consequently, Paris Agreement was signed in 2016 with 195 signatories and 189 parties encompassing European, American, Asian continents which show the unity of countries in the environmental issues. The international conventions and agreements can be followed as such: Asia-Pacific Partnership on Clean Development and Climate encompassing India, China, the US, South Korea, Australia, Canada and Japan. The so-called CITES or Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora treaty protects animals and plants which are under danger. It was adopted back in 1963 and entered in force in 1975 (UN, 2020).

The United Nations Conference on the Human Environment since its first meeting in Stockholm in 1972 has been actively engaged in environmental issues and their solution (Britannica, 2020).

Undoubtedly, the United Nations has much to do about environmental problems. UNEP is the UN Environment Program which works on platforms for biodiversity, climate and does much for sustainable development. MDGs and SDGs have environmental issues as their priority to solve, like clean water and sanitation, climate action, life on land or life below water can be named as several examples.

The so-called famous “Earth Summit” or the UN Conference on Environment and Development which was held in Rio de Janeiro in 1992 brought wider understanding to the public about Earth and its problems. For instance, Framework Convention on Climate Change, Rio Declaration on Environment and Development, the Rio Declaration, Convention on Biological Diversity can be named as several. The Agenda 21 is directly connected with the sustainable development and SDGs (UN, 2020).

It all shows that international society has become more aware due to globalization what happens in and about environment. Also, Environmentalism has higher spread and influence today because of its applicability. As Britannica (2020) suggests, environmentalism itself is a movement or ideology which tries to protect natural environment with the help and actions of humans. It, according to environmentalists, can be done by measures adopted by governments, organizations like NGOs or environmental organizations and sections which need to be more strengthened in international arenas.

Green parties also play significant role in this case. Green parties have better management and activism in Western Europe where they have older history and better prospects and solutions for future as well. Die Grünen (The Greens) for example, was elected in Bundestag in 1983 which underlines the fact that even in early 1980s Green ideology was already coming to social and political surface in Western Europe. Again, as Britannica (2020) provides, the European Green Party works as a federation united by the green ideology of political parties in Europe. Under the great think tank Green European Foundation, European Green Party plays prominent role in spreading green ideology and has high activism in European Parliament and European Union as a whole organization as well.

So in this sense, globalization brings more general, global awareness to the public about environmental dangers and creates more sense for common goals as environmental issues are global and are not issues of only certain countries.

 

 

Analysis and Summary

 

In all, we have witnessed the rise and spread of globalization as a uniting factor among various countries, nationalities, their cultures as well as uniting and raising the consciousness about problems which are global. Environment and globalization are interconnected to each other.

Solution is firstly in education, consciousness and awareness. Citizens at early age should get information at home, kindergarten and later school, about environment and its dangers. Government should also try to be more restrictive in some parts – pollution can be better and strictly controlled, plastic production can be reduced and so on.

Everything has its good and bad, positive and negative sides. On the one hand, globalization brought rapid build-up of cities, transport development, technological and digital boost, political activism, spread of cultural values, interchange of political ideologies, free market economy, democratic values and interconnections. These are some positive upheavals of humanity, however, there is another very important factor which cannot be neglected – environment. The situation of environment has been degrading with this massive architectural, technological build-up. With the creation of factories and thus, industrial development, environmental situation is degrading at the same time. This may be seen as a negative outcome of globalization. However, globalization at the same time can be used as a tool to bring awareness to wider public and whole humanity. It can be used more effectively in order to indeed see, analyze and solve the environmental dangers, because without environment humanity is not destined to survive and develop.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

References:

 

 

Afesorgbor K. Sylvanus, Demena A. Binyam, April 2018, Globalization may actually be better for the environment, available at: https://theconversation.com/globalization-may-actually-be-better-for-the-environment-95406;

 

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China Africa Research Initiative, 2021, Johns Hopkins University’s School of Advanced International Studies, data available at: http://www.sais-cari.org/data;

 

Dictionary of Merriam-Webster, Environment, available at: https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/environment;

 

Dictionary of Merriam-Webster, Globalization, available at: https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/globalization;

 

Elliott Lorraine, Encyclopaedia of Britannica, Environmentalism, Australian National University, available at: https://www.britannica.com/topic/environmentalism;

 

Encyclopaedia of Britannica, Saving Earth, online available at: https://www.britannica.com/explore/savingearth;

 

Heshmati Almas, Tausch Arno, June 2018, The Effects of Globalization on the Environment, UKH Journal of Social Sciences, pdf available at: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/326095138_The_Effects_of_Globalization_on_the_Environment;

 

Kopp M. Carol, October 2020, Globalization, Reviewed by Barnier Brian, available at: https://www.investopedia.com/terms/g/globalization.asp;

 

Ostle C, Thompson C. R., Broughton D, Gregory L, Wootton M, Johns G. D., 2019, The Rise in Ocean Plastics Evidenced from a 60-year Time Series, Nature Communications, Volume 10, article available at: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-019-09506-1;

 

United Nations Climate Change, 2020, Process and Meetings, see: https://unfccc.int/process-and-meetings;

 

World Health Organization, Environmental risks: The World Health Organization’s response, World health report, available at: https://www.who.int/whr/media_centre/factsheet4/en/.