Friday, May 3, 2024

Last Blog

 The first article Conserving Communities talks about the effect globalization has had on rural areas, specifically farming communities. He starts the paper by stating that in 1993 the US Census Bureau had stopped counting the number of farmers in America. Farmers used to be a large percentage of the overall population, but that has now dwindled to about 2%. To prop up agricultural communities the author argues that people should buy and eat local produce.  There is some credence to this argument as by buying locally, you are putting money back into the local economy and directly helping local farmers continue their work. However, there are also some issues with this system. Rural economies often have a low median salary, money is stagnant in the local economic system, and people do not have a lot of expendable cash. Thus, it may be hard to buy purely locally as the cost is sometimes higher and puts a strain on rural families that do not have enough income. Also, buying locally does not reinforce any other part of the local economic system other than farmers, and would not help bring jobs or other business back. The second article I thought gave better advice on how to combat globalism and how to support local communities. This article addresses tasks people can do on multiple levels, from local, national, and global to support their communities. Locally, the article recommends buying fair trade items, joining a CSA, and using eco-friendly products. As a worker, the article recommends exercising pension power and forming worker-owned co-ops to funnel money back into the community. I thought this recommendation was interesting as it would bring business and wealth back into the local communities and not to a removed international company. As a global citizen, the article recommends to participate in international exchanges and to travel.

No comments: