POLITICAL DIMENSION OF GLOBALIZATION
The political dimension of globalization highlights the primacy of the modern
state system in influencing the process of globalization throughout its history.
The political dimension of globalization is described by Steger as the
"continuous intensification and expansion of political interrelations across the
globe".
It puts the perspective on the significance of discussing the concept of the
nation-state as well as its declining relevance.
Nation-state
Form of political organization and a political ideal. As a political organization, the
state is considered a political community that is composed of the essential
elements of people, territory, government, and sovereignty.
Regionalism
It pertains to states-led projects designed to reorganize a particular regional
space along defined economic and political lines.
Global Governance
A multi-level collection of governance-related activities, rules, and mechanisms,
formal and informal, public and private, exists in the world today.
Decline of Modern Nation-State
The following developments prompted a group of individuals to question the
ability of modern nation-states to lead the emerging global community: creation
of transnational economic relations, threat of environmental limits, a rise of new
social movements as well as post-militarism resulting in the reluctance of
countries to engage in wars.
Global Civil Society
It became one of the interesting areas of discussion aside from global
governance in the study of globalization.
Global Civil Society According to Leni
A structure that encompasses several associations, excluding governments,
private sector actors and families, which act transnationally.
Global Politics
Andrew Heywood commented that the end of the Cold War is considered a
major turning point in Global Politics creating a significant implication in the way
the world is arranged in recent times.
Changing Landscape of Global Politics
The conclusion of the Cold War in the latter part of the 20th century provided
the international community with a new dimension in the field of global politics.
Treaty of Westphalia
It altered the idea about primitive states and replaced it with the notion of
modern statehood.
Treaty of Versailles
It was signed after the World War 1 that continued to the support the principle
of self-determination of states.
Sovereignty
It entitles the ruling authority with the crucial power to govern its members and
territories.
COMPARISON BETWEEN THE GLOBAL NORTH AND THE GLOBAL SOUTH
The global north and south divide refers to the metaphorical arrangement of
countries in the international community. This perspective — of symbolically
classifying the world — hinges on the political and economic characteristics that
have portrayed the development of individual countries in every part of the
globe.
The Royal Geographical Society briefly described the concept of "more
economically developed" countries distinguishing between the global north and
global south.
The Brandt Line was created by the Brandt Commission to represent the world
between the rich and poor countries of the global north and vice versa. It was
only appropriate in the 1980s and recent developments have necessitated its
reconsideration due to the fact that some countries, such as the Second and
Third World, have already surpassed their condition of being underdeveloped.
GLOBAL NORTH
The global north retained its position as being the more advanced and
developed hemisphere in the world even after the collapse of the Cold War in
1991.
As discussed in several seminal papers, the global north is composed of
influential countries that have dominated the flow of goods, services, and
capitals in the past two centuries.
According to Dan Harris, Mick Moore, Hubert Schmitz (2009), the global north is
made up of rich capitalist countries that control major economic institutions and
share the same political and economic institutions to create workable economic
policies.
The countries of the global north likewise hold considerable influence over some
developing countries that can be related to their past colonial experiences.
Perhaps, the most notable attribute of the countries from the global north is
their impressive experience on development that serves until now as an
inspiration to a number of developing countries. Their path towards full
development is extraordinary and merits the attention of other developing
countries from the global south.
Global north countries enjoy higher GDP and per capita income, as well as
positive human development rates, to support the preservation of the global
environment.
Countries like Canada, United States of America, France, Germany, Australia,
United Kingdom, Spain, Japan, South Korea, and New Zealand exhibit these
characteristics and are poised to seize more developments in the coming years.
Currently, the countries of the global north are working in tandem with the
developing countries. They believed that by extending the necessary assistance
to these countries, they will be able to create a stable relationship between the
global north and global south.
GLOBAL SOUTH
The global south expanded after the end of the Cold War in 1991 with the
inclusion of several countries from the select group of Second World countries.
The collapse of the Cold War resulted in the disintegration of the Second World
countries and their eventual integration with the developing countries of the
Third World.
Harris Moore and Schmitz (2009) found that the countries of the global south
are the opposite of those from the global north.
Nour Dados and Raewyn Connell (2012) suggest that the global south refers to
the regions of Latin America, Asia, Africa, and Ocenia, which are often
marginalized by the wealthy countries of the global north. The international
community is currently poor and not capable of influencing policy decisions, as
well as having a better understanding of the process of globalization.
Siba Grovogu (2011) on the other hand argued that the global south is a
symbolic designation of the previous colonial countries engaged in the process
of establishing their relevance in the contemporary world.
The issue of inequality surrounding these countries gives them the opportunity
to find a common ground by which they can stand against the hostile actions
and policies of the developed countries from the global north. In fact, the trend
right now is that developing countries are becoming more active in international
negotiations and assuring every agreement is beneficial to both the global north
and global south.
The agreement between the global south and developed countries is that the
global north should protect the environment, as the developed countries have
contributed more pollution than the developing countries.
GLOBAL NORTH AND SOUTH DIVIDE
The global north and south divide is a key factor in understanding the social,
political, and economic differences between the two dominant hemispheres in
the contemporary world. It provides information about the dynamics of each
hemisphere and has been around for decades.
Jean Philippe Therien (1999) in fact averred that the advent of globalization
offers the global north and south divide with an alternative means of explaining
the world separated by persistent inequality and poverty.
The competing paradigms of the Bretton Woods and United Nations provide the
contemporary world with a new perspective on how globalization is influencing
the relationship between the developed and developing countries.
The Bretton Woods paradigm suggests that the gap between developed and
developing countries is slowly narrowing as a result of the World Bank (WB) and
International Monetary Fund (IMF). It also concedes that the reforms adopted by
the developing countries are gradually reducing the causes of inequality and
poverty. This provides an encouraging sign in the widening of the gap.
The UN's paradigm suggests that globalization is widening the gap between the
rich and poor countries in the long run, due to unequal distribution of
development between the developed and developing countries. Developing
countries are more vulnerable to external shocks than developed countries,
making it harder to adjust to globalization.
EFFECTS OF ECONOMIC GLOBALIZATION
Globalization decreases the cost of manufacturing. This means that companies can
offer goods at a lower price to consumers. The average cost of goods is a key aspect
that contributes to increases in the standard of living. Consumers also have access to
a wider variety of goods. In some cases, this may contribute to improved health by
enabling a more varied and healthier diet; in others, it is blamed for increases in
unhealthy food consumption and diabetes.
Downside
Globalization is not always beneficial. Each change has both winners and losers, and
those who reside in areas where jobs that were previously outsourced elsewhere
frequently suffer. This effectively means that workers in developed nations must
compete with lower-cost markets for jobs; unions and workers may not be able to
defend against the threat of corporations that offer employees the choice between
receiving lower pay or losing their jobs to a supplier in a less expensive labor market.
