In The News

How Globalization Went Pop, What It Means for Workers

Charles Davi April 16, 2013
Concepts of entropy may assist in understanding globalization’s ways and its rate of speed, suggests attorney Charles Davi in the Atlantic. Entropy, as law of physics, suggests that nature and energy are in flux – orderly concentrations spread into disorder. Information entropy is a method for measuring diffusion. By analyzing global GDP among nations in 1990 – and nations’ specific contributions...

Pope Francis, Known for Simplicity and Conservatism

Anthony Faiola March 14, 2013
Early reports about Pope Francis point to an anti-globalization streak, in that he has spoken out against the “evils of globalization.” But such characterizations center on a narrow definition of globalization, restricting the phenomenon to financial activities. In his first address, Pope Francis asked, “Let us pray for the whole world that there might be a great sense of brotherhood.” The...

The Financial Crash Will Not Bring About “Globalization on Steroids”

Joshua Kurlantzick March 11, 2013
Despite the international outlook of the leaders of the world’s two biggest economies – the US and China – Joshua Kurlantzick argues that there is a new trend of deglobalization. The precarious state of the world economy is contributing to the prominence of national boundaries in shaping economic policies. Foreign investment has dried up as national legislatures reject takeovers or funding for...

Is This the End of Globalization?

David Francis March 4, 2013
Investors are less intent on pursuing cross-border profits, investing in overseas endeavors. A McKinsey Global Institute report measured money in the global financial system before and after the 2007-2008 financial crisis: In 2007, $11.8 trillion in investments and loans crossed borders; the figure for 2012 is $5 trillion. “McKinsey hedges the report by saying that some of the capital removed...

Developing Countries and Global Trade

March 1, 2013
With almost any product – electronics, processed food, even some services – designs and components are sourced from multiple countries. A new report from the UN Commission on Trade and Development suggests that global investment and trade have become “inextricably intertwined through international production networks of growing degrees of complexity that now account for some 80 percent of the...

Horsing Around the Global Food Chain

Nayan Chanda February 18, 2013
Regulators in Britain tested the DNA of meat in packaged lasagnas, labeled as beef, and discovered some containing more than half horsemeat. Fast, convenient, affordable frozen and processed meals – often marketed to the poorest consumers – have complex supply chains with many subcontractors for the many ingredients, explains Nayan Chanda, YaleGlobal’s editor. Intense competition and lingering...

What Does It Mean to Be Comfortable?

Maggie Koerth-Baker February 7, 2013
Cultural expectations influence individual perceptions of comfort, but these expectations are evolving as globalization introduces new work schedules and styles. Still, there’s no universal ideas on a “right” temperature as people prefer what’s customary for them, explains Maggie Koerth-Baker for the NewYork Times Magazine. Norwegians’ aspire to make their homes comfortable for visitors and keep...