In The News

Global Brands Contend With Appreciation for the Local

Bryant Simon July 6, 2010
Fear of global brands is a powerful, universally recognized phenomenon. Just as powerful and less noticed is the consumer pushback against global brands and search for unique, local products, notes Bryant Simon, author and American Studies professor. “The spread of these branded symbols of globalization raises the value of the local,” he maintains, explaining how Starbucks deliberately set out...

Lack of Bees Could Cause “Wonky Strawberries”

Louise Gray June 25, 2010
England’s bees are vanishing faster than anywhere else in Europe, reports Louis Gray for the Telegraph. With bees responsible for up to one third of the food supply, the British government is funding research to track down reasons behind the disappearance and find ways to boost populations. Insect pollinators contribute £440 million to the British economy, researchers estimate. Climate change,...

Taming Globalization? Kebabs, Mini-Skirts and Meth – Part II

Ilaria Maria Sala May 20, 2010
Citizens around the globe understandably want to honor and protect their culture, expressed through language, food and art, from “foreign” influence – although such influences were often essential in creating traditions. The second article of this two-part series examines Italy’s battle against globalization, as politicians scramble to outdo one another with populist laws aimed at banning foreign...

Adieu, Atlantic Blue Fin Tuna?

Alex David Rogers March 17, 2010
The Atlantic blue fin tuna risks extinction thanks to overfishing and poor global governance, according ocean expert Alex David Rogers. To add insult to injury, recent proposals to ban all international trade in the fish are being rejected by Japan, the largest consumer. Japan’s decision could significantly undermine the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) and deal a...

Japan Objects to Proposed Bluefin Ban

Yuka Hayashi March 9, 2010
The global body that sets policy for endangered species is facing a challenge from Japan over a proposal to limit the number of bluefin tuna that can be traded. The Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) is alarmed by declining bluefin stocks and will consider a proposal to ban the export of the fish. But Japan consumes about three-quarters of the world's bluefin...

The Fight Over the Future of Food

Claudia Parsons, Russell Blinch, Svetlana Kovalyova November 18, 2009
Population growth and climate change are creating the need for a second Green Revolution. But the form that revolution should take is heavily contested. Activists argue that the second revolution can’t be like the first, which left behind environmental damage and some claim is not sustainable. The debate is further complicated by a divide between developed and developing nations, and differing...

Thai Workers Fly to Sweden Where the Wild Berries Are

Bertil Lintner September 23, 2009
Wet summer weather in Northern Sweden has affected not only the yield of wild berries growing there, but also the economic well-being of the berry pickers, which, in this case, happen to be temporary workers from Thailand. Journalist Bertil Lintner writes that in 2007, Sweden began to give Thais temporary work visas to pick berries, encouraging close to a five-fold increase in workers by 2009. It...