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Frames in Unit 9
Frames in Unit 9
What does globalization mean when viewed through the production and distribution, communities, and networks frames?
As this video progresses, key ideas will be introduced to invoke discussion.
Think about the following questions as you watch the video
In what ways are we all connected as part of a global network?
How can we view globalization through the lens of the production and distribution frame?
In what ways are we members of global communities?
What are some problems with globalization raised by this video?
: We're told that over the course of the last century,
: the world has become increasingly “globalized”.
: What does this even mean?
: This term is confusing, because it's used in so many different ways.
: Still, we can use the idea of globalization to tell a story that connects all of our frames.
: In fact, one way to get a working definition of globalization
: is to look at recent events through each of our three frames.
: We can begin to define globalization by noticing how we are all increasingly tied together in one “global” network.
: For the first time, it is possible to speak and interact in real time with people on the other side of the world.
: We can rapidly send information to each other and, as a result, we share ideas and concepts with great efficiency.
: In fact, some people have argued that we are increasingly sharing one global culture.
: They believe our differences are being flattened and we have more of the same experiences as people far away.
: Globalization also means that our production and distribution
: has increasingly become connected in one giant world-wide economic system.
: The products that we use are made from many raw materials dug up,
: cut down, or grown in different parts of the world.
: And those resources are then shipped to other places to be processed into parts.
: And those parts are moved yet again to another place where they are assembled.
: And finally, the assembled product
: is transported to a market somewhere else in the world for sale.
: And the profits from the sale, well, they may then be shared by investors and business owners living in yet more parts of the world.
: So, the production and distribution of goods and services has become truly global.
: And that means we can rapidly get goods from other parts of the world
: into our homes and businesses.
: But it also means that issues in one area
: can lead to supply chain problems stretching around the world.
: Our communities are also becoming globalized.
: Once, the nation-state seemed to be the ultimate, most important, community.
: And our neighbors helped form our most immediate community.
: But by contrast,
: today we can become members of digital communities that connect people living in different nations
: or parts of the world.
: And these communities of people might come together over share common work, hobbies, interests, or beliefs.
: But within the context of the frames, globalization raises as many questions as it resolves:
: Who benefits from this global network?
: Who can contribute?
: Who runs the network?
: Whose ideas can move freely?
: And what happens to privacy when we are all connected all of the time?
: Similarly, who profits from this global production and distribution system?
: Who makes things? Who gets paid? Who gets to use the things we make?
: And what is the impact of this rapidly expanding economy on our world and our environment?
: Finally, if we are moving towards a global community,
: why is there still violence and even genocide between groups?
: Why, recently, do we see a resurgence in conflict around national, ethnic and religious identity?
: Is it because people are missing something?
: Or are they seeking some smaller community in this vast global system?
: These are among the questions that make studying the past meaningful to us
: as we look to understand the present.
: You are already participants in making the communities, networks, and products of the future.