Class 12: Globalization and Governance 2 Sociology 2 Copyright © 2013 by Evan Schofer Do not copy or distribute without permission

Class 12: Globalization and Governance 2

Sociology 2

Copyright © 2013 by Evan Schofer

Do not copy or distribute without permission

Announcements

• Announcements• Midterm grading underway• Should be done in about a week

– (approximately; sometimes goes quicker or slower)

• Monday: President’s day• No section on MONDAY ONLY• Other sections meet as usual

• Today’s class:• Global civil society & “social movements”• The global environmental movement (an example)

Review: Globalization and Governance

• Issue: Can we do anything about the negative consequences of globalization?

• Stiglitz recommends we “reform governance”• What does he mean?

• Governance: Ruling, governing, or managing

• Sovereignty: Supreme power or authority to govern a territory;

• Being free from external control• The US government has total sovereignty if no external

political body can make rules/laws in its territory• Related term: autonomy

Review: Governance: Definitions

• Treaty: An agreement among nations to follow certain rules

• Ex: GATT: “General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade”– Set rules for global trade, prior to the WTO

• Ex: Montreal Protocol on CFC emissions– An environmental treaty, in which countries agreed to ban the

use of chemicals that damaged the Ozone layer.

Governance: Definitions• IGO: Inter-governmental Organization: An

organization whose members are governments– Again, purpose is usually to negotiate or enforce agreements

among governments

• Ex: The World Trade Organization (WTO)• Ex: The World Bank

– Governments created it to reduce poverty and encourage development via loans and projects

• Ex: The International Monetary Fund: Works to stabilize the global financial system, avoid economic disasters

– Often acts as “lender of last resort” for countries in trouble

• Ex: European Union– An supra-national government that coordinates (and in some cases

has the power to set) economic & trade policies for member countries

• Ex: UNEP: The United Nations Environment Program– Branch of the UN; urges nations to address environmental issues

Civil Society• Issue: States and corporations are not the

only players in global governance

• Civil society: citizen activity in the public sphere that is not part of the state or business sector

• Includes things like: Citizen participation in organizations, protest activities

• Social movements: Sustained efforts by members of civil society to challenge existing governance and produce social change

• Protests – a common strategy of social movements…

Governance: Definitions• Some components of civil society:• Non-governmental Organization (NGO)

• A domestic association– Clean Water Action; The Nature Conservancy

• Also sometimes called “non-profits” or “associations”

• International non-governmental organization (INGO)

• An association that is international in membership and (typically) scope

• Ex: Greenpeace, WWF

• Labor unions• Groups that represent the interest of workers.

Key Players in Global Governance

Governance: Issue to reflect on…

• Issue: Who should be able to participate in making the rules for governing globalization?

• Just states?• Domestic or international NGOs & social movements?• Random people?• What would a more democratic “global governance”

look like?

Video: Commanding Heights

• Issue: Who “writes the rules” of global governance?

• Debates about global governance, and the anti-globalization movement

• Episode 3, Chapters 15-17 (12 minutes)– Time index: 1:14:35 – 1:25:50

Video: Commanding Heights

• If time allows:

• Inequality, governance, and the future of globalization– Issue: Should NAFTA be expanded?

– “Free trade area of the americas” (FTAA)

• Bush 2 administration and many developing countries wanted to do that

– Multilateral negotiation…

• But, many major protests• Commanding Heights, episode 3

– 1:41:06 to 1:49:50 (9 minutes)

Civil Society & Governance• How does civil society affect governance?

• 1. National civil society and social movements put pressure on states

• Example: US environmental organizations put pressure on governments to address problems or participate in global treaties

• 2. Global civil society and social movements can put pressure on states and intergovernmental organizations

• Ex: Greenpeace can try to pressure countries around the world; and put pressure on the World Bank.

Civil Society & Governance• How does civil society affect governance?

• 3. Globalization increases the opportunities of civil society

– Optional reading in Week 8: Keck and Sikkink 1998– National civil society can gain assistance from other states or

global civil society

– Ex: Domestic human rights protestors are often unsuccessful by themselves due to repression

• But, domestic protestors can increasingly appeal to the international community

• Domestic protestors can get help from international NGOs or people in wealthy nations

– Increasing their chances of success.

Civil Society & Governance• Civil society strategies:

• 1. Education / creating awareness of problems• And, encouraging people to change behavior

• 2. Lobbying/fundraising to affect elections

• 3. “Contentious politics” – direct challenge to state (or international) authority

• Demonstrations; civil disobedience; even violent acts (e.g., destroying a plant genetics lab)

• Issue: Social movements often use all of these strategies to generate change.

Growth of Global Civil Society

• Global civil society has been growing rapidly:

International Associations 1880-1990

0

1000

2000

3000

4000

5000

6000

7000

8000

9000

1880 1900 1920 1940 1960 1980Year

Environmental Problems & Movements

• Question: When does “civil society” become active? When do we get “social movements”?

• Example: Occupy Wall Street• Example: The global environmental movement• And, does it matter?

Environmental Problems

• Deforestation, habitat loss, biodiversity loss

By David Biello http://www.scientificamerican.com/slideshow.cfm?id=landscapes-of-extraction-and-heavy-industry&photo_id=ED824DB3-F06E-BAA0-088E5A0A95BCC56C

http://www.scientificamerican.com/slideshow.cfm?id=landscapes-of-

Environmental Problems

Global Environmental Movement• The global environmental movement

• Civil society efforts to address environmental problems on a global scale…

• Historical background:– Prior to 1950, there were few attempts to

systematically address environmental problems– Starting in 1960s, rapid social change occurred:

• Growth of a popular environmental movement in US and Europe

• First major national laws to halt pollution.

Global Environmental Movement• 1970s: Environmentalism goes global

• 1972: First major international conference addressing environmental issues

• Big growth in INGOs, treaties, IGOs

– By 1990s• Large numbers of environmental NGOs and INGOs

– National and global civil society…

• Many international treaties & IGOs– Increased global governance

– International movements and governance linked to changes in government policies

• Nearly all countries have environmental protection laws, addressing air, water, etc.

Trends in Environmental Protection

Source: Frank et al. 2000

The Global Environmental Movement

• Question: Why has the global environmental movement been (somewhat) successful?

• This isn’t to say that all problems have been solved…• But, there has been remarkable social change over

last 30 years…

• Most common explanation:• Environmental problems (pollution, disasters) got so

bad that people got angry, frustrated…• Therefore people banded together around common

concerns, began to fight for social change• In short, social problems (or “grievances”)

generate social movements.


• Grievance-based explanations of social movements are very appealing

• And, are echoed by social movement participants, themselves

• Sociologists are critical of such explanations• Classic work by Tilly; Macadam, McCarthy & Zald.

– Historically, many important social problems and grievances have not produced effective movements

• For instance: Poorest & most oppressed rarely revolt• Ex: Environmental protests are more likely in clean

suburbs, rather than urban/industrial areas.


• Environmental grievances have existed for centuries, without prompting a movement– Example: London “fog”, which killed people in

the 19th & 20th centuries• Extreme example: “Great Smog” of 1952

– At least 4,000 direct deaths, possibly 10,000 additional…

• Wouldn’t you expect a much stronger environmental movement then?

– Example: Mass deforestation in Europe was celebrated, rather than treated as a problem.


• What makes a social movement happen?

• Scholars of the civil rights movement observed the following requirements:

• 1. Resource mobilization– Social movements require resources: Money,

people, organizational capacity• Example: Black churches in the American South• Example: Anti-globalization protestors in

Commanding Heights video. They were skilled college students with free time and strong organizational capacity.


• Environmentalism in US and Europe started among wealthy suburbanites

• They were professionals, with lots of money, organizational capacity

• Environmental movement was not started by those most directly affected by urban pollution, environmental health threats.



• 2. Political Opportunities– Success of social movement depends a lot on

the political environment:– 1. Overall level of political repression

• Example: Protest is rare in authoritarian countries

– 2. Kind of party in power; Allies in high places• Example: Unions fared worse under Reagan,

Thatcher.


• The environmental movement emerged in the 1960s

• The broader social change of the civil rights movement provided a political opportunity

• The country (and government) was moving to the left, and there was a willingness to address new ideas and new social problems

• More recently, the environmental movement fared better under Clinton & Obama than Bush.



• 3. Framing– “Framing” refers to strategic use of potent

images and symbols (“cognitive frames”) to support a cause

• Think of it as PR for social movements

– Example: Pro-choice vs. Pro life– Example: Anti-globalization unions equate

manufacturing job with American “way of life”• …Free Trade will turn us into a 3rd world country

• Can you think of more examples?


• Environmentalists have a long history of successful framing– Example: Animal rights movement effectively

used images of baby seals being killed by clubs– Example: Rachel Carson’s book “Silent Spring”– Also, they use cultural frames and arguments

from science to press their cause• They borrow the “authority” of science.


• In sum: global environmentalism has a history of:

• Effective resource mobilization• Political opportunities• Successful framing

• Result: Global environmentalists were relatively successful in US, Europe, and on a global scale

• States enacted basic laws to protect air, water, consumers, etc

• Treaties and IGOs were formed to protect endangered species, certain pollutants (e.g., CFCs).


• Question #2: Does the global environmental movement matter? Does it improve the situation?

• Answer: Yes and No.

• In some cases, environmental destruction has been reversed due to citizen action & government reform:

• Air pollution in many US cities• Water pollution of lakes and rivers• Some endangered species (e.g., elephants).

The Environmental Movement• In some cases, environmental destruction is

still getting worse, but not as fast as predicted (given growth of population, GDP)

• Ex: deforestation

• Finally, some environmental problems just keep getting worse and worse

• Ex: habitat destruction (ex: rainforests), overuse of antibiotics, etc.


• In sum: There is no doubt that the global environmental movement has had some important successes

• This is notable to sociologists, because many social movements fail utterly

– Especially those that challenge the interests of capitalists

– BUT: HUGE challenges remain…• The magnitude of the problem is staggering• In world of 7 billion people and over $40 trillion of

yearly economic activity, there is a lot of degradation• Successes of environmental movement may ultimately

prove insufficient.

If time remains:

• Amusing Video:• Video\If_Star_Wars_was_made_by_environmentalists...

mp4

• Issues raised in the video:– Environmentalists do not have much “power”…

– Often engage in symbolic activities

• This speaks to theories we will discuss next week– Some theories argue that the rich and powerful will always get

their way– Others suggest that symbolic actions (e.g., by

environmentalists) can be consequential– Issue to ponder: What do you think?

Upcoming Readings: Theories

• Issue: What is a “theory”?

• Little “t” theory: A specific claim: an argument that leads to empirical predictions

• Example: Economic law of “supply and demand”– A theory… (“laws” are just theories that work well)

• Claim: prices reflect equilibrium of supply and demand• We can “test” this theory with experiments…

• Big “T” Theory: Big ideas: A broad set of ideas and imageries about the social world

• “Big ideas” that guide researchers and help to generate specific (“little t”) theories

• Example: Marxist theory: not just a single prediction

Theories• Marxism (“big T” Theory) combines:

• 1. Observations about the nature of capitalism– e.g., exploitation of labor

• 2. Identification of important dynamics – e.g., dialectics, historical shift from feudalism to capitalism

• 3. Development of new concepts– e.g., Alienation, false consciousness

• 4. Complex predictions about the future– e.g., capitalist revolution, socialism

• 5. Normative evaluations

– This broader kind of “theory” is useful because it generates a rich description of the world

• And produces many specific claims to be tested• But, it isn’t easy to prove “right” or “wrong”.

Main Theories: The Economy• General perspectives on the economy:

• Readings by Brawley, Sernau

• 1.Adam Smith: Markets as prosperity & progress

• “Liberalism”, “Neo-liberalism”

• 2. Karl Marx: Markets as a destructive force• Cause of inequality and misery

• 3. Keynesianism: Markets as beneficial but unstable

• Markets need to be regulated to be stable• Workers and vulnerable groups need protection• Also discussed in Serneau reading: “Optimal hybrid?”

Main Theories: Sociology• Covered in readings by Sernau, Schofer et al• 1. Modernization theory

• An optimistic view that societies will “develop” and become more prosperous

• 2. World System Theory (W-Sys)– Related view: “Dependency Theory”. I will lump them

together, despite some differences

• Building on Marx: economic exploitation will perpetuate global inequality

• 3. World Society Theory (W-Soc)• Also called “world polity theory”, “Institutional” or “neo-

institutional” theory• Argues that international institutions and “global

culture” are reshaping the world.

Main Theories: Political Science• Covered by Brawley (and next week)• 1. Realism

– Also called: Neo-realism, the “realist” view

• A theory emphasizing the importance of military (not economic) power…

• 2. Institutionalism / interdependence• WARNING: World Society Theory also called

“institutionalism”• Interdependence has lead to the creation of global

institutions. Power isn’t the only thing that matters.

• 3. Constructivism• A political science version of ‘World polity theory”• Global norms and ideas influence countries…

Readings: Week 7

• Serneau, Scott. “Class: A World of Rich and Poor.”

• Provides general background on global inequality• Reviews broad theories of the economy

– Adam Smith & the economists (optimistic)– Karl Marx (pessimist)

• Reviews two main sociology theories:– Why are some nations rich and some poor?

• Modernization theory (optimistic)• Dependency theory (pessimistic)

– Similar to “World-system theory”…

Readings: Week 7

• Brawley, Mark R. 2003. “Theoretical Lenses for Viewing Globalization”

• A more challenging reading…

– Reviews perspectives on markets• Adam Smith: Markets as a source of “progress”• Keynesians: Markets as a source of instability• Marx: Markets as a destructive force

– Reviews theories from political science• Realism• Institutionalism / Interdependence• Constructivism.

Readings: Week 7

• Schofer, Evan, Ann Hironaka, David Frank, and Wesley Longhofer. 2011. “Sociological Institutionalism and World Society.”

• Describes “world society theory”• Also called “world polity theory” or “neo-institutional

theory”

Documents

Class 12: Globalization and Governance 2 Sociology 2 Copyright © 2013 by Evan Schofer Do not copy or distribute without permission