 PRESIDENT’S WEB LOG 2007 Tim Mack, President |
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Globalization
© 2007 |
April 2007,
No. 5 A recent trip to South Korea has stimulated a range of questions, including why "The Future" gets so much more attention in some countries than others. The Korean government, the Korean public and the Korean private sector are all intensely interested in how to address the questions raised by a study of the future. Accordingly, conferences on the challenges facing various industries, such as electronics, education, digital communications or even tourism is discussed and analyzed by the government, the media and even the general public. Digital democracy is a reality in Korea, with "citizen cell phone input" an ongoing factor in a factor which was watching TV on their cell phones three years ago. Accordingly, many analysts look to countries like South Korea as bellwethers that offer some hint as to what the future will look like in countries slower to reach full "connectivity"’ (like the United States). One example was the recent Yale University study on the impact of Digital Democracy on the 2003 Korean Presidential election, where the outcome changed dramatically on election day because of a text message campaign on election morning. Another interesting aspect of a visit to a country like Korea is that is makes it clear that while globalization has made certain brand name products "ubiquitous" worldwide, the culture of each country still retains its local uniqueness, whether expressed in food, core beliefs or even expressions of "polite" and "impolite" behavior. Hopefully, "one size fits all" uniform global culture will stay in the realm of futures fiction. However, that is just my opinion. I would be
very interested in your own experiences with globalization (good and
bad) and the trends you have observed. For one, is English actually
becoming a universal language or is the trend now moving in another
direction. Love to hear from you!
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