Main Objective

The main objective of this speech is to inform about how globalization has taken place across the
countries and how it has affected politics, culture and economy, so people will be able to
understand the topic and take a stance. We will find that in many cases, it has improved aspects of
life for certain groups and has been an important factor in solving political issues. On the other
hand, it has also originated problems which affect mainly developing countries.
Globalization
Definition
Many authors have tried to define the term globalization. Some of them have done so from a
cultural view, while others have taken an economic perspective. From a general point of view we
can say in simple words that globalization is the integration of the countries of the world in terms
of culture, economy, politics and others.
How it happens
There are many ways in which globalization happens.
In one side, technological advances in communication have made it easy to exchange information
through both physical and political barriers. Nowadays a very important part of the world is
interconnected and is able to share more than data: they can actually share culture. As a result, for
good or bad, even when people mostly have their own way of being and thinking according to
their nationality, they already live in a mixed culture, which is the result of the integration of their
own culture and external influence. Other factors as migration also cause cultural globalization.
On the other side, we have economic globalization, which can be explained mostly by the opening
of the physical and political borders between countries for the exchange of merchandise, financial
products, industrial goods, scientific and technological knowledge and other products related with
economical activities. Most countries of the contemporary world have made free trade
agreements that make easy exchange with others and make closer the relationships between
them.
Pros
Effects on human rights and conscience
The extreme development of communication and information media makes it more difficult to
hide whatever is wrong in the world. In the past, governments used to show a much better
outlook of the countries they belonged to than the real one and it was difficult for the
international community to know, understand and judge what was really going on. For instance, in
the past years, people from some Arabic countries decided to take actions to overthrow the
dictatorial regimes of their nations. However, governments tried to crush peoples intentions by
violating human rights with violent and authoritarian acts. Even through the governments efforts
for keeping it as an internal issue, internet media made it possible to communicate to the world
what was going on and the international community was able to condemn the abuses and
pressure them to give a peaceful solution to the conflicts.
The flow of information and mixture of cultures given by communication has affected how people
think about what is good or wrong. This way, we could say that globalization has given the world a
more global sense of ethics, where many attitudes like racism, misogyny, homophobia and
authoritarianism are condemned by people which, without all the information and ideas flowing
through the media, would be probably unaware of these issues.
Scientific and technological development
Many countries, and not only the most developed ones, have shown specific strengths in different
areas of science and technology. Globalization has made it possible to put them together in order
to solve social problems. For example, nowadays most research centers in the area of medicine
are part of a network that allows them to communicate and share their findings in order to give
new answers to issues related with health.
Competitiveness
While some decades ago countries used to be very reserved about their matters, today they are
highly motivated by climbing positions in the worlds economic race. This desire to have a better
and more respected position in the world order makes countries multiply their efforts in order to
create growth and development.
Cons
Inequality
One of the negative aspects of globalization is the increasing of inequality in the world. Inequality
that can be observed both among countries and within the borders of a nation. In an international
perspective, for instance, even when legally it is said that all the states of the world should be
equal, in real life we find that those with a stronger economy are the only ones that actually have
a saying on international affairs. In other words, we are living in a world that measures the
importance of the countries based on their wealth.
Weakening of local markets
One of the main characteristics of a globalized world is the presence of multinationals, companies
whose activities go beyond the borders of the countries where they come from. In many cases,
this kind of companies get installed in places where, with their international renown, astonishing
marketing campaigns and great experience in the market, wont give a chance to those locals who
are trying to grow a business from the bottom.
Dependence from other countries
The economic dynamics of a globalized world are way more complicated than in a non-globalized
one. With millions of products traveling through the world every day, any kind of trouble in just
one of the actors involved or the routes between them could be able to collapse an important part
of the whole network, causing a much bigger problem. Explained in a more practical way, if a
countrys economy depends on the oil sold to another one and, for any reason, the second one is
not any more able of doing so, the first country will be in big trouble; on the other hand, if the first
one runs out of oil, both of them will be put in a very difficult position.
Because of dependence on other countries, economic and financial crisis take a global and not
only local character.
Policies to attract FDI
One of the ways in which the success of a countrys economy is measured, is the possibility of
attracting Foreign Direct Investment, which in many cases means the entrance of multinational
companies to the territory. In order to do so, many countries take very loose policies in matters
like worker rights, ecology and taxes. This way, companies from the outside will feel attracted to
the idea of taking their activities to a place where they wont have many restrictions, giving a
boost to the hosts economy. However, these policies will surely have a negative effect on other
aspects.
Difficulties to fight organized crime
Globalization not only has benefitted the development of legal business but also the illegal ones.
With so many merchandise going through the borders every day, it has become technically
impossible to keep a strict control of everything that crosses them. This has helped organized
crime to smuggle goods from one territory to another and to become international organizations,
since they no longer operate in one, but in multiple countries. Furthermore, even when there exist
international law enforcement institutions, justice and police organisms usually only have
jurisdiction in their own states, which makes it very difficult to pursue criminals across borders and
dismantle criminal organizations.

http://www.academia.edu/download/30929642/Definitions_of_Globalization_-
_A_Comprehensive_Overview_and_a_Proposed_Definition.pdf