UNIT III

Intercultural Communication

Lesson 1
 At the end of this lesson, you should be able to:

Demonstrate knowledge about globalization as an economic phenomenon; and,

THE GLOBALIZATION PHENOMENON

‘Globalization’ and ‘Global’ are terms we often encounter today. These terms are associated
with realities outside the territories of nation-state. All countries are engage in globalization. Very few
(if any) societies are unaffected by this Phenomenon. Because of this, we need to understand exactly
what it is, and more importantly, how it impacts community.

The following reading text provides information about globalization. Before reading the text,
research about the following:

 Reuter
 International Monetary Fund (IMF)
 Paris Agreement on Climate Change
 Oxfam

Globalization means the speedup of movements and exchanges (of human beings, goods,
and services, capital, technologies or cultural practices) all over the planet. One of the effects of
globalization is that it promotes and increases interactions between different regions and populations
around the globe.

According to WHO, globalization can be defined as” the increased interconnectedness and
interdependence of peoples and countries. It is generally understood to include two inter-related
elements: the opening of international borders to increasingly fast flows of goods, services, finance,
people and ideas; and the changes in institutions and policies at national and international levels that
facilitate or promote such flows.”

What is Globalization Anyway?

How globalization works

In simple terms, globalization is the process by which people and goods move easily across
borders. Principally, it's an economic concept – the integration of markets, trade and investments with
few barriers to slow the flow of products and services between nations. There is also a cultural
element, as ideas and traditions are traded and assimilated.

Globalization has brought many benefits to many people. But not to everyone.

Storm in a coffee cup

To help explain the economic side of globalization, let's take a look at the well-known coffee
chain Starbucks.

The first Starbucks outlet opened its doors in 1971 in the city of Seattle. Today it has 15,000
stores in 50 countries. These days you can find a Starbucks anywhere, whether Australia, Cambodia,
Chile or Dubai. It's what you might call a truly globalized company.
 And for many suppliers and jobseekers, not to mention coffee-drinkers, this was a good thing.
The company was purchasing 247 million kilograms of unroasted coffee from 29 countries. Through
its stores and purchases, it provided jobs and income for hundreds of thousands of people all over
the world.

But then disaster struck. In 2012, Starbucks made headlines after a Reuters
investigation showed that the chain hadn't paid much tax to the UK government, despite having
almost a thousand coffee shops in the country and earning millions of pounds in profit there.

As a multinational company, Starbucks was able to use complex accounting rules that enabled
it to have profit earned in one country taxed in another. Because the latter country had a lower tax
rate, Starbucks benefited. Ultimately, the British public missed out, as the government was raising
less tax to spend on improving their well-being.

How did globalization happen?

We might think of globalization as a relatively new phenomenon, but it’s been around for
centuries.

One example is the Silk Road, when trade spread rapidly between China and Europe via an
overland route. Merchants carried goods for trade back and forth, trading silk as well as gems and
spices and, of course, coffee. (In fact, the habit of drinking coffee in a social setting originates from a
Turkish custom, an example of how globalization can spread culture across borders.)

What drives it?

Globalization has speeded up enormously over the last half-century, thanks to great leaps in
technology.

The internet has revolutionized connectivity and communication, and helped people share their
ideas much more widely, just as the invention of the printing press did in the 15th century. The advent
of email made communication faster than ever.

The invention of enormous container ships helped too. In fact, improvements in transport
generally – faster ships, trains and airplanes – have allowed us to move around the globe much more
easily.

What's good about it?

Globalization has led to many millions of people being lifted out of poverty.

For example, when a company like Starbucks buys coffee from farmers in Rwanda, it is
providing a livelihood and a benefit to the community as a whole. A multinational company's presence
overseas contributes to those local economies because the company will invest in local resources,
products and services. Socially responsible corporations may even invest in medical and educational
facilities.

Globalization has not only allowed nations to trade with each other, but also to cooperate with
each other as never before. Take the Paris Agreement on Climate Change, for instance, where 195
countries all agreed to work towards reducing their carbon emissions for the greater global good.

This chart, however, shows that global attitudes towards globalizing forces aren't all that good.
It shows that, in fact, in all but a couple of countries polled, people believe life was better in the old
days.

What's bad about it?

While some areas have flourished, others have floundered as jobs and commerce move
elsewhere. Steel companies in the UK, for example, once thrived, providing work for hundreds of
thousands of people. But when China began producing cheaper steel, steel plants in the UK closed
down and thousands of jobs were lost.
 Every step forward in technology brings with it new dangers. Computers have vastly improved
our lives, but cyber criminals steal millions of pounds a year. Global wealth has skyrocketed, but so
has global warming.

While many have been lifted out of poverty, not everybody has benefited. Many argue that
globalization operates mostly in the interests of the richest countries, with most of the world's
collective profits flowing back to them and into the pockets of those who already own the most.

Although globalization is helping to create more wealth in developing countries, it is not helping
to close the gap between the world's poorest and richest nations. Leading charity Oxfam says that
when corporations such as Starbucks can legally avoid paying tax, the global inequality crisis
worsens.

Basically, done wisely (in the words of the International Monetary Fund) globalization could
lead to "unparalleled peace and prosperity". Done poorly, "to disaster".

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Impact of Globalization on Communication.

Make a Slogan on impact of Globalization and Communication, and then explain your work
in one to two paragraphs.

Criterias:

For Slogan
Relation to the topic 10 points
Aesthetic Appeal 5 points
Date of Submission 5 points
Before and on-time on DL 5 points
Late 3 points
Total 20 points
For Explaination
Content 10 points
Organization/grammar 5 points
Date of Submission 5 points
Before and on-time on DL 5 points
Late 3 points
Total 20 points