Globalisation

and migration

Dr Simon Oakes
A-level Principal Examiner
Bancrofts School

Lecture outline

What is globalisation?
Case Study 1: International elite migration
Case Study 2: Crossing the Mediterranean
Case Study 3: The Morecambe Bay tragedy
Case Study 4: Poland, the UK & the EU
Key Concept: cultural hybridism
Case Study 5: internal migration within China
Round-up

What is globalisation?

Factors accelerating globalisation

How many of these factors also impact upon

potential rates of migration?

Case Study 1
International elites
Elite A minority population group with some
combination of: high levels of wealth; social
status; political influence; cultural influence.
Can migrate easily (e.g. from Brazil to EU)
under Highly Skilled Migrants Programme
(HSMP)
Examples:
Footballers (330 Premiership players)
Musicians, actors and writers
Financial sector workers and entrepreneurs
High-skilled professionals (surgeons, lawyers,
architects, etc.)
Academics (including geographers!)
Politicians

Elites are often in the news

Case study 2
Crossing the
Mediterranean

What is the story for poor global migrants?

The poor are not welcomed into Fortress Europe in the
same way that elites are
They take great risks (perhaps without knowing)
They are exploited by people-traffickers who take their life
savings in exchange for passage
Vessels used to cross the Mediterranean from Africa are
unsafe, thousands have drowned
Similar stories can be told about poor Mexicans heading
for the USA, or Burmese entering Thailand
While globalisation has made it easier to move money and
goods around the world, it is not true that all people are
free to move
It is easier for people with money and skills to migrate than
it is for the poor there is not a level playing field for
global migrants

Case study 3
The Morecambe tragedy

Morecambe Bay 2004

23 Chinese migrants drowned in Morecambe Bay in February
2004
They were working at night, harvesting cockles
They were cut off by rising tides. Morecambe Bay is famous for
its tidal range of several kilometres and the speed of incoming
tides over a 1:400 beach gradient
Dangers were not understood by non English-speakers
Most died of hypothermia
They had been living in Liverpool. Sixty workers rented an 11room house from snakehead gang leaders
In another sad story, 58 Chinese suffocated while being
smuggled in the back of a lorry bound for Dover from Zeebrugge
in 2000

Further reading at
Geography In The News

Student practice answer

Using examples, describe and explain the
characteristics of migrants moving between wealthier
nations. (4 marks)

International migration takes place at two

levels of the economy. Firstly, there are highly
skilled and often very rich individuals who are
invited to work overseas by Transnational
Corporations or governments. They are
probably young adults or are middle-aged and
are likely to be approaching the peak of their
profession e.g. Elano, the Brazilian mid-fielder.
In addition, there are the extremely poor (and
usually unskilled) migrants who are desperate
to better themselves at any cost, e.g.
Somalians who attempt to gain entry to Europe
by crossing the Mediterranean in dangerous

Global migration:
the special case of the EU
As one of the four freedoms of the
EU, each European citizen may
take up and pursue employment in
the territory of another member
state under the same conditions as
the nationals of the host state (EU
Treaty Art. 1 & Reg. 1612/68)
The EU is made up of 27 states
(nearly half a billion people)
Members include Germany, the UK,
France, Poland and Estonia
Anyone can work and live
anywhere!

Case Study 4 From Poland to the UK

VOLUME 650,000 Poles have entered the UK (2004+)
CHARACTERISTICS They bring a range of skills and
occupations, including dentists and builders
DEMOGRAPHICS The majority are aged 18-30 and significant
numbers are having children while in the UK
LONG-TERM Many will remain in the long-term but many more
claim they will eventually return to Poland
NEGATIVE CONSEQUENCES Poland suffers from economic
and social losses as a result of this migration
POSITIVE CONSEQUENCES Remittances are sent back to
families to Poland
FURTHER CONSEQUENCES The Polish government is
recruiting Indian workers to help it prepare for Euro 2012 football
championship
http://www.guardian.co.uk/international/story/0,,2110439,00.html

Further reading at Geography In The News

Student practice answer

Using examples, explain how international out-migration can effect the economy and
society of sending nations. (6 marks)

International migration can have both positive and negative

effects. Turning firstly to the economics, there is often a loss of key
workers like doctors which has a knock on effect on other areas of
the economy like retailing as less money will be in circulation. This
can cause a negative multiplier effect and result in rising
unemployment. In Poland, a million workers have left since it joined
the EU in 2004 and many clubs and bars are struggling due to the
lack of young customers. However, some migrants may repatriate
their wages which is positive. Socially, the loss of young people
(18-35) may impact negatively on education if numbers fall,
university courses might have to close. Artistic and cultural scenes
could suffer if talented people migrate elsewhere this has
happened in Poland where many of its musicians have moved to
London. However, migrants may return later with new ideas and
skills that they have learned while abroad - which could have longterm positive effects for Polish arts and education.

Consequences for receiving nations

Key concept of cultural hybridism
When two cultures meet (e.g. as a result of migration
or globalising forces) it is not necessarily true that one
set of cultural preferences, beliefs and practices will
always overwrite and replace the other (this has
sometimes been called McDonaldsisation)
Instead, a new culture can develop which is a mixture
or hybrid form of the originals
The process of change is called glocalisation

Migrant imports (no hybridism)

Hybrid culture

Food Anglo-Thai fusion

Music Hip-Hop
Art Manga superheroes

Literature Jean Rhys

Film & TV Ang Lee
Any others.?

American rock band, grandsons of Armenian refugees. Fusion of

US metal & Middle-eastern folk styles?
http://musicbox.sonybmg.com/video-player/system_of_a_down/aerials

Globalisation and internal

migration
The most significant global
migration movement bar none
300 million rural migrants now live
in Chinas cities
Half a million people arrive in
Brazils Sao Paulo annually
Half the world is now urban
So what does this type of migration
have to do with globalising forces?

Global forces at work within a nation

Case study 5
Dongguan Roboraptor

Student practice answer

Examine the impact of globalisation on different
nations employment structures. (A2 essay)
Main theme is the movement of firms, branch plants
and inward investment patterns bringing new work
to some places, taking it away from others
Also mention the movement of significant numbers of
key workers, altering employment structures of
receiving and sending nations
Suggest that globalisation has a role in the
movement of (ex-primary sector) migrants to cities,
where they become manufacturing or service sector
workers

Concluding remarks
The inter-connections between globalisation and
migration make us think about:
Scale (internal or international?)
Consequences (for whom? what type?)
Complexity (there are elites to consider, as well
as poor migrants)
Critical thinking (do we see exporting or rewriting and re-imagining of cultures?)
An unfair world (when the rich can move about
more easily)
Citizenship (are we global citizens or Foreign
Nationals?)