IB Geography Unit 4

It includes all the varied economic, social, political, cultural and environmental processes which make up globalisation.

It also encompasses local opposition movements and new cultural forms which are created when globalising forces meet and interact with local societies and stakeholders

Businesses whose operations are spread across the world, operating in many nations as both makers and sellers of goods and services. Many of the largest TNC’s are instantly recognisable global brands that bring cultural change to the places where their goods are consumed.

The growth of TNC’s accelerated cross border exchanges of raw materials, components and manufactured goods. ICT also supports a more international economy

The growth of trading blocs allows TNC’s to merge and make acquisitions in neighbouring countries. Reduced trade and tariffs help markets grow.

World Bank, IMF and WTO work internationally to mediate national economies

Western cultural traits can dominate in some territories eg. Americanization and McDonaldization

Hybridisation of old local cultures merge and meld with globalising influences

International immigration has created extensive family networks across borders, cities becoming multicultural

Global improvements in health and literacy

Social interconnectivity has improved due to mobile phones

• Examining trade

• FDI

• Restrictions on international trade

• Member of an international organisation

• Amount of embassies in a country

• UN peace missions participated in

• Levels of internet use

• TV ownership

• Imports and exports of books

1. Ireland

2. Belgium

3. Netherlands

Arguments that some of their factors being irrelevent eg. is owing a TV making you more globalised

Does military participation in UN peace missions really show globalisation.

The indirect actions by which developed countries exert a degree of control over former colonies. Eg. including conditions attached to loans and aid, cultural influence, military/economic support for certain political groups/movements in a country.

Power of persuasion, some countries are able to make others follow their lead via attractive policies. A country’s culture can be viewed favourably by people in other countries.

Means getting your own way by force, invasion war and conflict are common examples. Economic power such as sanctions and trade barriers can also cause harm and therefore be hard power.

Monitors economic development

Lends money to states in financial difficulties

Eg. has loaned a lot of money to Greece to aid its financial crisis

That USA and Europe have too much influence over IMF policies (always had a European president, based in USA)

Provides advice, loans and grants on a global scale, aims to reduce poverty and and promote economic development.

Eg. helped DRC kick start a mega dam project.

It can impose strict conditions on its loans and grants. Critics describe it as neo-colonialism

Created by the BRICS group, as the alternative to the IMF and the World Bank.

The new bank as less experience than the World Bank and IMF in managing global economic systems

A group of 8 nations including, USA, Japan, UK, Germany, Italy, France, Canada, and Russia (however recently Russia has been excluded from meetings making it the G7)

They meet periodically as the worlds largest economies to co ordinate responses to common economic challenges.

Eg. they acted to stabilise Japan after a large tsunami

They are becoming less and less important due to more countries becoming global economic powers and not being a part of G8 (eg. China). This reduces the need for them in global decision making. However there is now an extension called G20 with more global superpowers however their large size their decision making ability is impaired.

It is a group of HIC/MIC’s which aims to promote policies which will improve global social and economic well being.

They has all signed formal agreements protecting the environment.

Their economists failed to predict the global economic slowdown in 2008, which was a massive oversight.

It is a wealthy and important grouping of oil exporting countries eg. Saudi Arabia. They have gained great wealth due to global dependancy.

The collapse in oil prices in 2015 meant that some of these countries had to seek bail out loans from IMF. Their oil is also often destabilised due to war and conflict, making it an unstable financial source.

A settlement or state which is highly interconnected with other places and a large amount of global flows are channeled.

People with disposable incomes which they can spend on consumer goods.

includes all goods which add to, or subtract from, the stock of material resources of a country by entering its economic territory (imports) or leaving it (exports). It is measured in million USD

records the value of services exchanged between residents and non-residents of an economy, including services provided through foreign affiliates established abroad. This indicator is measured in million USD and percentage of GDP for exports, imports and net trade. 

In the past, the developed world “core” regions of Europe and North America exploited the natural and human resources of the much larger and less developed “periphery” regions eg. Asia and Africa

Tourism- Value of international tourist trade has largely increased, a lot of this is due to touristic movements within Asia eg. China generates largest volume of international tourism expenditure

Financial services and insurance- Free market liberalisation has fostered international trade. Eg. Deregulation of London paved it into becoming a global financial hub

Online media and retail- On demand media services eg. Amazon and Netflix.

2007 - 2009

Originated in EU and US where sales of high risk financial services and products triggered the failure/near failure of many leading banks and institutions.

The aftermath caused some countries so experience severe economic difficulties eg. Ireland and Portugal

Oil- Prices have fallen due to a global industrial slowdown, meaning some sub-Saharan African countries have experiences a lack of economic growth so have had to turn to the IMF for funds

Their growth rate has halved since 2007, China has entered a slower, new stage of development where they have shifted from cheap mass produced products to more sophisticated, high value goods for its own domestic market. This has reduced its demand for natural resources.

Export restrictions put in place to boost local industries by developing processing capacity to raise revenue and create jobs.

These are ineffective, in a study of 4 African countries, and were shown to not only be ineffective in increasing their economies but also may be harmful. 

Once these restrictions are in place they are rarely removed. 

• Depending on minerals for economic growth can be called “the resource curse” as it is very volatile. 

• Countries which rely on mineral wealth often have weaker institutions, spend less on education and are more corrupt.

• Warring groups can fund violent action through resource extraction 

• Botswana 

  • Did not use import restrictions on their diamond mines

  • Used all money collected by the government on education and infrastructure 

  • Brought Botswana from a LIC, to a MIC

Live Aid

• A series of concerts in aid of humanitarian help in Ethiopia.

• Events in London, Paris and New York which were broadcasted globally

• Raised close to 130 million. 

The concert incentivised the public who were previously indifferent to the conflict. However with inaccurate and patronising lyrics, the Christmas song brought false misconceptions about Ethiopia. 

“Despite the fact the famine was localised to northern Ethiopia and a result of political manipulation, the songs, concerts, and fundraising appeals perpetuated a single, negative, and distorted view of Ethiopia, making it synonymous with famine, poverty, and desperation”

Often disguised as a trade deal, leader to leader, such as getting countries to sign treaties and policies. Typically flows from a democracy to a dictatorship, as dictatorships need money and power to stay in charge, so they buy policies. The aid may be for developing the economy or recovering from a natural disaster, however this can be hyperbolized and made up to gain more money as international aid. However if it comes as a contract it tends to go directly to the people, as it is not just money. Corrupt countries may also add taxes or tariffs to incoming aid.

International aid- The international transfer of capital, goods, or services from a country or international organisation for the benefit of the recipient country

Bilateral aid- Bilateral aid is assistance given by a government directly to the government of another country.

Multilateral aid- Multilateral aid is distributed by bilateral donors to multilateral organisations without any use restrictions, and is then distributed by those multilateral organisations, such as the World Bank and the various United Nations agencies

Money borrowing rules designed to help avoid financial mismanagement by encouraging fiscal prudence.

Countries needing financial aid have to make concessions for loans eg. privatising certain sectors

They sometimes increase poverty as opposed to helping it, and undermine economic sovereignty. They are also described as neo-colonial as it exterts power and influence over global periphery

Eg. Tanzania borrowed money, and the government was told to privatise water supplies. Leaving poor city-dwellers with no water supplies.

Indian workers to UAE

Indian workers make up 30% of the total population in the UAE. They send around 15 billion dollars back to India in remittances. Most work in transport, construction and manufacturing.

Filipino workers moving to Saudi Arabia

1.5 million migrants from the Phillipines have moved when oil prices brought great wealth to the country. Some working in construction, others as healthcare professionals in the capital. There are reports of ill treatment of migrants.

• The most seen drug moving into the USA

• Over 95% of the drugs are moving on the water via container ships, non-commercial vessels, pleasure boats, sail boats, fishing boats.

• Boats have been purpose built to transport drugs, painted blue with only a foot above the water so they are barely undetectable. 

• The main flow is called El Naya, the cocaine highway

• People smugglers have grown more professional, offering a higher range of services, like fake passports and documents. 

• The HTC defines human trafficking as the recruitment and/or movement of someone within or across borders, through the abuse of power/position with the intention of forced exploitation, commercial or otherwise.

• Forced labour and commercial sexual exploitation are the two primary categories of trafficking. Specific types of trafficking include:  

  • Domestic servitude 

  • Forced marriage  

  • Forced criminal activity

  • Child soldiering 

  • Forced begging  

  • Forced prostitution

People who are vulnerable to trafficking include: Displaced persons, minorities, and other marginalised groups ● Impoverished populations ● People experiencing interpersonal violence and homelessness ● Children, who make up about 20% of those victimised according to the ILO

An economic migrant is someone who emigrated from one region to another to seek an improvement in living standards because the living conditions or job opportunities in the migrant's own region are not sufficient.

• Migration is becoming more global, more countries are affected at the same time, and the diversity of areas of origin is increasing. 

• Migration is accelerating, the number of movements is growing in volume in all major regions

• Migration is becoming more differentiated, with a combination of refugees, settled workers, skilled migrants, students, arranged marriages etc. 

• Migration of women is increasing, who are moving to join male counterparts

The source country may experience a drop in GDP, as a result of falling remittances from that country. Eg. In the UK during economic recession, building projects were canceled. Easter European builder sent less remittances back, GDP of Eastern European country falls.

TNC = Transnational corporations are companies that have operations in more than one country

They are built by 

• Buying up foreign firms in mergers and acquisitions

• Manufacturing is outsourced to third parties. 

TNC’s link countries through the production of goods. They also link people in different countries by shaping common patterns of consumption. They invest internationally (Foreign Direct Investment (FDI)). May receive subsidies or tariffs from trade blocs which can help/hinder.

A common practise amongst TNCs of moving low skilled work abroad (offshore) to places where labour costs are lower. Important skilled management jobs are kept at TNC headquarters at country of origin.

Creating a spacial division of labour. Profits of TNC rise, invests in different countries for labour. However it may cause job losses in the TNC country of origin due to relocation.

International corporate mergers, 2 firms in different countries join to create a single entity. This gives more expanded markets, and opportunities to reduce costs.

Involves two companies forming a partnership to handle business in a particular territory (not a merger). Reduces risk that a single TNC is exposed to, however profits must be shared.

TNCs can invest in new product designs as a part of overseas investment. It involves adapting a global product to take into account geographical differences in taste, culture and religion. This helps TNCs cater better to certain markets.

Resulted in a “transfer in technology” to China. Chinese companies eg. Xiaomi have manufactured their own products instead of making for TNCs

However there are criticisms of conditions for workers in “sweatshops” the environment is hard, and air pollution on average takes 5 years off a Chinese persons life

Outsourcing companies have become extremely profitable. Call centre workers earn a good middle class wage by Indian standards, however some argue they are exploited, work is repetitive and done at night due to time zone differences and work hours are long.

A chain of connected suppliers of parts and materials that contribute to the manufacturing/assembly of goods. This serves a TNC.

A philosophy to managing economies and societies that takes the view that government interference should be kept to a minimum and that problems are best left for market forces to solve.

Voluntary international organisations that exist for trading purposes, bringing greater economic strength and security for the nations which join eg. EU

The taxes which are paid when importing goods and services between countries

Markets for firms grow eg. when Poland joined the EU, Lidl gained access to a much larger market

An enlarged market increases demand, raising the volume of production, and thereby lowering manufacturing costs.

• Set up Incheon free trade zone, to attract FDI

• Minimised regulation, maximised business incentives, offers tax breaks to create opportunities for FDI

• Built a brand new international airport and port

• Reclaimed land, close to the capital

• Very high levels of development, educated workforce

• Strategically located in the centre of China and Japan, both large markets

• Internationally competitive seaport and airport, main entry point to South Korea

• Adjacent to Seoul, the capital, providing an educated workforce

• Some incentives offered may lead to expensive foreign schools, widening the education gap between rich and poor.

• North Korea is detrimental to the development of IFEZ due to the possible threat from North Korea of war, FDI companies see this as a large disadvantage.

• Natural resources (Oil, Minerals)

• Political stability (No war/risk of war, not likely to collapse/be overthrown)

• Low crime rates, high security

• Good transportation infrastructure, for trade links

• Low wage rates

• Labour skills in the population (eg. construction skills due to investment in education)

• Language skills (ability to speak English)

• Large economy and population

• Physical location (landlocked)

The Schengen agreement means that people in the EU can move freely, without showing passports. This means workers can move to wherever is in need of labour.

Heightened connectivity changes our conception of time, distance and potential barriers to the migration of goods, money, people and information. As travel times fall due to new inventions, that different places approach each other in “space-time”, they begin to feel closer together than in the past (also known as shrinking world concept.

1. Container shipping has increased global trade, using intermodal containers to maximise efficiency

2. Air travel developments, Low cost airlines eg. Easyjet makes major cities more interconnected.

3. High speed rail, can connect rural and urban areas

1. Telephone and telegraph, Telegraphy cables across the Atlantic replaced a long boat journey with instant connection

2. Broadband, Large data can be moved quickly though fibre optic cables in the ocean, increasing connectivity.

Offshoring and outsourcing is facilitated by ICT. Video-conferencing allows expansion into new territories whilst maintaining contact with head office. Self employed people can also use online platforms to help get their business started, and sell goods on sites such as eBay.

Migration is easier when people can maintain long distance social relationships using ICT eg. Skype. Instagram and Snapchat provide a very own global/local network of friends. People can gain education online eg. MOOCs and virtual school/university.

Cultural traits eg. music and language are adopted fast using ICT. YouTube can spread global music eg. South Korean Gangnam Style. Also Duolingo is a platform used to learn other languages, spreading cultural traits.

Websites for MGO’s eg. UN, EU and WHO websites aim to educate a global audience. Petitions and movements can be fostered online.

• The scramble for control over these resources may result in corruption and civil war/invasion

• Natural resource wealth does not always trickle down to the poorest

• The discovery of natural resources may lead to other industrial enterprises being abandoned. Lessening sustainable economic development.

Trade from ports is limited meaning they do not engage as much with global trade.

Getting to and from the island is tricky, and may be affected by strong weather.

Means they are isolated and retain their cultural habits.