Globalization

Globalization

The growing interconnection of economies, cultures, and people through trade, technology, and communication.

Globalism

An ideology that supports worldwide economic and political integration.

Great Divergence

The period when Western nations became much wealthier than the rest of the world due to industrialization and imperialism.

Colonialism

The control of one nation over foreign lands and peoples for economic gain.

Imperialism

Expansion of state power through conquest, colonization, or economic dominance.

Atlantic Slave Trade

The forced transportation of enslaved Africans to the Americas between the 1500s and 1800s.

Primitive Accumulation

Marx’s idea that early capitalist wealth was built through exploitation, such as slavery and colonialism.

Price Revolution

A 16th-century inflation crisis caused by large inflows of silver from the Americas.

Navigation Acts

British mercantilist laws restricting trade to English ships to protect national interests.

Bretton Woods System

The 1944 postwar financial order linking currencies to the U.S. dollar and establishing global institutions.

IMF (International Monetary Fund)

Global organization that stabilizes currencies and lends short-term financial aid to nations in crisis.

World Bank

International institution that funds long-term development and infrastructure projects.

GATT (General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade)

1947 treaty reducing global trade barriers, later replaced by the WTO.

WTO (World Trade Organization)

International body enforcing trade rules and resolving disputes among member states.

Marshall Plan

U.S. program providing post-WWII financial aid to rebuild Europe.

Embedded Liberalism

The compromise allowing free trade globally while permitting domestic welfare and regulation.

Gold Standard

Monetary system where currencies were backed by gold to ensure stability.

U.S. Dollar

Became the dominant global reserve currency after WWII.

Fixed Exchange Rate

A currency system where value is tied to another currency or commodity like gold.

Floating Exchange Rate

A system where market forces determine currency values.

Petrodollars

Revenues from oil exports recycled into the global financial system.

OPEC (Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries)

Cartel coordinating oil production and prices among major exporters.

Debt Crisis (1980s)

Global financial crisis caused by excessive borrowing by developing nations.

Structural Adjustment Programs

IMF and World Bank policies requiring austerity and liberalization for loan access.

Neoliberalism

Economic policy emphasizing privatization, deregulation, and open markets.

Washington Consensus

1990s reform package promoting free trade, fiscal discipline, and privatization in developing countries.

Free Market

An economic system where prices and production are determined by supply and demand.

Public Good

A resource that benefits all and is non-excludable, such as clean air or financial stability.

Global North

Industrialized, wealthy nations.

Global South

Developing, often postcolonial nations.

De-globalization

The slowing or reversal of global integration and trade.