Global systems & Global governance

Global systems & Global governance

1. Global governance

   • Global governance
     • Norms in global governance
       • A social norm is accepted behaviour. Global governance has worked to develop global norms, mainly concerning unfair treatment of people eg. gender equality
     • Laws in global governance
       • International laws are an aspect of global governance. Anything from trading sanctions to attacks can result from countries not respecting international laws.
     • Global institutions
       • For people and countries to be governed globally there are certain international institutions that have been developed to oversee the maintenance of global systems. They aim to represent and protect all nations.
       • Positives - Aims for global economic equality allowing less developed countries to grow economically. Societal growth is promoted by global institutions maintaining social equality. Environmental stability is maintained by IGO's and other global institutions eg. NGO's.
       • Inequalities and injustices - Some institutions have been accused of creating more inequalities as they are not representative of every country, putting unrepresented countries at a disadvantage. The world bank and IMF only give loans conditionally, which leads countries exposed to exploitation.
   • Global commons
     • International waters, the atmosphere, outer space, Antarctica
       • Tragedy of the commons
         • As the commons do not belong to one country they are vulnerable to exploration, especially considering these environments are rich in resources eg. oil.
       • Protection
         • Every country has the right to use the commons to develop, but the development must be sustainable.
         • Global institutions - created to directly manage issues associated with the global commons so these issues can be solved in a fair and sustainable way.
         • International laws - now effective within global commons, the laws are usually set by institutions by the UN.
         • NGO's - campaign to protect the commons by spreading awareness as well as raising money for their protection.
   • United nations
     • First post war IGO established, aim to maintain international peace and security. 193 global members.
       • General assembly - All members are part of the general assembly so it is an organisation of universal representation. The aim of general assembly is to discuss and debate issues of peace and security.
       • Security council - consists of 15 members, 5 permanent. Solves threats to peace by having each member vote.
       • International court of justice - Settles legal disputes and international law breaks that are submitted by member states.
       • UNESCO - Aim to maintain peace through education, science and culture.
       • Peacekeeping - Aims to bring peace to places of disruption and post conflict.
     • Promotes growth and stability - UN sanctions have allowed inequalities and injustices to be resolved, the UN punishes countries that do not abide by international laws eg. Iran to deter use of nuclear enrichment. UN promotes economic, social and environmental growth through the creation of international treaties and goals eg. sustainable development goals. The UN creates policies and legislation to protect social rights eg. Declaration of human rights adopted by UN and now protects billions living in countries the declaration is ratified in.
     • Inequalities and injustices - UN peacekeeping forces have come under criticism for crimes against vulnerable citizens eg. accusation of sexual assault, human trafficking etc. UN has been accused of being inactive in cases where aid is desperately needed eg. 1971 Bangladesh genocide. UN accused of creating inequalities through bias of countries, especially those in conflict eg. UN being biased against Israel in Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
   • Antarctica
     • Climate and environment - Temperatures averaging -40 degrees celsius. One of the driest places on earth, coastal areas receive the most precipitation. So dry it is considered a desert. Winds are very strong, known as Katabatic winds. Not very biodiverse ecosystem due to the harsh conditions.
     • Natural resources - Marine life and rich in fossil fuels and minerals.
     • Vulnerability as a global common - Due to the environment and resources, the resources being a common makes it vulnerable due to the demand of the resources eg. fossil fuels. The climate is fragile so a change in temperature could have knock-on effects to the ecosystem, so it is more vulnerable to climate change.
     • Threats to Antarctica
       • Climate change - Warmer sea and atmospheric temps melt ice sheets causing ice bergs to calve into the sea and sea levels to rise. CO2 stored in ice sheets released into the atmosphere which causes global temps to rise more, enhancing global warming
       • Whaling and fishing - Unsustainable fishing disrupts the food chain of the fragile environment. overfishing removes vital animals in the food chain eg. Krill. Whaling and sealing began in the 18th century and whale populations are still at reduced and endangered levels because of this.
       • Mineral and resource exploitation - mining is banned in Antarctica but with a fossil fuel crisis the demand for more resources may lead to exploitation being possible. Oil exploitation disrupts the habitat, Oil spills cause damage to the ecosystem and metal and mineral exploitation damages the environment through quarrying and scares wildlife away.
       • Tourism and scientific research - tourism is growing due to demand for extreme tourism. Tourists are traveling there by air and sea which threatens the environment through effects of ships and fossil fuel emissions. Scientific research collects environmental data, but research bases have changed and disrupted the natural environment.
     • Governance
       • UN - UN work indirectly contributes to governance of Antarctica eg. global environmental problems and global warming.
       • IWC - Regulation of whaling enforced on 89 member states eg. ban of all commercial whaling in 1982.
       • Antarctic treaty system - Collection of agreements that protect Antarctica through governance eg. Antarctica can only be used for peaceful means, Antarctica is not any countries territory.

2. Global Systems

   • Globalisation
     • Globalisation is the process of becoming globally connected. It is the movement of people, knowledge, ideas, goods and money across national borders
     • Economic - TNC's trade products internationally and use international outsourcing and offshoring to lower costs. Trade blocs creaye economic integration between states and promote development.
     • Cultural - Exposure to media sources such as television and social media allow a recognition and understanding of other cultures. The ability to travel internationally lets people experience cultures.
     • Political - Governments form connections to trade, such as trade deals and trade blocs. International organisations exist to harmonise national economies and political relations.
     • Social - International immigration is creating multicultural societies where people share and adopt cultures. Social networking has revolutionised human connections, as tech platforms enable interactions with people living in different countries and acess to international information
     • Factors affecting globalisation
       • New financial systems - globalisation caused the system to become a global process, incorporating thousands of institutions and banks. Borrowing/investing occurs internationally now as well as nationally eg. buying and selling stocks and shares
       • New financial technologies - Financial technology has made financial information and money easily accessible for people across the world, deepening connections between countries eg. cryptocurrency
       • Transporting goods - Innovations in transport have made it easier to transport goods faster and in larger quantities. High speed rail, faster and bigger planes and boats have allowed the world to become more globalised eg. containerisation
       • Transporting people - New innovations in transport have also allowed for more flows of labour. People are able to move to different countries cheaper and quicker than before eg, High speed rail
       • Security technologies and systems - Due to the world being globalised, countries face threats from other countries. Therefore certain security systems using communication technologies had to be developed to keep countries safe eg. CCTV
       • Communication technologies - The ability to communicate globally has allowed flows of information, services and capital to accelerate eg. GPS on smartphones
       • Management and information systems - globalisation has been accelerated by the way companies manage flows. The way companies are managed has changed due to global relationships and systems in place.
         • Economies of scale - if a company is willing to spend more on initially buying larger factories, raw materials etc. they will save in the long run.
         • Global supply chains - companies can have different stages of production in different countries which minimises costs because each stage of production is specialised, saving time and money
         • Outsourcing - hiring of other companies to complete company tasks that are essential, but not necessary to complete by the company itself eg. call centres
         • Offshoring - relocating a company abroad. Due to communication systems, easier transport and the ability to transfer money, companies use offshoring to minimise costs
       • Trade agreements - Globalisation accelerated due to trade agreements across the world. Trade agreements have made globalisation deepen and accelerate as they make international trading cheaper and easier.
   • Dimensions of Globalisation
     • Flows of capital - movements of money
     • Flows of labour - movement of people
     • Flows of products - flows of goods from one country to another
     • Flows of services - Industries that can locate anywhere without constraints from resources
     • Flows of information - internet, phone calls etc.
   • Global marketing
     • Globalisation has allowed businesses to market their products on an international scale.
   • Patterns of production, distribution and consumption
     • Production - developed markets dominate the global exports in manufactured goods, especially EU and US.
       • Agricultural products - EU and US top exporters, but many other emerging economies are in the top 10 eg. Brazil, China
       • Fuels and mining products - EU top exporter of fuels and mining products. Middle east emerging economies eg. Russia, Saudi Arabia large oil industries
       • Automative products - HIC's and developed markets make majority of cars eg. EU, Japan. Mexico, China, Thailand becoming large exporters of automative products
     • Consumption - HIC's consume more manufactured products than LIC's. There is less demand for goods in LIC's. In developing countries, there is demand for fuel and minerals due to rapid industrialisation in these economies eg. China, India
   • Interdependence
     • Political - Countries rely on each other to intervene if there is political unrest.
     • Economic - Countries are dependant on flows of labour, products and services entering the country in order for the economy to grow.
     • Social - Migration has caused social interdependence as there are now diasporas all over the world dependent on the place they live in.
     • Environmental - All nations are affected by other nations greenhouse has emissions etc. meaning all countries rely on each other to protect the environment.
     • Issues with interdependance
       • Unequal flows of people - The flow of people is globally unequal, people leaving LIC's and entering HIC's than entering LIC's.
         • Benefits of unequal flows of people is increased work force for the country they are migrating to. Workers also send back remittances which helps the home countries economy.
         • Problems with unequal flows of people is that disproportionately large flows can have negative effects on the countries being migrated to eg. host countries become dependent on the migrant workers
       • Unequal flows of money - Majority of money flows are into LIC's eg. FDI and remittances. Flows of money into HIC's are majorly repatriation of profits.
         • Benefits of unequal flows of money is that to the country receiving money, FDI's can improve quality of life as it provides an income that is usually higher than other employment in LIC's.
         • Problems with unequal flows of money are mainly injustice towards people living in LIC's.
       • Unequal flows of ideas - HIC's usually dictate ideas of how countries should be run and how trade should be carried out. Mostly down to these countries having more money so more power over LIC's.
         • Benefits of unequal flows of ideas is that Free trade has increased globally due to deregulation allowing global markets to thrive and decrease risks of conflicts.
         • Problems with unequal flows of ideas is that LIC's may feel forced to keep up with ideas of wealthier countries even if the ideas are not beneficial to these countries eg. it is a disadvantage to their economy.
       • Unequal flows of technology - Flows are unequal between HIC's and LIC's as different types of technology flow between countries. In the past most floes were between HIC's but now HIC's invest in LIC's due to benefits they bring so technology can make capital gains.
         • Benefits of unequal flows of technology is that the economies of LIC's can develop through technology investments eg. opening factories and increasing employment. This strengthens trade deals between HIC's and LIC's.
         • Problems with unequal flows of technology is that companies investing technology into LIC's mean that HIC manufacturing jobs are lost, which can leave people out of work and those with relevant training have nowhere to go.
   • International trade
     • Volume - International trade is occurring more than ever before. Globally, exports are increasing. The volume of global investments is rising - FDI has risen from $400 billion to $1500 billion in 20 years.
     • Patterns - Global trade and investment used to be within the most developed countries, but are now mainly from HIC's investing in LIC's due to profits that can be made from lower labour costs etc. This generates growth in LIC's and allows HIC's to take advantage of lower costs.
     • Fair trade - Globalisation has left less developed markets vulnerable to exploitation. Fair trade was set up to ensure producers receive better trading conditions.
     • Trade blocs - groups of countries in a trading agreement, allowing them to have advantages over other countries eg. reduced tariffs. Trade blocs give countries involved mutual benefits and includes countries with varying economic levels. eg. EU, NAFTA
     • Factors affecting access to markets
       • Trade agreements - Trading agreements bring negative effects to countries eg. disallowing countries in them to trade with other countries. However, access to markets can be improved by trade agreements as a relationship between countries are created that allow more trade to occur.
       • SEZ's - Areas within a country that do not have the same trading regulations as the country they are located in. Regulations are usually less strict and they increase access to markets as countries can afford to invest in the area, increasing international trade
       • Wealth - Generally countries with less wealth have less access to markets. HIC's can afford to pay higher tariffs on imports and exports but those with less wealth may struggle to pay tariffs, and don't have money for outsourcing or offshoring which reduces LIC's access to markets.
   • TNC's
     • Companies operating across multiple countries. The headquarters, production and sales are all in different countries, a crucial aspect of globalisation. TNC's make products, produce jobs, invest in countries and contribute to cultures.
     • Spatial organisation - The HQ of TNC's are located in HIC's. it is responsible for big decisions eg. investments. Research and development are usually in the country the TNC operates from. Manufacturing and production are mainly in LIC's due to increased profits eg. lower labour costs and they all contrinute to the global shift in manufacturing.
     • Production - TNC's use global management systems to maximise profits.
       • Economies of scale - TNC's have large revenue so can afford to upscale production which allows profits to increase.
       • Global supply chains - TNC's use global supply chains to increase profits. HQ and R&D are in HIC's and production occurs globally
       • Outsourcing - TNC's that provide tertiary industry products will outsource tasks to save money and time eg. Apple outsource manufacturing process.
       • Offshoring - Companies that make manufactured goods will have factories in LIC's to lower labour costs which leads to disputes about ethical issues with TNC's exploiting poor citizens to maximise profits.
     • Linkages - TNC's create links between countries and with other countries and other companies and they are created to benefit the TNC which includes expanding the company.
       • FDI - TNC's create links with other countries by investing with them, which benefits the country as it creates jobs and contributes to the economy.
         • Mergers - TNC's join to form a larger company, helping form foreign links
         • Acquisitions - A TNC buys another company to expand, associated with local job loss as the TNC takes full control.
       • Integration - TNC's expand their company by creating linkages between other companies.
         • Horizontal integration - taking ownership of part of the supply chain.
         • Vertical integration - taking ownership of another company in a similar industry
     • Trading and marketing patterns - Most TNC's trade with HIC's as the market for consumer foods is concentrated within richer countries. There is a rapid increase in demand for brands in NEE's eg. latin America. TNC's have a large revenue so the can take advantage of global marketing.