The main topic of ch 23 was inequality across the world. Inequailty has become more visible since the world has become more connected, since having trade across countries shows what countries have more than others. Now people aren't just unequal in their own country, but unequal on a global scale. Inequailty also isn't just monetary, access to certain resources like water or facilities like schools are unequal in distribution. Unfortunatly, everywhere has inequality, but now we are able to understand where we stand and what we don't have that others have in abundance.
The Maya Coffee farmers show certain benefits of free trade. Rural farmers were able to set a minimum price they were paid for their coffee that allowed them to not go under in times of uncertainity. Due to this, they have stability on the market. However, this is just the minimum they can go, and it's not exactly enough to prosper. They still get so much less than the people selling the coffee to the average consumer. Fair Trade allows them to survive, but it's still not enough to solve the issues of a global market.
The Colbalt Pipeline reveals the disconnect between the consumer and the production of their products. While we enjoy a vast amount of electronics to make our life easier, there are miners in the Congo making barely anything mining in dangerous conditions to get the cobalt for those electronics. Child labor is used in this process, and it goes through so many hands that you have to go digging to find where it even originated from. I love my phone, my laptop, ipad, but sometimes you really need to sit down and actually look at where your products come from, and if you really feel comfortable supporting this.
2 comments:
I like how you explained about inequality being global and not just within individual countries. I would say globalisation has made these differences more visible and I agree that inequality isn’t just about money but also access to things like education and clean water. I think a lot of the readings and documentaries we have watched throughout this class have really helped highlight this.
I also think your example of the Maya coffee farmers shows both the benefits and limits of free trade. Fair Trade helps them survive, but it still does not mean that it is enough to make things equal. I agree with your point about cobalt, because I think a lot of us don’t realise where our everyday products come from or the conditions people work in to actually make them.
I liked your point about cobalt and how this issues of child labor affect all of us and a lot of what we use on a daily basis. It's not only sad to read about the child labor and poor working conditions of the cobalt miners, but to know that this has been an ongoing issue for quite some time now with little to no resolve or accountability from the companies makes it frustrating as well.
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