Globalisation – winners or losers?

Jonathan (43) worked in a call centre in the UK. He recently lost his job when his
company decided to base their call centre in India where labour is cheaper.

Mollie (13) works in a sweatshop in a SE Asian country making T shirts that are sold
in the USA, Western Europe and Japan. She works very long hours and is paid very
little by her employers.

Yanik (27) is grateful to people in Western Europe. His home in Indonesia was
destroyed by the Tsunami and he lost his possessions. Now he is rebuilding his
home with help from donations made by people who live thousands of miles away.

Miko (14) who lives in Japan enjoys listening to British bands and she downloads
their music from the Internet.

Dave (27) lives in Dundee in Scotland. He loves eating exotic tropical fruit and is able
to buy a wide range of these products in his local supermarket. His favourite is
guava!

Michelle (16) is from Lyon in France. Every year her mum and dad take her and her
brother to a different country on holiday. She’s just come back from a fabulous trip to
Mexico.

Zak (31) lives in London. He loves eating out. In his part of the city there are Thai,
Vietnamese and Indian restaurants to choose from. He can eat food from all over the
world without having to travel more than a mile from his home.

Jen lives in Australia. She’s studying history at university. In her spare time she
enjoys watching Bollywood movies with her friends. She wants to learn to dance like
a Bollywood star and is attending classes in Melbourne.

Sania (10) lives in Sri Lanka. His family are farmers. They get a good price for their
product because the farmers in their village are part of a Fair Trade scheme. Sania’s
dad can now afford to send him to school.

Kubya (8) is very pleased. Volunteers from Tear Fund (a Western Aid organisation)
have installed a water pump in her village. Now she no longer has to spend hours
each day carrying water from the river to her home in the village.

An African boy, Benal (11), is saving up to buy a can of soft drink made by a large
transnational corporation. It is expensive but he wants to buy it to be the same as his
friends.

Kali (17) works on a West African farm as a labourer. She is helping to grow cocoa
beans for use in the making of chocolate which is eaten by consumers in the UK and
Ireland. She only receives food and clothing from her employer. She is virtually a
slave.

Mr Caldwell (63) from Marazion in Cornwall owns hundreds of shares in a large

transnational company that makes pharmaceutical products (medicines and drugs). It
is making massive profits and paying out excellent dividends to its shareholders,
including Mr Caldwell.
Elaine (26) lives and works in Brazil. She is employed by Fiat, a huge transnational
corporation. Global communications technology allow her to keep in touch with her
mum who lives back home in Wales. She talks to her mum on the phone, and also
communicates with her via webcam and e-mail

Paul (40) lives on a remote farm in the prairies region of the USA. He knows what’s
going on all around the world because he watches the news on satellite TV. He is
very well informed about global issues as a result.

Ben is concerned about deforestation and the greenhouse effect. He’s done research
on the Internet and listened to programmes on the BBC World Service. He’s setting
up his own campaign group to protect threatened species in the Amazon.

Lanya (39) is worried that her children are being harmed by American movies and
culture. She thinks that they are in danger of losing their Icelandic cultural identity.
They use English words in conversation and spend time discussing American
celebrities

Anna (28) is a fluent speaker of Mandarin Chinese. She has just helped her
company, KFC, a massive transnational corporation, to break into the Chinese
market. Her bosses are delighted and she’s received a huge bonus.

Wayne (20) is really pleased. He has just bought a replica shirt for the soccer team
he supports from a market stall in his home town of Leeds, northern England. It was
made in Pakistan and was very cheap.

Chris (44) is happy. His work takes him all over the world. Wherever he goes he can
nearly always buy a burger from his favourite fast food outlet, Burger King. Junk food
appears to be truly global.

Petra (20) lives in Russia. She supports an English soccer team and wears a replica
shirt. She watches them play on satellite TV

Kedya (36) works in a factory in Turkey where components are made for V W cars.
The cars are sold in American and Japan. The work is boring but he is paid well and
saving up for his own home.

Jano’s leg was blown off by a landmine during a civil war in Africa. The Aid workers
that are helping the seven year old to walk again come from the same country where
the landmine was produced.

Kavya (22) works in a call centre in India and earns more money than she did in her
previous job. She is employed by a telecommunications company which has recently
relocated its call centre from the UK where labour costs are much higher.