1. A World Without Borders

2. Economic Globalization
International Monetary Fund (IMF, founded 1944)
Expansion of free trade
General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT, 1947)
123 member nations
World Trade Organization (WTO), takes over from GATT in 1995)
Global corporations expand, treat globe as single market
Decentralize as necessary to take maximum advantage of regional markets, labor pools, taxation policies
Implications for exploitation of human and natural resources

3. Economic Growth in Asia
Japan benefits from Marshall Plan, treaty limitations on defense spending
Massive postwar economic expansion, slowed in 1990s
The “Little Tigers”: Hong Kong, Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan imitate Japanese strategies
China integrates elements of market economy, benefits from huge cheap labor pool
But interrelated economies fragile, financial crisis in 1997

4. Trading Blocs European Union
Six nations when formed in 1957
Maestricht Treaty of 1993: moving toward political integration
Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC)
Established 1960, dominated by Arab and Muslim countries
Used economic might to place embargo on US oil,
Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN)
North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA)

5. European Union Membership

6. Consumption and Cultural Interaction
“Americanization” or “McDonaldization”
American culture exported
Yet cultural borrowings from non-American societies
Internal transformations: Latino culture in America
English language becomes predominant
Influence of British colonialism, America, the Internet

7. World Population by Region, 1900-2050 (Projected)

8. World Population, 1900-2050 (Projected)

9. The Club of Rome
Scientists attempting to define planet’s “carrying capacity”, formed 1967
1972 report: The Limits of Growth
Criticized for some erroneous predictions (depletion of oil, gas, uranium, etc.)
1999 revision: Beyond the Limits
Posit dark future

10. Environmental Impact
Biodiversity under threat: 4500 animal species threatened
Global warming
Greenhouse gases
Kyoto accords, 1997
Human mortality rate declines steadily, several regions work on birth control measures

11. Economic Inequities Regional poverty a persistent problem
Unequal distribution of resources
Impact of colonialism
Slavery abolished in Saudi Arabia, Angola in 1960s, forced indenture remains in place in developing world
International Labor Organization of the UN: 250 million children, ages 5-14, work, esp. southeast Asia
Global trafficking of human slaves

12. The AIDS Crisis
Acquired Immunodeficiency Virus identified in New York, San Francisco 1981
Homosexual men, drug users, later spread to other populations
Crisis especially pronounced in Africa
Treatments (not cures) available, but prohibitively expensive

13. Adults and children estimated to be living with HIV/AIDS as of December 2003

14. Global Terrorism
Terrorism: deliberate, systematic use of violence against civilians
Cheaper, more effective than conventional war, thus accessible to smaller groups
September 11, 2001: four planes hijacked by terrorists
Crash into World Trade Center buildings (NYC), Pentagon, field in Pennsylvania (passengers thwarted intended target)
Masterminded by Islamic extremist Osama bin Laden (1957- ), leader of al-Qaeda (“the Base”)

15. War in Afghanistan and Iraq
US President George W. Bush (1946- ) invades Afghanistan to destroy al-Qaeda training bases
Overthrows Taliban government
Invasion of Iraq to overthrow Saddam Hussein, perceived as ally of bin Laden

16. Non-Governmental Agencies (NGOs)
Red Cross, Red Crescent: public health, humanitarian aid
Greenpeace (founded 1970): environmental causes

17. The United Nations Superseded the League of Nations (1920-1946)
Charter: to maintain international peace and security
Weak body in military areas, influential in larger public health projects
Eradication of smallpox
Supporters of universal human rights

18. The United Nations

19. Global Feminism
Displaced from jobs by returning soldiers after World War II, women in industrialized nations agitate for equal opportunities
Demand control over bodies: access to birth control and abortion, achieved in 1960s and 1970s
Arab and Muslim lands: continued gaps in literacy
Increasing number of women national leaders
Indira Ghandi (India), Golda Meir (Israel), Margaret Thatcher (UK)

20. Migration Patterns Rural areas depopulating to urban regions
Creation of slums
Immigration for economic reasons
Refugees fleeing war, poverty
Tourism increasingly common in 21st century