Why study globalization and development?

Human progress is inevitable for it is part of the evolutionary process of our species. Man's main natural advantage is his ability to think beyond. It is only human to wonder how, what and why things around us exist. Over the years, we get a better understanding of the mysteries of the works of the universe. And with this understanding, we gradually organized ourselves to make use of all knowledge. Throughout history, conditions have always been harsh. It may be scarcity of food or seasonal flooding that give rise for an opportunity to better organize in civilizations. With different problems, the human race has always sought for a solution. It is crucial to man's survival to keep order in any type of group for continuous growth in the economy, culture and security as the population rises. Thus, various political systems in different corners of the globe arose. These political systems in their own way, greatly contributed to the sciences, which their main objective is for military and political gain (as sign of prosperity) with their respective resilient leaders. Slowly, technology improved. Without the political will of the European leaders in the 17th century to test the the thought of the unexplored new world beyond, globalization would not be possible. However, harsh as it may sound, colonization of continents in the southern hemisphere followed. This is where the misunderstanding began.

Globalization started out as a villain that consumes the dignity of the natives of the lands that are rich in resources. It is safe to say that the main objective of the Europeans was not to make peace with the natives. It also was not because of God. Although religion played an essential part to politically control the natives. Europeans did this mainly for economic reasons. It was a race to get the most gold and spices for preserving meat. Then with more gold on their side comes military power because they have the means to fund their military exploits. This was the mercantilist doctrine.

The thirst for power always follows in every human achievement. Or every human achievement is driven by selfish reasons. Either way, globalization is human progress that makes things easier for our species. It is the glorified solution to all problems. As the world population grows, the laws of demand and supply in basic consumption becomes more complex with limited resources. Finding solutions to the production and distribution is essential for survival in the modern world. Globalization is the solution. Globalization is an ongoing process of moving information, goods and services across national borders (Eitzen, Zinn, 2006). World trade is now possible but people are still boxed with the old notion (where globalization started) of mercantilism, that world trade is the new kind of colonization.

By the definition alone, it is the most important thing that happened to human kind. For emotional and social beings, the ability to connect with people in the other side of the world is ground breaking. However, social problems are magnified even more by globalization. Poverty, human rights violations, war and abuse of power have always been part of human history. The situation was a lot worse before although simpler without the regard of current financial systems. The bad thing, after all the fuss about globalization is that these social problems have not been resolved. More issues emerge such as terrorism, cultural identity, energy and global warming.

It is better not to scorn but to understand globalization to deal with these. With a global platform to cooperate and coordinate with other nations, we can overcome these problems. However, we are still our own enemies. We shall not blame imports and expats for causing the downturn of economies. Inefficient governments and inefficient institutions and structures are to blame. Without corruption not only in government but also in businesses and society, the positive effects of globalization can be felt.

Man as a political creature always seeks for what benefits him. Problems of the world are artificial. Mankind destroys itself. If we keep our minds closed, we would not bridge the misunderstanding across borders. With misunderstanding, the process of globalization is ineffective. We should open ourselves to the world for we are all sharing and living in only one planet. Globalization is still in its early stages. I believe that if we all understand it, we could work around it to better improve our ways so that we could reap all the benefits. We could know our place in the world. Naturally, there is always a price for attaining something good. But we could help minimize it; thus, human development of all nations is possible.

I believe that we are in the golden years of globalization if we have found a global solution to global warming. I know we can make it there because I believe in the human spirit. We can learn and adapt as we did in the past.