Kara Rice

Globalization and Me

2/13/2017

There are many notable pros and cons to globalization. For instance, the spread of

technology means that people can share information, ideas, and scholarly work from across the

globe. Without this type of globalization I would not be able to attend graduate school and

educate myself as a distance learner. Similarly, creating this global network of ideas can also

create a global market for products and goods that can reach even the most rural of villages. A

global market can change everything about a local economy in different ways. Last weekend, I

watched a documentary about sushi on Netflix. While I thought it would be a simple

documentary about the history of sushi, it turned out to expose the changing climate of the global

market for sushi and the increasing demand for specific types of fish that are being threatened in

the wild by overfishing. Not only did this change the way I thought about eating my favorite

sushi rolls, it also made me start thinking about issues in globalization much more. What many

people do not realize about globalization and a global market is that it inherently changes local

economies and even echo systems. The oil industry for instance has drastically started to change

our planet. While global warming is changing many civilizations around the globe, the collection

of oil is just as dangerous. As noted by Patty Bode: Following this arterial awareness of

learning, knowledge, and oil consumption emphasizes that my personal carbon that my personal

carbon responsibilities (and yours) are intertwined with the environmental contamination by

global oil production and its effects on the cultural sustenance of the indigenous people of

Ecuadors Amazon region, specifically the Secoya people. (Bode, 2009, p. 269). In other words,
the people who do not utilize the perks of global oil consumption are often the ones who are

negatively impacted by it the most.

Although the sharing of ideas and culture is a notable improvement to living separate

existences, there is a notable amount of negatives about not only sharing ideas, but sharing

cultures. First and most notable is that there is an obvious dominant culture when sharing is

taking place. This dominant culture tends to be the more developed or wealthy culture. Pushing

out aspects of the less dominant culture and having a near extension like effect on the minority

cultures less popular traits. While this is happening, the desirable traits of the minority culture

can be subjected to the tourist trade or even a global demand, thus changing the way art and

culture evolves in that culture forever. Often art and culture is altered to fit some sort of demand.

As a result of the tourist trade, the Bush Negro people have changed the artistic designs on the

objects that are made and sold to tourists to reflect ordinary perceived exoticism without the

symbolic meanings that were traditionally designed on their objects (Jiesamfoek, 2009, p. 30).

The native culture is not always the culture of indigenous bush people who live traditional lives.

Often Western tastes dictate highly developed nations that were once the height of civilization.

For instance, Indeed, the elitist, colonial, socialist, nationalist, and internationalist cosmopolitan

histories of modern art continue to shape the Egyptian art world today (Winegar, 2006, p. 176).

Although, the reach of dominant world culture can change how other cultures interact in the art

world, there are many other aspects to how the lives of many are impacted by global reach.

Second is the environmental impact, often imposed by the dominant foreign culture due to a

demand for a commodity found in the region such as oil or precious metals. Bode Curriculum in

U.S. schools is in dire need for education about the specific impact of oil production and
consumption on human life, especially in indigenous communities (Bode, 2009, p. 275). In

other words, changing the way we think about global oil consumption starts with education.

While education is one of the best ways to start changing the way we think about oil

consumption and the global effects it has, there are many other ways that are already taking place

in our society today. The combination of both pros and cons of globalization can result in an

interesting turn of events. For instance, the coverage at standing rock has been broadcasted

across the world with social media and traditional media sources. Although similar events to

Standing Rock and the Dakota Access Pipeline are happening across the globe, the use of

technology and social media has made the Standing Rock issue a common conversation.

Indigenous people have sounded the call and people across the globe are answering in person

and watching on social media (Varenchik, 2016). While many flocked to the site of Standing

Rock to defend the water supply of millions, others utilized social media to spread the word.

While this is a surprisingly common issue among indigenous tribes, as mentioned by Bode

above, it is still not surprising that media coverage does not take place for these small rural

groups of people. While globalization is causing harm to these groups of people as the quest for

oil exempt from the conflicts in the middle east continue, the coverage of social media on

account of these groups tries to rectify a solution and clear moral choice.

In closing, there are many important aspects of globalization that are often overlooked in

our everyday lives. Due to the fact that our Western developed culture is heavily reliant on

importing goods and resources from other nations and technology, we often do not even realize

that nearly every aspect of our daily lives can be traced back to global roots or have a global

impact. Everything from our food, transportation, fuel, and clothing all have some sort of global
impact. Even our social lives have become part of a global community. While many of these

things promote an educated world view and economy that benefits countless groups of people,

there are often overlooked aspects to how far our global reach is.

References

Bode, P. (2009). The circulatory system of oil contamination, visual culture, and Amazon
indigenous life. In E. M. Delacruz, A. Arnold, M. Parsons, and A. Kuo, (Eds.),
Globalization, art, and education (pp. 269-277). Reston, VA: National Art Education
Association.

Jiesamfoek, H. (2009). Effects of globalization on the arts practices of the Bush Negro people of
Suriname. In E. M. Delacruz, A. Arnold, M. Parsons, and A. Kuo, (Eds.), Globalization,
art, and education (pp. 27-34). Reston, VA: National Art Education Association.

Varenchik J. (2016). Answering the Call at Standing Rock. Retrieved from

http://www.equalvoiceforfamilies.org/answering-the-call-standing-rock-and-protecting-
people-worldwide/?gclid=CjwKEAiAz4XFBRCW87vj6-
28uFMSJAAHeGZbmnAynPHejtqGRmSqcwmf0jENcgbiEklmAac9NgZrxRoC4nHw_wcB
Winegar, J. (2006).Cultural Sovereignty in a Global Economy. Retrieved October 24,
2016, from http://www.jstor.org/stable/3651602