Jared Rostkowski Blog #4: Globalization and the Environment

          Globalization is rapidly expanding in the 21st century world. It has brought the world a faster access to technology as well as countless improvements and innovations. Globalization is known for bringing the world together, combining cultures as well as economic success and developing countries. There are many pros and cons to be debated on globalization, I will be discussing the impact that Globalization has the environment, specifically how it negatively impacts the environment and why we may want to tone back or make changes to the globalization process for the sake of the environment.
          One of the common benefits of globalization is the increase of the consumption of products, which undoubtedly affects the environment. This increase of the consumption goods comes from the increased transportation that is being used in the Globalization process. One example comes with food consumption. People used to eat only locally grown food, now through Globalization, people are eating food from all around the world usually brought by ships. This has lead to an increase in fuel consumption has lead to more pollution. Exhaust from planes and ships was lead to increased air pollution and an increase to the Greenhouse Effect. Waste from ships has also killed many organisms underwater and has left toxic chemicals in the ocean. The combination of Globalization and Industrialization has also poisoned soils, often killing plants or affecting their genetic makeup. The movement of goods also requires the wide use of plastic, which is toxic and non-biodegradable, and has a large negative impact on the environment. The last impact is the encroachment on land that Globalization has. Mountains are being cut away for tunnels and highways, and previously untouched lands are being taken over to make way for new buildings.
          The solution to this problem is finding a happy medium between continuing growth and protecting the environment. Finding more environmentally friendly ways to package and ship objects is definitely the most important thing to do, or even the efforts of the people trying to keep things local every once in a while would be a start. Research also needs to be done to find what is most affective in preserving the environment while also maintaining the benefits of the globalization process.
          No doubt the protecting the environment will take a large global effort. The problem arises with the fact that we are not feeling the effects we have on the environment yet, so to the public eye, the affects Globalization has on the environment are going unseen, while the benefits to globalization are expanding the world economy and developing countries. It seems to come down to the fact that some people care about money more than they do the environment, any a big business will gladly destroy a forest if it means money in their pocket. These kind of people are some of those who are pushing globalization forward. So the problems that come with globalization come from the people who run it. So although Globalization is great for world development, it is not great for the environment.
         

Comments

  1. UnknownDecember 8, 2017 at 1:57 PM

    Jared, I really like the point you made here because I completely agree and it is an issue which needs to put into the light more often. Though globalization helps the economy it also focuses on large industrial agriculture businesses to ship goods worldwide. Not only is this degrading towards the environment it also makes it harder for smaller local businesses to compete. Like you said "People used to eat only locally grown food, now through Globalization, people are eating food from all around the world usually brought by ships." Through this system many local businesses are forced to go out of business. I find this to be a major concern and there has to be some limitation to take place with globalization. Maybe some regulations to limit the emissions? And to also support local businesses which benefit the environment through sustainable practices.

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    Replies
    1. Jared RostkowskiDecember 10, 2017 at 4:07 PM

      Staying/shopping local is a great way to help the environment as well and the economy of your community. Large companies definitely don't make it easy to keep things local, as they are usually cheaper and have a greater variety. Something definitely needs to be established that benefits people for staying local. People need an immediate benefit to encourage this, as people usually don't look at long term benefits of saving the environment.

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  2. Victoria PierreDecember 9, 2017 at 5:39 PM

    Jared, I liked that point you make about globalization relating to the environment. I would have categorized that as just environmental protection, but since we are all living on this Earth we need to work together to protect the space that we are in. I would one day like to see more laws put into place where maybe certain seasons of the year we eat more locally so we can protect the environment.

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    1. Jared RostkowskiDecember 10, 2017 at 4:03 PM

      Any sort of solution will be difficult. A large change to protect the environment will most definitely affect a lot of people and businesses. I think the important thing is to start small and make small changes, one person can really make difference.

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  3. Tom PilatDecember 10, 2017 at 3:41 PM

    I like all the benefits that you put for globalization. I think the pros of globalization definitely outweigh the cons. The problem with environmental standards is getting everyone to follow them. Even if there is harsh repercussions, there will still be groups who undoubtedly not follow the rules.

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    1. Jared RostkowskiDecember 10, 2017 at 4:01 PM

      That's definitely the hardest part. It's hard to get a few countries to agree on something let alone the entire world. Another problem is that things that would help the environment are either expensive or involve cutting back, both of which stop country growth.

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  4. UnknownDecember 10, 2017 at 4:35 PM

    Great post! I think that striking the balance between our need to protect the earth and our desire for ever increasing production will be difficult. It will be necessary to put aside some industrial prorities in order to meet the expected carbon limits. Hopefully, we can realize the impact that globalization is having on our environment before it's too late.

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