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Globalisation is not the end of the world

by Simon Longstaff

Many of those who attended this year's annual meeting of the World Economic Forum in Davos will have come away with the impression that the dominant issue of the day is the Internet. In one sense, it is – with every session on e-commerce packed with eager chief executives and politicians trying to wrap their minds around the shape of the Internet revolution and its likely impact on our future.

Indeed, anyone who is serious about ensuring Australia's future as a prosperous, developed nation must come to terms with the fact that the world has already been transformed by a revolution – of which the Internet is only the most obvious part. Look below the surface and you soon realise that this revolution is really about something far more powerful – an awakening sense of global interdependence.

The importance of inter-dependence was underscored in the opening, plenary session at Davos. The organisers of the conference used the latest wireless technology to conduct an electronic poll of the participants who were asked to rank issues according to their global importance. The choice was a broad one including such diverse options as increasing the incidence of democratic government, liberalising trade, extending the reach and effect of the Internet, global warming. The audience was amazed that the issue of global warming topped the poll.

Issues such as the internet, global warming and, yes, even world trade liberalisation and globalisation, are all examples of what it means to be connected with each other and the world. The internet makes this connection more immediate and obvious. Global warming proclaims the implications in bold letters while recent debate, swirling around the concept of globalisation, has led to the conclusion that no interest group (whether it be government, business or non-government organisations) should have a right to set the terms of trade exclusively for its own benefit.

So, what is the significance for Australia? First, we need to understand that a world of interdependence can be far more challenging than one based on the principle of mutual independence.

For a start, an increasing number of people recognise that their interests intersect with ours and take a closer interest in what we do. International capital markets take an interest, institutions for global governance (such as the UN) take an interest, NGOs take an interest, multinational corporations (wanting a slice of their international portfolio to reside in our country) take an interest. If you get things right, the world applauds. If you make a mistake, you are liable to be scorned by a planetary version of the 'peanut gallery". Put simply, a recognition of shared, global interests and vastly improved communications all combine to raise expectations and reduce the margin for error.

Of added significance is the fact that established boundaries become permeable – with a blurring of the divide between domestic and international issues. This means that issues once thought to be the exclusive province of the nation-state (mandatory sentencing comes to mind) become the concern of many others. And when people harness technology to communicate with each other and arrange their affairs accordingly, it can have a profound effect on even the most powerful governments and companies.

So it is that success is being redefined, across the world, according to concepts like the 'triple bottom line' – in which economic performance, environmental sustainability and increasing social capital are judged to be of equal importance.

If we are to flourish as a community, then we will need to come to terms with this new way of looking at our relationships both at home and abroad. But first we will need to come to terms with some of the deeper implications of this change in expectations.

If Australia misses out on the new opportunities before us, it will not be because of a lack of ability; it will be because of a surfeit of fear – fear of change, fear of social dislocation, fear for our environment, fear for our future. Too many people believe that interdependence must be rejected lest it undermine our distinctive way of life. However, fear of change will do nothing to stop it in its tracks. Rather, we need to understand and master the forces that are shaping our future – above all by investing heavily in education and by providing decent transition measures to support those whose lives are disrupted by the process of reform.

Beyond all else we need good leadership, not just from government but also from the private sector. Our leaders need to explain their vision of an interdependent world in which Australia plays an active and constructive role.

Accepting the consequences of interdependence represents a significant challenge to some of the strongest myths we hold about ourselves as Australians – a resourceful and (above all else) independent people living on an isolated (and safe) island continent. The truth is that we are neither as isolated nor as independent as we once believed.

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