REDEFINING GLOBALIZATION and THE PROSPECT OF GLOBAL ENVIRONMENT

REVIEW COSMO 1, March 22nd 2010

REDEFINING GLOBALIZATION and THE PROSPECT OF GLOBAL ENVIRONMENT
Gracia Paramitha, 070710415

Overview from the article and class
In historical perspective, globalization had obviously happened a long time ago, even before Christ (BC). However, the specific chronology of globalization has been interpreted controversially. According to Alex H. Gillvray, from the article “A Brief History of Globalization” chapter 1, there are three unsterile history of globalization, such as:
a. the synchronoptic tale in sixth century BC then continued through the Gleneagles Summit of the G8 in July 2005  from 1492 until the rise of Adam Smith paradigm (1776);
b. Mark Kurlansky said that the beginning of globalization has started from 1968  there are fascinating case about people with TV-watching, college occupying radical peaceniks from US and Paris to Mexico and Prague. As the result, there’s occurred new post-war generation, shocking shrinking of the globe. “We always await a new breakthrough every day and every minute”, Mark argues
c. Thomas Friedman, New York Times journalist, argues that the key stage of globalization has started in the year of 2000 (millennium era)  a package of modern information and communication technologies, like: Windows, internet, web browsers, open source software, has blended widely by the fall of Berlin Wall.
Despite of the debatable arguments, Alex H. Gillvray has divided and identified 5 main globalization decades over the past five centuries, such as: the Iberian carve-up (1490-1500); the Britannic meridian (1880-1890); Sputnik World (1955-1965); the global supply-chain (1995-2005); and the thermo-globalization. In each decade, there are also five influential factors, like: commercial, social, financial, cultural, and technological.
Frankly speaking, the word of globalization has also developed as biographic word. It’s not really wrong that globalization is same with imperialism, colonization, and Americanization. In fact, the earliest use “global” was first started in 1892. (Monsieur de Vogue, Harper’s Magazine) It’s also proved by Barry Buzan and Richard Little that internationalism (evolution of mankind) has been used to be a “global” word since the six century BC. It’s grown significantly in late nineteenth century as well of the Anglobalization (Niall Ferguson); French block of word: laissez-faire economics, pommes frites, the passport, FIFA and the Olympics, Minitel, Louis Vuitton; the culture and nation of Mongol, Islamic, Chinese, Dutch, Irish. The twentieth century tried to use the term of “global” base on Oxford English Dictionary in 1920s. In 1940-1950, it’s taken up to describe ‘new global warfare’ or ‘global bombers’. In the early of 1960, the term modialization has appeared as well as globalization. Worldization then replaced it, which derived from soundtrack film “American Graffiti (1973)”. Global village also appeared but competed with the rise of Multinational Corporation in 1995 (Nike, Shell, etc). No wonder if in 2000, globalization is the usual and common word that has been transform easily and practically. But, the worse result and effect have always impact to the structural condition, especially for the environment.
After understanding the various history and biographic word of globalization, there are many ways to define globalization. It’s multitude of interpretations that can be changed permanently. Bill Clinton said that globalization is world without walls, while George W. Bush said that it’s ties of trade and trust. Joseph Stiglitz, ex-World Bank Economist argued that globalization is specifically focus on the removal of barriers to free trade and the closer integration of national economies. Globalized economic system (trade and finance) has dominated supranational governance or even democracy. Manfred Steger told that globalization is multidimensional set of worldwide social interdependencies, exchange, and deepening connections between local and distant. According to the Oxford English Dictionary, globalization means global authority which refocus on the geographical scope of the word “globe”. While the Roland Robertson, sociologist and theorist of globalization, argued that the most interesting aspect of our modern (or postmodern) era is the way in which a global consciousness has developed. He lays down a progression of "phases" that capture the central aspects of different eras in global history, asserting that we have entered the fifth phase, that of Global Uncertainty. (Roland Robertson, 1992)
In spite of their different and various opinion of globalization, there are two basic types of definition: tight economic definition and broader social definition. It also can be global scope of globalization which must be added with pedantic global intent  the world encompassing mental process that began with Pythagoras in the 5th century BC and reached culmination with the sea voyage of Columbus and da Gama. Globalization is certainly multitude of definitions, which the terms are scope (be a global) and intent (to motivize). In other words, it supposed to know and understand how much, where, who, and why the globalization occurred. (Alex. H. Gillvray, 2000:7)

Personal Opinion
Regarding from the meaning of globalization above, I stand positive to Thomas Friedman arguments. As he wrote The World is Flat: A Brief History of The Twenty-First Century in 2005, there are 10 flatteners that simply identified the ‘new globalization’, such as: Collapse of the Berlin Wall– 11/9/89: the end of the Cold War which continuously join in economic mainstream (1); Netscape– 8/9/95: Web broadened the audience for the Internet which prominently used by "early adopters and geeks" (2); Workflow software: mechanical system which work for and by the machine (3); Open Source Communities: uploading, blogging, and Wikipedia (4); Outsourcing: allowed companies to split service and manufacturing activities into components which performed in the most efficient, cost-effective way (5);Offshoring: The internal relocation of a company's manufacturing to a foreign land(6); Supply-chain: compares the modern retail supply chain to a river(7); Insourcing: Friedman uses UPS as a prime example for insourcing (8); In-forming: Google and other search engines are the prime example (9); and The Steroids: Personal digital devices like mobile phones, iPods, personal digital assistants, instant messaging, and voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP).
However, the more sophisticated technology is the more complicated risks and multi effect happen. As I wrote my title above, I would like to give some critics to Friedman’s concept by reconstructing its perception into global environment problems. Here are the five proposition that challenge globalization and global environment:
1. The rapid acceleration in global economic activity and our dramatically increased demands for critical, finite natural resources undermine our pursuit of continued economic prosperity.
2. The linked processes of globalization and environmental degradation pose new security threats to an already insecure world. They impact the vulnerability of ecosystems and societies, and the least resilient ecosystems. The livelihoods of the poorest communities are most at risk.
3. The newly prosperous and the established wealthy will have to come to terms with the limitations of the ecological space in which both must operate, and also with the needs and rights of those who have not been as lucky.
4. Consumption—in both North and South—will define the future of globalization as well as the global environment.
5. Concerns about the global market and global environment will become even more intertwined and each will become increasingly dependent on the other.
In conclusion, I would like to illustrate that globalization is like the new plant in the old soil or reborn of the plant. The fundamental concept of globalization has still remained as ‘beyond the space’ but the operational and technical phrase has always developed progressively and significantly. However, the new one doesn’t always get beneficial impact. Normally, it would have controversial effect, dualism perspective, or even multi complicated risks. That’s why globalization must be redefined, reborn, and reconstructed, even reformed as the renewable system, as well the renewable global environment. Each norms, values, controls, compliance, and ethics should be affected to the transformation of globalization. Globalization could stand aside nationalism, fundamentalism, and cosmopolitanism. It depends on the situation and portion of values. Hence, the sustainable development could be established properly.


REFERENCES:
Buzan, Barry and Little, Richard. 2000. International Systems in World History: Remaking the Study of International Relations. Oxford University Press
Friedman, Thomas. 2005. The World is Flat: A Brief History of The Twenty-First Century, from http://www.thomaslfriedman.com/bookshelf/the-world-is-flat. Accessed on March 21st, 2010
Gillvray, Alex. H. 2000. A Brief History of Globalization
Najam,Adil et al. 2007. Environment and Globalization: Five Propositions. International Institute for Sustainable Development
Robertson, Roland. 1992. Globalization: Social Theory and Global Culture