Book · January 012 citation reads 15,521 2

Environmental impact of globalisation

Globalisation can have a destructive impact in regard to the natural environment. Transnational Corporations use natural resources at a rapid rate and are profit- oriented with disregard to environmental protection. Some of the environmental impacts include deforestation and related problems, global warming, environmental
²⁴ management.

• 
  Deforestation means that trees are being cut down rapidly in forests and jungles. Rainforests in many countries have been cut down in order to facilitate the development of industries, agriculture, housing and transportation as well as to make money for the country e.g. Brazil, Indonesia. This deforestation has caused many environmental problems such as soil erosion, extinction of flora and fauna, increase in flooding and haze (forests being burned down).
  
• 
  Global warming. Globalisation also causes global warming. Mainly by the transportation of goods – aeroplanes and ships produce large quantities of greenhouse gases, factories – produce large quantities of greenhouse gases. As a result of the production of these gasses, the average global temperature has increased.
  
• 
  Environmental management. Globalisation also brought about an increase in awareness of environment development - sustainable development. Sustainable development means that development meets the present needs without affecting the ability of further generations to meet their needs. When the environment is well preserved, the use the resources can be continued by the future generations and enjoy a high standard of living as well. Possible alternative energy sources are wind, solar and geothermal power. The main challenge is to convince countries to
  

find such alternative sources and find ways to generate power using those sources. ₂₅

2. Positive Aspects of Globalization

• 
  Worldwide production markets have emerged which resulted in broader access to arrange of foreign products for consumer and companies.
  
• 
  Emerged financial markets resulted in better access to external financing for borrowers.
  
• 
  The interconnectedness of these markets, however, means that economic collapse in any one given country could not be contained.
  
• 
  Ability of governments to work better together towards common goals has increased since there is an advantage in cooperation, an improved ability to interact and coordinate, and a global awareness of issues.
  
• 
  Improved access to foreign culture in the form of movies, music, food, clothing, and more. To put it short, the world has more choices.
  
• 
  Geographically remote locations improved the information flow between them.
  

3. Negative Aspects of Globalization

• 
  Outsourcing, even though it provides jobs to population in one country, it takes away the very same jobs from another country, leaving many people without opportunities.
  
• 
  Even though the ability of different cultures from around the world has improved, they begin to blend in together which results in faded individualities.
  
• 
  Improved chances of disease spreading across the globe including the threat of invasive species that could prove devastating in non-native ecosystems.
  
• 
  The decrease of international regulation could have adverse consequences for the safety of people and the environment.
  
• 
  Large organizations driven by the West such as the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank make it easy for developing countries to obtain loans. However, the Western-focus is often applied to non-Western situations resulting in failed progress.
  

4. Anti-Americanism

Another phenomenon that has arisen in connection with the globalisation is anti- Americanism. What needs to be stated at the very beginning is that anti-americanism
is not a coherent belief system or ideology. Anti-Americanism should be perceived as series of criticism and prejudices towards America which have been labelled anti- Americanism. America as a global superpower faces political as well as economical criticism, and there are many types of anti-Americanism as each nation has its own story to tell when it comes to this subject. The most focus herein will be at the most dominant and most notable types of such criticism which is related to the globalisation. Anti-Americanism in its form today is generally perceived as a dominant component of anti-globalisation. The anti-americanism as we know it today has started on September 11^th 2011. However, the roots of anti-Americanism are dated in the late eighteenth and early nineteenth century as the United States became more than a colonial or religious outpost. The earliest form of anti- americanism aimed its criticism at the lack of taste, grace and civility in American habits and thus everyday American life. As depicted by some European writers, for example by Charles Dickens, Americans were rude and indifferent to manners or polite conversation. Other European intellectuals of the nineteenth century stressed mostly the backwardness and uncouthness which were more over combined with what they regarded as cocksure arrogance. Americans were therefore seen as overconfident and self-important and it was the egocentricity that aggravated and infuriated the culturally developed Europeans. Some say not a lot has changed since the old days in regard to how Europeans view their trans-Atlantic cousins. The American criticism progressively continued during the twentieth century. By winning the Cold War, America did not achieve a global support. Instead of that, disagreements have arisen between the former NATO allies and the 2003 Iraq conflict is perhaps the most obvious example. The end of the Cold World started what was dubbed as the age of globalisation and this era continues today. This period is also frequently associated with the already mentioned anti-globalisation movement and with the world fearing being dominated by the capitalists of the United States as well as by the American culture. Other concerns of the anti-globalisation movement are those of the American influence on the International Monetary Fund as well as the World Bank. The anti-globalisation movement also claims America to be the most responsible for the world poverty, environmental degradation, and global conflict, explains Šaturová (2012).

26

5. Anti-American terrorism

The criticism of America in the post-Cold War period as well as the attacks of 9/11 has caused mixed responses from the rest of the World which was a great surprise to many Americans. These bloody 9/11 attacks have made the anti-Americanism much more serious subject compare to the grievances regarding the manners and culture of the earlier era. September 11^th 2001 undoubtedly means a new phase of anti-Americanism. However, the concerns of the previous phases have carried on. The staring points of violent anti-
Americanism can be traced back to earlier events where Americans were either attacked or killed, such as the murders of Americans in Beirut in 1970s onwards,

Iranian hostage crisis of 1979-1980, the detonation of a van bomb in the World Trade Center of 1993, car bomb attacks on the American embassies in Kenya or the suicide bombings that took place in Yemen in year 2000. The attacks of September 11^th 2001 are regarded as the most significant anti-American acts. The attacks on the Pentagon and the World Trade Center, the terrorists attacked two famous American symbols and by doing so also killed civilians who were mainly American citizens.

6.