Running Head: GLOBALIZATION AFFECTS ENVIRONMENT 1

Globalization Affects Environment

Aidan L. Swiatlowski

South Lyon High School Reading and Writing for the College Bound

March 2018
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Abstract

The main focus of this paper is to discuss the problems and solutions related to the environment

because of globalization. Ever since I took the class Environmental Studies, I have had a great

interest in the topic and feel that it is important to inform people of the environmental issues and

things that can be done to reduce the damage on the earth. This should be a great concern on a

global level because it affects everyone on the planet. If we don’t take action now, sooner or later

it will catch up with us. Though many may not know how serious the environment is being

affected, this paper will touch on the main problems that arise because of globalization, such as

the rise of carbon levels and the depletion of our resources. Globalization can also be a solution

to a lot of these issues. While a complete solution may be unrealistic, options like investing in

renewable energy and creating regulations to preserve the environment can certainly assist in

making a difference. In general, the purpose of my research is to explore the environmental

concerns that face humanity, while also attempting to pinpoint solutions to the dilemmas that

face our world.

Word Count: 201

Keywords: globalization, environment, concern, solution, global

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Globalization Affects Environment

One of the greatest challenges facing the world today has to do with our environment.

This is a direct result of human intervention, which, indirectly relates to globalization.

Globalization is the act of extending to all parts of the world (Dictionary.com, 2018). Because of

the rapid rate at which we are globalizing, we are destroying our earth. This is a result of things

such as rising carbon levels and deforestation. These are huge problems that are looming over

our species. If we want a sustainable future, we must take action now. While globalization has

caused these negative effects, it can also play a major role in the solution. The spread of ideas

worldwide can lead to new laws and regulations as well as a greater reliance on renewable

energy. Overall, globalization has caused many issues with our environment, but it can also be a

part of the solution.

Problems

Rising Carbon Levels

As the world has become more industrialized, there has been drastic changes in the

climate. Humans have caused a lot of fluctuation in what would seem to be Earth’s natural

progression. Ever since the Industrial Revolution, the amount of emissions that our species has

pumped into the atmosphere has risen tremendously. Before machines, the carbon dioxide levels

in the air were slowly rising. Without human interaction, this slow increase would have most

likely been sustained. We have accelerated this process exponentially. As more countries have

access to cars and other forms of machinery, it is inevitable that our CO₂ levels have increased.

The main problem here is that this doesn’t seem to be slowing down anytime in the near future.
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Our reliance on fossil fuels just keeps increasing, and as a result, the atmosphere’s carbon levels

will follow suit. Because of this, issues, such as climate change and ozone depletion, continue to

have a greater effect on our world.

The purpose of the layer of ozone around our earth is to act as a protective shield and to

trap heat in, making life on earth

possible. However, the heat-trapping

gas levels are growing, causing the

earth to be too warm. To be more exact,

the annual average temperature has

increased 1.5°F since 1880 and as it

shows in Figure 1, as the CO₂ levels

have risen, so has the temperature

(“Global Temperature,” n.d.). As stated by the Union of Concerned

Scientists, the carbon overload is caused by the burning of fossil

fuels or the cutting down and burning of forests (“Why does CO2,” n.d.). These are all related to

globalization and the things that have been introduced to the world. The constant burning of

fossil fuels to generate energy does a tremendous amount of damage. Many people don’t realize

the effect globalization really has because it’s human nature to see the positivity that it has

brought into their lives. Especially with climate change, otherwise known as global warming,

definitely being a controversial concept, it has in turn lead to the lack of concern about the real

events happening around the globe. There is already evidence of the polar ice caps melting due

to the warming climate. In his article, Daniel Glick (n.d.) said that the “​recent rate of global sea
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level. . .is rising more rapidly—about one-tenth of an inch a year​” (para. 8). Now one-tenth of an

inch doesn’t seem to be a lot but the problem is that this won’t be slowing down anytime soon. If

anything, it will just increase at a faster rate, and soon coastal places around the world will be

underwater. While it is true that our current generation won’t be affected at a great scale, we

have to create a sustainable way of life for the future.

Deforestation

As the civilized world expands, so does its need for land and resources. This has resulted

in humanity actively acquiring undeveloped areas. Humans feel the best way to use these areas is

to clear them of all things natural. This allows them to use the space they have to either gain

resources or foster the land for things such as farming or development. This is happening on a

global scale, causing destruction to millions of acres of forest. In the Amazon alone, “the rate of

deforestation. . .has increased by 29 percent over last year” (Camila Domonoske, 2016, para. 1).

With the eradication of our environment, we destroy the habitats for countless amounts of the

wildlife including the rare species that live in particular regions like the Amazon. According to

the article “How many species are we losing?” (2017), experts estimate that we are causing

species to go extinct at a rate that is between 1,000 and 10,000 times greater than the natural

extinction rate. While there are some other factors that can influence this number, the

development of buildings and the use natural resources are the biggest reasons we are losing so

many species.

Deforestation greatly affects carbon levels as well. As previously mentioned, our world

struggles with the high emissions that we put into the atmosphere. Deforestation is an important

contributor to this struggle, due to the large scale that it happens on. While this is a big enough
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problem in of itself, it also destroys the the soil, making farming difficult. This furthers the issue

by making it harder to grow vegetation. Overall, globalization has increased the rates of

deforestation, which has caused tremendous problems, and, if we continue clearing forests at the

rate of which we do, we will not be able to sustain our way of life for much longer.

Solutions

Laws and Regulations

There have been many attempts to solve the growing problems of the environment.

Numerous bills have been proposed, treaties have been fought over, and agreements have been

made. In the U.S., we have an organization known as the Environmental Protection Agency,

which is designed to regulate all environmental topics. The EPA does its best to protect the

natural world, but if there was a way to strengthen this group, our nation would have an increase

in positive results. The start of this agency was indirectly related to Rachel Carson’s novel ​Silent

Spring,​ which brought a tremendous amount of attention to the environment. In Jack Lewis’

article he stated, “​this exhaustively researched, carefully reasoned, and beautifully written attack

on the indiscriminate use of pesticides. . .​ ​attracted immediate attention and wound up causing a

revolution in public opinion” (2016, para. 2). It’s novels and things of that sort that obviously get

society to consider the events happening around the world. ​With our world being as connected as

it is through globalization, there have been many attempts to lessen the effects of climate change;

one of these attempts was the Kyoto Protocol. It was a global agreement that all of the countries

involved would actively set out to lower carbon emissions. According to the UNFCCC (2014),

“the Kyoto Protocol is seen as an important first step towards a truly global emission reduction”

(para. 12). This first step is crucial to the change because there has to be a start to everything and
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the protocol was a great start. President George Bush famously didn’t sign the the treaty, so the

agreements that the other countries made have no effect on the U.S. Because of this, the United

States has one of the largest amount of

emissions per person each year in the

world, as shown in Figure 2. However,

when President Barack Obama was

elected, he attempted to change things

and get more involved in the matters

at hand. He was a very

environmentally friendly president,

and those are the type of leaders we

need in our world to create a better environment. One country cannot fix

the destruction of our nation by itself, and because our world is so

connected, thanks to globalization, these ideas are able to be spread to other nations in hopes of

some leadership being taken to create laws and regulations.

Renewable Resources

One of the best ways to reduce the amount of carbon that we put into the atmosphere is

through renewable energy. What renewable means in this context is that the resource keeps

replenishing itself naturally. According to Bethany Wieman (n.d.), “renewable resources are an

important aspect of sustainability” (para. 1). Energy sources such as solar, wind, and

hydroelectric will theoretically always be available while creating a safer environment compared

to fossil fuels creating a more sustainable environment. These alternative energy sources are a
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much better way to power our world than their non-renewable counterparts. They produce very

little, if any, harmful emissions so, replacing them over carbon-intensive energy sources would

significantly decrease the global warming emissions (“Benefits of,” 2017). Because of this,

renewable sources should to be the future for providing energy. Our world has made many

technological advancements in many different fields. This has made using sustainable energy

more efficient. Yet, they can be complex and need skilled laborers to maintain this efficiency,

adding more sustainable energy sources will help the global economy by creating thousands of

jobs.

Globalization will continue to grow and there isn’t much we can do about that. However,

the world can use it to benefit our environment instead of causing more damage. It may seem

challenging for society to come together to use the power of globalization to help the world and,

with the path we are headed down, it doesn’t seem likely. With laws and regulations and the

spread of renewable energy, it is very possible for nations worldwide to come together to create a

better place for everyone. Although globalization has brought harm to the environment, it is still

very realistic for humanity and nature to coexist in a sustainable way.

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References

Benefits of Renewable Energy Use. (n.d.). Retrieved March 23, 2018, from

https://www.ucsusa.org/clean-energy/renewable-energy/public-benefits-of-renewable-po

wer#.WrRFlojwa01

Domonoske, C. (2016). Deforestation Of The Amazon Up 29 Percent From Last Year, Study

Finds. Retrieved March 23, 2018, from

https://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2016/11/30/503867628/deforestation-of-the-am

azon-up-29-percent-from-last-year-study-finds

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Glick, D. (2017, January 18). The Big Thaw. Retrieved March 23, 2018, from

https://www.nationalgeographic.com/environment/global-warming/big-thaw/

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http://www.dictionary.com/browse/globalization?s=t

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e-

How many species are we losing? (2017). Retrieved March 23, 2018, from

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Lewis, J. (2016). The Birth of EPA. Retrieved March 23, 2018, from

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United Nations. (2013). Kyoto Protocol. Retrieved March 23, 2018, from

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Why does CO2 get most of the attention when there are so many other heat-trapping gases?

(n.d.). Retrieved March 23, 2018, from

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