What is Globalization?

Geographers study the spatial activities of economies at different scales. In the global economy, these activities include patterns of international trade, the flow of information through communication networks, regional flows of capital and resources, and the spatial distribution of labor. Increasingly, economic processes and patterns are affected by globalization - a process by which "events, activities, and decisions in one part of the world can have significant consequences for communities in distant parts of the globe" (Haggett, 2001).

The global economy is a very complex system linking nations through the trade and flow of goods, services, and information. Geographers are interested in how globalization affects the spatial arrangement of economic services and activities; how this arrangement affects local and national economies; and how local and national economies contribute to the form and function of the global economy. They are interested in issues such as the relocation of economic activities and jobs from high-wage to low-wage countries; the role of information technologies in building electronic networks of commerce; the formation of economic blocs such as the North American Free Trade Association (NAFTA) and the European Union (EU); and the spectacular growth of newly industrialized economies, most notably in Pacific Asia.

The importance, extent, and sheer economic scale of these spatial changes, most notably during the 1970s and 1980s, took many governments and industrial enterprises by surprise. Many governments struggled to react in the face of the industrial and labor relocations that took place and to recognize that the foundations of the new economy were no longer locally or nationally based, but were now global. Likewise, private firms had to adapt by restructuring their production systems to consider the most effective and efficient means of doing business in a global market.

In this module, your team will explore questions such as: What happens to local communities when companies relocate manufacturing plants to different regions of the world? How have advancements in technology affected the pace of globalization? Do all nations benefit equally from a global economy? How does the global economy affect you - and how do your economic choices affect the lives of people in other parts of the world?