Globalization: Hong Kong, Tsimshatsui

There is no place in Asia quite so multicultural as

Tsimshatsui, Hong Kong.

Chungking Mansions--> "Global Building"
-->five 17-story towers are home to fixed population of
around 5,000. But housing and commercial complex is
visited daily by an estimated 10,000 who trade in everything
from secondhand mobile phones to old clothing.
-->Gordon Mathews, professor of anthropology at the
Chinese University of Hong Kong, has been conducting field
research in this high-rise souk for almost a year, living for up
to three nights a week in one of its hostels. 120 different
nationalities counted by examining guesthouse logs.

Low-end globalization is globalization not as practiced by
the big multinationals with their batteries of lawyers and their
billion-dollar budgets, says Mathews.
Its globalization done by individual traders carrying goods
in their suitcases back and forth from their home countries.
Thats the dominant form of globalization here and thats
how globalization works for 70 percent of the worlds
people.

Globalization: Expense of culture

Globalization at the expense of culture

Japan, with an abundance of heritage and cultural capital,
has choose not to open up fully to the outside world
*Main subjects taught in schools conversed in Japanese
instead of the more universally known English to prevent
language erosion.

The Japanese Funds-in-Trust for the Preservation of the
World Cultural Heritage, the most well-known Japanese
Funds-in-Trust, was created in 1989. In 2004, the total
contributions amounted to US$50 million.
This Fund finances projects aimed at preserving and
restoring monuments, sites and archaeological remains of a
great historical/artistic value. Half of the beneficiary sites are
includedat preserving and restoring monuments, sites and
archaeological remains of a great historical/artistic value on
the World Heritage List.

UNESCO and Japan
In developing countries, numerous monuments and sites
threaten to vanish or deteriorate irreversibly for lack of
means and human resources to ensure their restoration and
maintenance. UNESCO and Japan, in addition to the
financial support and help to the buildings' restoration,
organize training workshops aimed at transferring
competences and know-how.
Two major projects within the Fund are the preservation of
the archaeological site of Angkor (Cambodia) and the
conservation of the Bamiyan Site (Afghanistan)

Globalization: Popular Culture

Food has long been an important part of globalization.
Today, foods in Korea and many parts of China are often
spicy. They get their spice from chili peppers. This was not
the case before the 1600s. The fiery chili pepper is native to
the Western Hemisphere. Explorer Christopher Columbus
first brought chilies to Europe in 1493, and from there they
spread across Asia.
People in England eat Indian curry, while people in Peru
enjoy Japanese sushi. Meanwhile, American fast food
chains have become common throughout the world.
McDonald's has more than 31,000 restaurants in 118
countries.

Globalization: Dissent against?

The 1999 meeting of the World Trade Organization (WTO)
was held in Seattle, Washington. This meeting was
protested by thousands of people opposed to globalization.
The protests turned violent. Hundreds of people were
arrested. Many were injured in confrontations with police.
Many buildings were damaged. The incident is sometimes
called "the Battle in Seattle."

Globalization: Society

Economic

Most large corporations operate in many countries around
the world. HSBC, the worlds largest bank, has offices in 88
different countries. Originally, HSBC stood for Hongkong
Shanghai Banking Corporation, which was founded in 1865
to promote trade between China and the United Kingdom.
Today, HSBC has its headquarters in London, England.

Crime

Because people, money, and computerized information
move so easily around the globe, countries are increasingly
working together to fight crime. The idea of maintaining
international law has also grown. In 2002, the International
Criminal Court was established. This court, which handles
cases such as war crimes, has a global reach, although not
all countries have accepted it.