PILLARS OF GLOBALIZATION

CHAPTER 1

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THE PILLARS OF GLOBALIZATION
NAYEF R.F. AL-RODHAN
Dr. Nayef R.F. Al-Rodhan is Senior Scholar in Geostrategy and Director of the Program on the Geopolitical Implications of Globalization and Transnational Security at the Geneva Centre for Security Policy, Geneva, Switzerland

I. Introduction
Globalization has become an increasingly significant force in the world of academia and in governmental institutions and processes over the past few decades. How to define globalization, the historical origins of the phenomenon, and how to measure its impact on policy have all been subjects of discussion within various think tanks, governments, and international institutions around the world. By assessing all of these subjects in terms of security, one can start to understand the current and future implications of globalization and how it will shape our future in terms of politics, economics, the environment, and military matters. The five pillars of globalization as we define them are: the definition of globalization, the history of globalization, quantification of globalization, security aspects of globalization, and, finally, stability aspects of globalization.
Each pillar of globalization provides a fundamental piece of the concept that is needed in order to understand its beginnings, current status, and future influences. The second chapter provides a historical overview of the abundance of definitions and perceptions of globalization while also presenting our own definition. Chapter 3 looks at the historical origins of globalization and analyzes trends by identifying what we have termed “globalization events” throughout history from a number of cultural perspectives. Chapter 4 assesses how globalization can be measured and quantified by assessing current policy challenges to states and regions. In the fifth and sixth chapters, the authors explore the ways in which globalization can impact security and stability at the international level and ways in which we can measure the impact of globalization on both.
This book developed out of a desire to provide a comprehensive review of the impact that globalization is having on international and national security. In order to do that effectively, a definition of globalization was established, and the development of globalization was also examined. Globalization has not emerged outside other historical events; rather, globalization is a theme that has been impacting our societies and communities for quite some time.1 This publication will describe the main origins of globalization and how various individuals, institutions, and governments have attempted to define globalization. We will also propose a method for measuring the impact of globalization on policy-making processes at the state, regional, and international levels, as well as the impact on the geopolitical implications of globalization for security and stability. By providing a viewpoint from each of these perspectives, globalization will be well established as a topic to be studied in a number of fields by providing information required for any comprehensive and effective study of globalization and its implications for the future stability and security of the international system.
Throughout the book, the various ways in which globalization and its effects have shaped past and current decision-making apparatuses within states will become clear. Though the term globalization appeared in dictionaries only a quarter of a century ago,2 what could be called globalization events were occurring as early as 2500 BC through large-scale contact and trading between European and Asian powers. We define a globalization event or milestone as an event or an occurrence that brought people, states, institutions, languages, or some other facet of humanity closer together than they were previously. Understanding the origins of globalization and the evolutions that is has experienced over the centuries is critical to understanding current trends and also to understanding the various options for where globalization is headed in the future. By illustrating how globalization is variously understood, as well as its origins, proposed means for measuring various aspects of the process of globalization, and its impact on security and stability, an encyclopedic reference of globalization has been established that will be useful for anyone seeking to gain a better understanding of this force and its impact on our modern world.

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