Quality of Life: Globalization, Development Indicators, and Sustainability

Comprehensive vocabulary flashcards covering the key concepts, metrics, and models of globalization, quality of life, and environmental sustainability from Unit 2.

Globalization

The trend toward a more interconnected and interdependent world among people, cultures, economies, and nation-states.

Global Village

The concept of the world viewed as a single community in which distance and isolation have been dramatically reduced by modern communication and transportation.

Cultural Globalization

The gradual homogenization (blending) of world cultures, often occurring at the expense of distinct local traditions as common attitudes and behaviours spread globally.

Economic Globalization

The integration of global economic systems, facilitating the movement of goods, production, capital, labour, and resources across international borders.

Environmental Globalization

The process by which countries establish shared attitudes, international treaties, and common priorities regarding resource use and environmental protection.

Political Globalization

The adoption of similar governmental structures and international governance systems across nations, shaping policy-making and collective decision-making.

Technological Globalization

The rapid global spread of communications and computer technologies, leading to expanded internet connectivity, social media usage, and access to information.

Perspective

A particular attitude toward or way of regarding something; an individual or group's point of view.

Socio-Economic Status

A measure of an individual's position within a community or society, determined by education, income, parents' occupation, and geographic location.

Life Experiences

The wide range of personal background factors—such as ethnic heritage, age, gender, schooling, travel, residence, and exposure to conflict or cooperation—that shape an individual's outlook.

Fact

Knowledge that is certain, objective, and verifiable through observation or experience, which cannot be altered by personal feelings.

Opinion

Judgments or beliefs that are subjective and not necessarily grounded in certainty or proof, often formed from personal values and emotions.

Bias

A preference or prejudice for or against a particular point of view, which can result in one-sided, subjective, or inaccurate information.

Quality of Life

The standard of health, comfort, and happiness experienced by an individual or group.

Economic Issues

Complex problems involving money, wealth, employment, or people's access to the goods and services they need or want in life.

Social Issues

Complex problems involving education, health, equality, population, and other conditions that influence people's opportunities within society.

Political Issues

Complex problems regarding how people make collective decisions, encompassing government structures, laws, human rights, and public safety.

Environmental Issues

Complex problems involving human interaction with the natural world, including land use, water consumption, energy systems, and climate change.

Income

Money received or earned on an ongoing, continuous basis as a result of employment, labour, or financial investments.

Wealth

The total value of money, property, and possessions accumulated by an individual over the course of their lifetime.

Indicator

A statistical measure or piece of data used to evaluate conditions, measure quality of life, and compare livability across countries.

Human Development Index (HDI)

A composite statistical tool combining life expectancy, access to education, and GDP per capita to rank countries into tiers of human development.

GDP per Capita

The total gross value of goods and services produced in a country in one year divided by its population, reflecting average wealth production per person.

Life Expectancy

The statistical average number of years a person is expected to live based on current healthcare and mortality conditions.

More Economically Developed Country (MEDC)

A wealthier nation characterized by advanced industrialization, a strong economy, higher gross national income, and a high quality of life.

Less Economically Developed Country (LEDC)

A poorer nation characterized by lower levels of industrialization, weaker economic infrastructure, and a generally lower quality of life.

North/South Divide

The socio-economic and geographic reality wherein MEDCs are predominantly concentrated in the northern regions of the globe, while LEDCs are largely located in the southern regions.

Core-Periphery Model

A geographic classification model dividing nations into categories based on global integration and economic power: Old Core, New Core, Near Core, and Periphery.

Freedom House Rating

An indicator that assesses and scores countries based on their protection of political rights and civil liberties.

Infant Mortality Rate

A demographic indicator measuring the number of children who die before reaching one year of age per 1,000 live births.

The Manhattan Project

The Second World War research and development undertaking that created the first atomic bombs, demonstrating how scientific innovation can end conflict while triggering severe devastation and Cold War tensions.

Sustainability

The capacity to meet current societal and human needs without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.

Worldview

A comprehensive collection of attitudes, values, narratives, and expectations about reality that informs an individual's thoughts, judgments, and actions.

Environmental Worldview

A philosophy defining how people perceive and interact with nature, centred on whether human needs or the ecological health of the planet should take precedence.

Anthropocentric Worldview

A human-centred environmental perspective asserting that humans are the controllers of nature and that the environment has value primarily based on its utility to humanity.

Expansionist View

An anthropocentric belief that exploiting natural resources is justified to create wealth and foster economic growth, assuming technology and better management will solve resource limits.

Biocentric Worldview

A life-centred environmental perspective asserting that all living species have inherent value, viewing humans as merely one species within ecosystems rather than their masters.

Ecological View

A biocentric perspective that emphasizes preserving and valuing nature for its intrinsic worth rather than taming and exploiting natural systems.

Three Pillars of Sustainability

The framework establishing that true sustainability requires a balance of three interdependent systems: environmental protection, social equity, and economic viability.

Environmental Sustainability

The pillar of sustainability focused on managing natural resources—both renewable and non-renewable—to prevent their exhaustion and maintain ecological balance for the future.

Social Sustainability

The pillar of sustainability focused on ethical decision-making for the common good, civic responsibility, and guaranteeing equitable access to life's basic necessities.

Economic Sustainability

The pillar of sustainability focused on sustaining long-term economic growth, employment, and living standards without causing environmental breakdown or severe resource depletion.

Resource Scarcity

The state that occurs when vital commodities—such as freshwater, arable land, petroleum, or food supplies—become increasingly difficult or expensive to obtain.

Ecological Footprint

A measurement of human demand on nature, calculating the land and water area required to provide resources and absorb the waste produced by an individual or population.

Biocapacity

The biological capacity of a given area or ecosystem to generate renewable resources and absorb human-generated wastes, including carbon dioxide emissions.

Sustainable Development

An approach to progress that achieves human and economic advancement while preserving natural ecosystems and resource flows for future generations.

UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

A collection of 17 interconnected global targets established by the United Nations in 2015 to eradicate poverty, reduce inequality, protect the planet, and promote peace by 2030.