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How do the economy and globalization affect the global environment?

   In nowadays society, the environment has become a concerned topic. Everything is related to globalization. What citizens did, even the decisions the government made or the situation of one country will deeply and continuously affect the global environment.

   The biggest environmental issue that all of us are confronting is climate change. The damage of climate change is increasing every year with the growth of population, the development of technology, economy and so on. Also, this issue can bring negative impact to all the corner of the world.  

   Seychelles, an island nation located in the Indian Ocean, has high vulnerability to environmental problems. The climate change can lead to a series of hazards, such as water pollution, the rising of sea level and even extreme weather.

   Moreover, the gap between rich and poor countries is the cause of environmental degradation. As some poor countries and developing countries need to satisfy their sustainable goals or even just care about how to survive, they will ignore issues that may cause pollution.

   For example, North Korea is a poor and developing country that is excluded from the world economy. Its leader Kim Jung Un decides to use coal to promote economic development because coal is the main export are coal.Also, the households are still burning coal for cooking and electricity. Burning coal will generate more carbon dioxide and worsen air pollution which not only in the range of North Korea, but in global.

   In other words, boosting economics through globalization is the optimal way to be more environmental-friendly. Rich countries can give financial support on green technology such as electric vehicles. Less phenomenon of environmental degradation will occur in developed countries in the 21st century.

   All in all, the environment has a close connection with economy and globalization. Everyone has the responsibility to protect the environment.

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What has the Olympics lead to and brought to the World?

   Sports is always a concerned topic all around the world, but the purpose is more than just an activity. It is a bonding with spirits to tie every participant and follower of sports together. In 1894, IOC was founded. Two years later, the first Olympic Games was held in Athens. Till now, the Olympic Games has become a global event.

   The Olympic Games has really important cultural, political and economic status. In social aspects, the supporters of one athlete or from the same country seem to be solidary. Also, it is an optimal opportunity to promote cultural communication among athletes and learn new skills from each other.

   In the political aspect, when a city is going to hold the Olympic Games, the local government has a chance to show the best and brightest side of the city. However, the dark side is hidden away. Not only the dark side of the Olympics, but also the atrocities of the World Cup appear.

   For example, in the World cup, the issues of corruption of FIFAkeep appearing. The bribe for World Cup hosting bids and money laundering lead to a series of huge problems such as the resignation of Sepp Blatter, who was used to be the FIFA president. Moreover, the abuse of migrant workers in Qatar causes the issue of inequality. Those workers don’t get the wage that they should be paid, and the mortality was high. It seems that they don’t have human rights.

   The Olympics and World Cup help the local governments boost the economics and the city will become more famous than before. The largest protest in Brazil about anti-Olympics broke out in 2014. As sometimes, the local economics might be even worse. The local government will cost too much and have too many expenses on sports or building new stadiums instead of investing the money into the medical treatment or education.

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What Does Cultural Globalization Bring to Us?

      Nowadays, globalization has become a concerned topic all around the world. We can see the rapid change of the whole society, such as cultural exchange and melting. Food, music and business of a country are getting accepted by other countries. Then its cultures will also be more and more influential. 

   People always say that Canada is a multicultural country. In Toronto, I could strongly feel how diverse the cultures are. I will not worry about what should I eat because of so many kinds of cuisine restaurants. Also, McDonald’s, a global fast-food restaurant, is a good choice. After having a meal, I would like to go to Starbucks to get a drink, or I could just choose Coca-Cola. What I have mentioned three companies above were all founded in American, but now I could not only have access to them in the US, but almost everywhere in the world. Three words start to pop up in my mind: “Americanization”, “McDonaldization” and “Coca Colonization”. Cultural globalization keeps influencing American business and brands, and let these become dominant culture.

   Besides those food companies, a famous entertainment industry called Universal Studios is dominating the global as well. Countries such as America, Japan, and Singapore have this theme park. Visitors have a wide choice for which theme park they could go to while making a travelling schedule. Cultural globalization helps this theme park to be worldwide, but will it cause this entertainment culture to be homogeneous? Just like me, am I willing to go to the Universal Studios in Osaka if I have been to the one in LA? I would definitely think about this question and search for if the one has some unique equipment or activities that attract me. A series of problems come out when the culture is getting global. Some people might feel boring as some specific cultures are similar.

   Moreover, cultural appropriation is another phenomenon that cultural globalization brings to. For example, Nicki Minaj’s performance on SNL in 2018 caused disputes online. Her Asian-style dressing, stage decorations with Chinese characters, and traditional architectures, as well as the word “chopsticks” used in the lyrics, were accused as cultural appropriation. To me, I think if she acknowledges Asian cultures and knows about the meaning of what she was wearing and who she was paying homage to, which means there are no stereotypes, this performance was just a mixing of Asian and Western cultures. However, if a person does not know anything about the culture, but still wearing a costume with its element, it is cultural appropriation.

   Cultural globalization can help the development of many types of cultures be continuous, but also lead to unavoidable problems. All of us should show our homage to all the cultures.

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The Effect of Globalization On K-Pop Culture

     Aren't these amazing? Stage, lighting, fireworks, decorations and a huge number of fans. These are two photos of BTS concert, taken in May 4 and 5, 2019 at Rose Bowl Stadium in the USA. BTS is a really famous South Korean boy band. Sometimes, news writers use “the world’s biggest boy band” or “international” to describe them in the news title because more and more people from other countries started to notice them under the process of globalization.

      Nowadays, globalization is an indispensable word for us. We can not only taste foreign food, meet foreign people and use foreign productions, but also listen to foreign music and learn about foreign culture and history. Just like K-pop culture, many people lived out of Korean didn’t know about its music and entertainment industry couple decades ago. However, the appearance of BTS on Billboard Music Award, talk shows such as “The Ellen DeGeneres Show” “SNL” apparently indicate that the culture as well as humans’ minds start to be globalized. Then, I can watch those shows through TV in a different country. Also, currently, I have chance to take Korean courses at a Canadian university and meet their fans from all over the world.

      If all the countries close the door, I might not know who BTS is or even never heard of the word “globalization”. Luckily, they didn’t do it. When I flied to LA this May and Shizuoka in Japan this July to watch their concerts, I was thankful that we have airplane—such wonderful technology in the world. Without globalization, I will not have chance to go abroad or even they will never go to a city that is closed to where I used to live. I believe that we can or the government can keep pushing the globe to develop, to communicate and to trade.