UNIT VI TOWARD A SUSTAINABLE WORLD
6.1 Sustainable Development
OVERVIEW
Sustainable development is that which meets the needs of the present without comprising the ability
of the future generations to meet their own needs – Dr. Gro Harlem Brundtland, Prime Minister of Norway
(Brundtland, Khalid, Agnelli, Al-Athel & Chidzero, 1987).
LEARNING OUTCOMES
At the end of this lesson, you should be able to:
➢ Recall the different definitions of sustainable development;
➢ Examine the various challenges to sustainable development; and
➢ Articulate links between sustainable developments and globalization.
Definitions, Principles and Approaches to Sustainable Development
Being a multidisciplinary approach to development, different organizations have interpreted the
sustainable development concept in various ways.
• World Bank (1992) wrote, “Sustainable development means considering the costs and benefits of
developmental and environmental policies. It also signifies focusing on meticulous economic analysis
in order to reinforce environmental protection”.
• On the other hand, IUCN, WWF, ENEP (1987) expressed that, “Sustainable development is about
the conservation of ecological processes, the safeguarding of genetic diversity, and the balanced
utilization of species and ecosystems.”
• Finally, Edward Barber (1987) also said that, “Sustainable economic development is about improving
the poor people’s standard of living, in terms of enhanced food source, increased real income,
education, health services, water supply, and sanitation. It is only directly concern with cumulative
economic growth.”
In addition to that, the United Nations in Development of Economic and Social Affairs argues that
global sustainable development requires “significant price corrections, a strong commitment to conserve
natural abilities, a decrease in inequalities, an addition in environmental accounting, a reinforcements of
public spheres of life, a rerouting of financial sectors to the felt economy, and sharing of income and
employment. These will increase the well-being of people, especially the poorest” (United Nations, 2013)
United Nations (2013) maintain that social and environmental goals must be strongly promoted and
that the well-being of poorest is prioritized. This entails making important transformations in the economy
such as the eradication of inequalities through the benefit sharing and accountability for environmental costs,
as well as changes in politics such as enhancement of democratic spaces.
In 2000, the global leaders from the UN member states reached a consensus and adopted the
Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) to pursue poverty reduction and human development. It is composed
of eight goals that are targeted to be achieved by the year 2015. The MDGs are:
1. to eradicate extreme poverty and hunger
2. to achieve universal primary education;
3. to promote gender equality and empower women;
4. to reduce child mortality;
5. to improve maternal health;
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6. to combat HIV/AIDS, malaria, and other diseases;
7. to ensure environmental sustainability; and
8. to develop a global partnership for development.
Challenges to Sustainable Development
1. Poverty
Poverty is usually referred to as the lack and deprivation of important basic needs of people. It is also
usually identified and measured through per capita income. In the Philippines, poverty incidence was
recorded at 21.0 percent in 2018 (Philippine Statistics Authority, 2018). Poverty incidence is the proportion
of the poor population to the total population. This means that in the Philippines, one in five persons is poor.
Poverty is not only about income but is also about insecure income, lack of decent work, lack of
education, insufficient nutrition, poor housing, lack of clean water and utilities, lack of other assets,
vulnerability, exploitation, and violence (IBON Foundation, 2018).
2. Unsustainable Patterns of Production and Consumption
Maintaining sustainability consumption and production patterns in society are important aspirations
included in the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Consumption of natural resources has been
tremendously increasing in the last decades. WWF discussed that in the year 2010-2013, the world
population has been consuming one and one-half ‘Earths’ in terms of resources and ecological service we
access. This is referred to as an ecological footprint, which refers to the goods and services consumed by a
person including the use of fossil fuels to provide these services and products.
Because of too much ecological footprint that exceeds the capacity of the planet to provide,
biodiversity is threatened. Some threats include habitat destruction, overfishing, pollution, infrastructure
development, water over-extraction, and poaching (Living Planet Report 2014).
3. Environmental Destruction
The present system of production and consumption creates tremendous impact on the environment.
The present-day extraction and production processes often involve over-harvesting from ecosystems beyond
the regeneration capacity of the environment. Massive carbon dioxide emissions, and the exploitation of
common water and land resources.
Deforestation is due to over-extraction of forest-based products by commercial logging and massive
export of forest-based products. Exploitation of mineral wealth is exacerbated by the Philippine policy that
allows 100 percent foreign ownership of mining companies. Urban dwellers in Manila experienced worst
water shortages in March 2019. Mineral resources of the Philippines are being over-extracted by foreign
mining companies at the expense of local communities and indigenous peoples. These environmentally
destructive practices exacerbate poverty and vulnerability of already poor and marginalized sectors (Center
for Environmental Concerns, 2019).
Economic Globalization and Sustainable Development
Economic globalization means enhancement of trading among countries. One of the most important
goals is the pursuit of economic growth or enhancement of production of goods and services. Increasing
trading is also about encouraging competition (Cavanagh & Mander, 2004).
Some of the critiques of neoliberal economic globalization include its tendency to pursue
unsustainable development. In particular:
• Prioritizing of economic growth that leads to unconstrained extraction of resources from environment;
• Enhancing economic growth also lead to creating markets all over the world to sustain the economic
growth; and
• Encouraging competition is supposed to push firms to create better and cheaper products. However,
this drives firms to exploit cheaper raw materials and cheap labor to produce cheaper products
(Cavanagh & Mander, 2004).
Furthermore, the structural adjustment policies imposed by the World Bank compels local economies
to prioritize repayment of foreign debts and open local resources and market to foreign corporations. These
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neoliberal measures increase the wealth of TNCs while decreasing social service budgets intended to uplift
the conditions of laborers, women, farmers, and consumers. Privatization of common resources also
threatens the protection of land, water, and other natural resources (Cavanagh & Mander, 2004).
5.2 Global Food Security
OVERVIEW
There is more than sufficient food produced globally to meet the food needs of all people on the planet
(Action Against Hunger, n.d.). Despite this, an estimated 124 million people experience acute hunger today,
approximately 40 million higher than the numbers from two years ago. In addition to that, stunted children
are approximately 151 million and wasted children are estimated to be 51 million worldwide (Grebmer et al.,
2018). Furthermore, small-scale farmers, fishers, and rural workers produce approximately 70 percent of food
globally but are among the most vulnerable sector to food insecurity (Action Against Hunger, n.d.). These
data reflecting the world status on hunger show the urgency of ensuring global food security. Food security
is projected to remain a worldwide issue for the coming decades (Rosegrant & Cline, 2019).
Food security occurs when every person, every time, is able to physically and economically access
sufficient, safe, and nutritious food, depending on their dietary needs and food preferences toward an active
and healthy lifestyle (World Food Summit, 1996).
The concept of food security emerged during the mid-70s (FAO, n.d.) It recognizes the global issue
of chronic food insecurity. Food insecurity is the phenomenon "when people do not have adequate physical,
social, or economic access to food" (FAO). Food security brings into public policy the food-related problem
of famine, hunger, and food crises. Nations and global institutions make various commitments to achieve the
eradication of hunger and food insecurity. Despite actions to address these issues, global food security
remains to be a major concern.
The concept of food security gained prominence in the 1970s. First, hunger was seen as a lack of
food supply. The focus of government programs to make food available was boosting of agricultural
production and maintaining price stability of food (food availability). However, in 1981, Amartya Sen argued
that hunger or starvation is not only about the supply of food but people's lack of access to food despite the
availability of food. This resulted in broadening the concept of food security to include access to food (food
accessibility), which are located in the wider concerns of poverty and development.
In 1986, World Bank introduced that food insecurity can be a permanent or temporary phenomenon,
giving rise to the ideas of chronic and transitory hunger. Chronic food insecurity recognizes the perennial
problem of food insecurity, while transitory food insecurity talks about the momentary shortage of food. This
pushes policy to recognize that sufficient food must be accessible at all times (food stability). Finally, food
security was extended to include issues of food quality. It ensures the utilization of food that meets people's
nutritional balance, traditions, and preferences (food utilization). Hence, the important aspects of food security
are availability, access, utilization, and stability (Napoli, 2011).
LEARNING OUTCOMES
At the end of this lesson, you should be able to:
➢ Explain the different aspects of food security;
➢ Identify the food insecurity faced by households, communities, and countries;
➢ Describe the different social, political, economic, and environmental conditions that affect food
security; and
➢ Propose actions for communities, civil society actors, and governments to achieve food security.
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Definition of Terms
• Food security – the condition of which everyone is able to access sufficient, safe, and nutritious
food anytime.
• Undernourishment – is the condition by which a person only has access, on a regular basis,
to food that are insufficient in providing the required energy for a normal, healthy, and active life,
provided his or her own dietary and energy requirements.
(https:/[Link]/sdgs/metadata/files/[Link])
Measurement for Food Security and Food Insecurity
To understand the phenomenon of food security and food insecurity, various measures and indices
have been developed. These measures and indices become the bases for actions to eradicate food insecurity
and demand accountability from governments. Measures and indices can encompass analyzes of causes
and/or effects, either qualitative or quantitative and may be done in several levels-from household levels to
national levels (Masset, 2010). Some indicators are expressed in the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs)
and Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Furthermore, examples of indices used for food insecurity are
the Global Hunger Index and the Hunger Reduction Commitment Index.
Prevalence of Undernourishment (PoU) and the Prevalence of Moderate and Severe Food Insecurity
in the Population of the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO)
PoU measures hunger on several levels, in the regional and global levels, by gathering data on food
availability, consumption, and energy requirements. Some factors being measured are the daily per capita
food consumption, human energy requirements, and agricultural production. On the other hand, the
Prevalence of Moderate and Severe Food Insecurity in the Population collects data through interviews
regarding people's experiences of difficulty in accessing food. Data can reflect individual and household
levels and can show what part of the population are most food insecure (FAO, n.d. [Link]
org/hunger/en/).
Global Hunger Index
Global Hunger Index is published by Concern International and Welthungerhilfe. It looks into
indicators such as the share of the population related to:
• undernourishment referring to insufficient caloric intake;
• child wasting referring children with low weight in relation to their height;
• child stunting referring to children under the age of five that have a low weight in relation to their age;
and
• child mortality or under-five mortality rates.
These indicators are given standardized scores to come up with the Global Hunger Index (GHI) score
of each country. The GHI can monitor the state of hunger in the national and global levels to inform policy
and actions where they are needed (Grebmer et al., 2018).
Hunger Reduction Commitment Index (HRCI)
Hunger Reduction Commitment Index (HRCI) initiated by the Institute of Development Studies
looks into three themes that measure governments' political commitment in attaining food security:
governments' policies and programs; legal frameworks; and public expenditures (Lintelo et al., 2011).
Some of the indicators being measured in HRCI are:
• institutional coordination - whether there is a coordinating body to address hunger and malnutrition
and the successes of this coordinating body;
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• government intention and action - about priority actions of the government on hunger and
malnutrition;
• analytical rigor - about the generation of scientific evidence on hunger and malnutrition as the basis
for public policy; and
• learning and adaptation - about the governments' effort to innovate with policy approaches to
eradicate hunger and malnutrition (Lintelo et al., 2011).
Some Factors Affecting Food Security
Food security is a multidimensional issue. Ensuring the availability, accessibility, utilization, and
stability of food are linked to several social, political, economic, cultural, and environmental processes and
factors. Some of these factors are food supply, food prices, income, and sudden changes in the context.
1. Food Supply
As mentioned, early concepts and policies on food security focused on agricultural production to
ensure the availability of food. Food security involves sustainable supplying the energy and protein needs
and healthy diet of the people. It is concerned not only with quantity but also the quality of food that promotes
the well-being of people (Martindale, 2015).
Before food comes to people's tables, it goes through a complex process of production,
manufacturing, and distribution where different functions and operations must be carried out (Martindale,
2015).
Food supply is also connected with conditions in agricultural production. This involves issues of rural
farmers. The conditions of rural poor farmers should be a focus of the discussion of food security because
rural farmers, usually small-scale producers, have an important role in producing food in developing countries
(Schanbacher, 2010). In the Philippines, farmers and fishers remain to be the poorest sectors in 2015, with
34.3 percent and 34.0 percent poverty incidence respectively (PSA, 2017). Local rural producers must be
sufficiently supported by government programs and reforms to continue to supply sufficient food to the
population.
2. Food Prices
Changes in national and global economic policies and process may lead to increases in oil and food
prices. In the Philippines, inflation hit 4.5 percent in April 2018, leading to a drastic rise in food prices. Figure
1 shows that by 2019, inflation slows down to 3 percent but food prices are still higher than 2018 prices
(IBON, 2019). High prices of food can compromise the food security of citizens.
3. People's Income
Another problem associated with food security is the lack of people's access to food because of
poverty (Naylor, 2014). Despite the availability of food, people without economic access to buy food may not
meet their food needs. The minimum wage in Metro Manila amounting to Php512 is barely sufficient to meet
food and other needs (IBON Foundation). The most income-poor Filipinos are also vulnerable to food price
increases.
Changes and Shocks in Social and Natural Environments
Variability and shocks in the social and natural environment may affect food availability, accessibility,
and stability. For instance, climate change may affect the timing and length of growing and harvesting
seasons, amount of water supply, and degradation of resources such as erosion (FAO, 2012). In the
Philippines, farmers may experience lower yields due to the scarcity of rainfall during El Niño phenomena.
This will result in decrease in food supply and income poverty for farmers leading to transitory food insecurity.
Conflict also results in poverty and hunger. UN reports that more than half of the 815 undernourished people
come from countries in conflict (Action Against Hunger).
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Globalization and Food Security
Food security that is linked to the complex process of food production, consumption, and distribution
intersects with issues of trading, reforms in agriculture, as well as rural development (Schanbacher, 2010).
Economic globalization involves foreign trading of food. This encompasses the creation of a global food
supply chain or the process involving the production, manufacturing, consumption, and disposal happening
across different national borders. Some issues in the supply chain include contamination and the lack of a
mechanism to trace where food comes from. Cultural globalization also creates changes in people's taste,
preference, and consumption of food. For instance, transnational fast food corporations have operated in
different countries. Some of the biggest fast food chains are McDonald's, Burger King, Starbucks, KFC, Pizza
Hut, and Subway.
Economic globalization can also tremendously impact food security. In the Philippines, agricultural
food production weakens because of the decrease in government spending for agriculture, as a consequence
of the structural adjustment program imposed by the IMF and World Bank. In 1982, 7.5 percent of total
government expenditure went to agriculture, then spending decreased to 3.3 percent in 1988. Trade
liberalization in the Philippines marked by the joining of the Philippines in the World Trade Organization
required the country to eliminate quota for agricultural imports allowing the entry of cheap imported
agricultural products that discouraged local farmers. The Philippines also became dependent on rice imports
despite the country's ability to become rice self-sufficient (Bello, 2008).
Commitments to Achieve Food Security
Recognizing the urgency and severity of world food security problems, world leaders have made
global commitments to address food insecurity.
In 1996, the World Food Summit was convened by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) in
Rome where UN member states committed to eradicate hunger and reduce undernourished people all over
the world. The UN members in this summit pledged to commit to a plan of action (Napoli, 2011). It is a
continuous effort to eliminate hunger in all countries, with a short-term goal of decreasing the number of
undernourished individuals to half (1996 World Food Summit).
This commitment was later reaffirmed during the UN Millennium Summit in 2000 that resulted in the
formulation of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) (Napoli, 2011). The first goal of the MDGs is to
eradicate extreme poverty and hunger. This goal has three targets:
1. To significantly decrease the number of people with daily income below $1.25;
2. To attain full, constructive, and decent employment for all; and
[Link] significantly decrease the number of people suffering from hunger (https://
[Link]/mdg-1-eradicate-poverty-hunger/).
In 2015, UN member states adopted the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Agenda. This encompasses
the 17 Sustainable Development Goals that will guide governments, private sector, and civil society to
address the global issues of poverty, inequalities, and climate change. Sustainable Development Goal
number 2 is to achieve zero hunger (Kaci, 2017).
These commitments push governments to take all necessary actions to combat hunger and poverty
through different policies and programs including boosting agricultural productivity, making agriculture
resilient to climate change, increasing investment in agriculture, and correcting trade processes.
Aside from this, organizations and movements critical of too much market driven food production
system espouses the idea of food sovereignty as an approach to achieving food security. Food sovereignty
focuses on promoting the well-being of small-scale farmers and producers, landless farmers, and rural farm
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workers instead of prioritizing large-scale, corporate, and liberalized agriculture and food production
(Schanbacher, 2010). Food security is not only about producing food the fastest and cheapest way at the
expense of displacing the livelihood and well-being of poor farmers.
5.2 Global Citizenship
5.3
OVERVIEW
Socrates, a classical Greek philosopher and one of the founders of Western philosophy, was once
quoted saying, "I am not an Athenian or a Greek, but a citizen of the world." He identified himself as a global
citizen. What is a global citizen? What are the rights and duties of a global citizen? How do we become global
citizens? The answers to these questions will be discussed in the succeeding paragraphs.
LEARNING OUTCOMES
At the end of this lesson, you should be able to:
➢ Explain the definition of global citizenship and the categories of global citizenship;
➢ Discuss the types of rights and duties of global citizenship; and
➢ Formulate a commitment statement regarding your rights and responsibilities related to citizenship.
Definition of Terms
Citizenship – how residents live in a particular area with previously agreed upon rights and
responsibilities.
Rights – any lawful, social, or moral principle of autonomy or entitlement
Duty – an obligation or expectation to perform an action based on the law, social norms, or a moral
standard
Global citizenship – the belief that all people have rights and civic responsibilities based on the reason
that they reside in the world.
What is Global Citizenship?
Before defining global citizenship, let us first discuss the terms global and citizenship separately. What
is citizenship? Are there varied definitions or is there an overarching one? In fact, there are many definitions
of citizenship. It may be defined on the lenses of membership, status, practice, or performance (Isin & Nyers,
2014. in Isin & Nyers, 2014. eds.).
For instance, described in terms of membership and status, citizenship is defined as how residents
live in a particular area with previously agreed upon rights and responsibilities. These statutes are restricted
in a particular territory and a political boundary. This means that the citizens must have an understanding of
their rights and responsibilities (Abdi, Shultz, & Pillay, 2015. in Abdi, Shultz, & Pillay, 2015. eds).
In addition, using the lenses of practice and performance, citizenship may be defined as an institution
that mediates the rights between constituents of a governing system and the system itself. However, the
relation between the citizens and the governing system is not always unified nor stable (Isin & Nyers, 2014.
in Isin & Nyers, 2014. eds.).
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Three Types of Rights
Two very important aspects of citizenship are civic rights and duties. First, let us discuss the
definition of rights and the different types of rights. Rights are defined as any lawful, social, or moral principle
of autonomy or entitlement. It is a collection of what is allowed and what should be provided to a group of
people based on a particular legal system, norms, or ethical standards (Wenar, 2015). The three types of
rights are: (1) civil rights, (2) political rights, and (3) social rights. These will be discussed below:
Civil rights - are entitlements provided by a certain locality to its public constituents. These include the right
to free speech. Every citizen is allowed to communicate openly. He/She is permitted to voice opinions even
if it is criticizing the government just as long as it has basis and evidence. Civil rights also include the right to
have and to be treated with dignity.
Political rights - are administrative entitlements provided by a specific government. These include the right
to run for office. Every citizen has the right to be elected as a representative of his/her community as long as
he/ she meets various criteria.
Social rights - are entitlements related to public services and to social protection. These include insurance,
health care, welfare, housing, and pensions (Isin & Nyers, 2014. in Isin & Nyers, 2014. eds.).
Three Types of Duties
Duty comes from the French word "due" which means "to owe" (Gove, 1986). Therefore, duty is defined as
an obligation or expectation to perform an action based on the law, social norms, or a moral standard
(Merriam-Webster Dictionary, n. d.). The three types of duties, in relation to citizenship, are: (1)
conscription, (2) taxation, and (3) participation.
1. Conscription - pertains to the obligation to register as a reserve force in the army. This means that
every able-bodied citizen is asked to take up arms and fight for their country in case of war.
2. Taxation - relates to the duty to pay a compulsory contribution to a state or the government.
3. Participation - refers to the obligation to take part in the community. Every citizen is encouraged
to participate in the development of their community. They are also encouraged to vote for their
leaders during elections (Isin & Nyers, 2014. in Isin & Nyers, 2014. eds.).
What does global stand for in global citizenship? Internationalization, or becoming global, is defined
as including worldwide components to education (Yemini, 2017). It is concerned with adding international
and intercultural aspects to the approach to education (Knight, 2004. as cited in Yemini, 2017. pp. 2-3).
Students are encouraged to learn about the whole world and international relations.
What is global citizenship? Global citizenship is defined as the belief that all people have rights and
civic responsibilities based on the reason that they reside in the world. Therefore, a person's global identity
transcends his/her geographical and political ones. Although, this does not mean that the individual must
denounce his/her nationality, but these are secondary to his/her global identity (Israel, 2012).
Three categories of global citizenship
• Open global citizenship - believes that nations still exist and differ from one another. However, it
recognizes the interdependence between different nations and the opportunities for cultural
diversification.
• Moral global citizenship - focuses on the ethical aspect of global citizenship. What are the moral
facets of global rights and responsibilities? Moral global citizenship put emphasis on human rights,
equality, and global responsibility.
• Sociopolitical global citizenship - emphasizes the social and governmental systems and structures
around the world. It advocates to shift the existing political power in order to advance global equality
(Veugelers, 2011).
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Why Global Citizenship?
In 2015, the United Nations (UN) summit declaration "Transforming our world: The 2030 Agenda for
sustainable development? named global citizenship education as one of the strategies in the Sustainable
Development Goals (SDG) 4.7. It was also mentioned in Declaration 36 (UN, n. d.). In addition, the UN
Secretary-General report in 2015 urged educators to utilize global citizenship education to promote peace
around the world (UN, 2015). As one can see, global citizenship is highly supported by international
organizations and worldwide declarations.
Learning to Live Together
An important principle in education is for people to "learn to live together." In fact, it is also crucial in
the rapidly changing world where population is becoming more and more diverse. It is integral for educators
to promote a culture of peace, non-violence, tolerance, and respect.
Learning to live together entails understanding different nation's interconnectedness and
interdependence. It requires strategies for diplomatic coexistence and compromise. Global citizenship
education provides a new lens for the youth to think critically, cast aside hatred, and have the capacity for
dialogue and tolerance (Hahn, n. d.).
Restore Dignity
Paulo Freire (1970) urges people to be educated in citizenship rights in order to question the hidden
oppressive systems that surround them. The task of global citizenship education is not just to teach about
current systems but also the concepts of global social justice and basic rights (Abdi, Shultz, & Pillay, 2015.
in Abdi, Shultz, & Pillay, 2015. eds).
Global citizenship education imparts knowledge about the rights of every individual in the international
community. One of these basic rights is that every human being has the right to live in dignity. Global
citizenship education assists in restoring positive identity, dignity, and self-esteem of individuals (Hahn, n.
d.).
Issues in Global Citizenship
Despite the progress in the conceptualizations and in the education of global citizenship, there are
still issues and challenges arising. These issues and challenges may be classified into three: (1) conflict
between global citizenship and national citizenship, (2) conflict between global citizenship and individual
differences, and (3) development of the imagination for global citizenship. These will be discussed below:
• Conflict between global citizenship and national citizenship - Even though people are
encouraged to become global citizens, in reality, they live in their own culture with their own context
(Ignatieff, 1994. as cited in Pike, 2008. p. 225). This is very obvious in countries with a significant
amount of immigration (Yemini, 2017).
The performative aspect of citizenship, not only looks at the rights and duties being performed,
but also at the rights and duties not being performed or not allowed to be performed. For example,
what about states that do not allow press freedom (Isin & Nyers, 2014. in Isin & Nyers, 2014. eds.)
How will the global right to freedom of speech be implemented if the state does not allow it?
• Conflict between global citizenship and individual differences - For instance, in the membership
and performance aspect of citizenship, how would one classify non-citizens who perform the duty of
citizens, like immigrants that pay taxes? Should they be given the same rights as the citizens (Isin &
Nyers, 2014. in Isin & Nyers, 2014. eds.)? In Italy, for example, immigrants who perform very personal
services or care work for Italian families and know deep-seated secrets are still not treated as part of
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the family because they are foreigners. In fact, they are called "intimate foreigners.” Examples of
these are caregivers, nurses, and domestic helpers (Hepworth, 2014. in Isin of & Nyers, 2014. Eds.).
In another example related to this, “abject citizens” is a phrase used to describe citizens who
experience being rejected from citizenship even though they were born in the same territory. This
term usually refers to nomadic cultures like the Roma or Sinti who are from a different ethnic group
with their own culture (Hepworth, 2014. in Isin & Nyers, 2014. eds.).
Individuals may also have multiple citizenship identities (Harrington, 2014. in Isin & Nyers,
2014. eds.) For instance, a person may have dual citizenship because he/she resides in two countries.
Finally, another source of conflict is the assumption that English is the universal language (Yemini,
2017) even though it is not the language used by the greatest number of populations.
• Development of the imagination for global citizenship - Another challenge is the slow progress in
developing a global imagination (Richardson, 2008). Citizenship is not permanent, can be
transformed, and contestable (Harrington, 2014. in Isin & Nyers, 2014. eds.)
The word global in global citizenship has the tendency to focus only on the experiences of the
majority. systems. It highlights neglects the only experiences the existing of socio-cultural, the minority
political, and economic marginalized. (Abdi, Shultz, & Pillay, 2015. in Abdi, Shultz, & Pillay, and the
2015. eds).
Who is the active citizenship? The word active has come to refer norms. to refer extremes. On
one hand, it is the “good” citizen who follows social norms. On the other hand, it is the “bad” citizen
who questions and disobeys social norms. Is the concept of active citizenship used to “pacify” people?
Is it used to make people comply to what is expected from them? (Neveu, 2014. in Isin & Nyers, 2014.
Eds).
SUMMARY
Sustainable development was first coined in 1987 during World Commission on Environment and
Development. It is, however, interpreted differently by various actors. Some organizations would highlight the
economic aspects, others would emphasize the social and environmental aspects of development. World
leaders also recognized that sustainable development must be a common agenda of all nations, resulting to
commitments to global agreements such as the Millennium Development Goals and the Sustainable
Development Goals.
There are, however, challenges in the attainment of sustainable development. These are global
poverty, extreme inequality, environmental destruction, as well as unsustainable patterns of production and
consumption. These issues are interlinked with each other.
Enhancing global trading by making it faster and expansive emphasizes the goal of corporate
economic growth more than other goals (Cavanagh & Mander, 2004). TNCs' practice of dispersing
manufacturing often to developing countries contributes to poverty because of maintaining cheap labor.
The attainment of sustainable development is also influenced by globalization. The global trade
agreements and the authority and power of markets marginalizes the sovereignty of nations and have the
propensity to neglect other important social development goals such as human dignity, rights, and
environmental integrity. In response to these, transnational social movements challenge the neoliberal
economic globalization through collective action and counter-arguments on better alternatives.
Global and national data show alarmingly high levels of hunger and food insecurity. This places food
security as one of the top issues tackled by international organizations. The issue of food security is not a
simple phenomenon. Security of food can be achieved not only with abundant food supply but through
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eradication of barriers to people's access to food, ensuring stable food production and access, and providing
dietary needs for people's well-being.
There are several means of measuring food insecurity. The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO)
uses the Prevalence of Undernourishment (PoU) and the Prevalence of Moderate and Severe Food
Insecurity in the Population that looks into data such as human energy requirement, per capita food
consumption, and difficulties in accessing food. The Global Hunger Index of Concern International and
Welthungerhilfe analyzes undernourishment, child wasting, child stunting, and child mortality. The FAO,
Concern International, and Welthungerhilfe use measurements about the status of hunger and food
insecurity. On the other hand, the Hunger Reduction Commitment Index (HRCI) by the Institute of
Development Studies use indicators to measure the commitments and actions of governments to eradicate
hunger and food insecurity.
The complex issue of food security is related to factors such as adequate food supply both in quantity
and quality. Ensuring food supply in itself is an intricate process involving reliable food production,
manufacturing, distribution, and consumption. It is also linked to the support and poverty reduction programs
for poor farmers who are significantly responsible for food production in developing countries. Other factors
include food prices and people's income. Food must be affordable for the poor sectors of the population, and
sudden spikes in food prices must be prevented. At the same time, people's livelihood and income levels
must increase to achieve ideal living standards and food requirements. Finally, variability and shocks in the
social and natural environment can drastically affect food security. Disasters, climate change, and conflict
are some changes that compromise food security.
Food security is inextricably linked to globalization. Global trading of food can affect food supply.
Economic globalization marked by the promotion of unregulated trade liberalization of food trading, allow an
influx of cheap imports into the country. In addition to that, conditions and agreements imposed by the IMF,
World Bank, and the World Trade Organization push governments of developing countries to decrease
spending in agriculture.
Recognizing food security as a major global concern, governments commit to eradicating hunger and
food insecurity by pledging to global agenda such as the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) in 2000
and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in 2015. Civil society organizations and mass organizations
and movements across the globe have pointed out the need for food sovereignty that focuses on promoting
the well-being of small-scale farmers and producers, landless farmers, and rural farm workers by allowing
them to define and pursue their own food and agriculture system, free from the dictates of global economic
organizations such as the World Bank, IMF, and transnational agriculture corporations.
Citizenship is defined as how residents live in a particular area with previously agreed upon rights and
responsibilities (Abdi, Shultz, & Pillay, 2015. in Abdi, Shultz, & Pillay, 2015. eds). Internationalization, or
becoming global, is defined as including worldwide components to education (Yemini, 2017). Global
citizenship is defined as the belief that all people have rights and civic responsibilities based on the reason
that they reside in the world (Israel, 2012).
The three types of rights are: civil rights, political rights, and social rights. On the other hand, the three
types of duties, in relation to citizenship, are: conscription, taxation, and participation (Isin & Nyers, 2014. in
Isin & Nyers, 2014. eds.).
Global citizenship may be classified into: open global citizenship, moral global citizenship, and
sociopolitical global citizenship (Veugelers, 2011). Finally, the issues and challenges in global citizenship are:
conflict between global citizenship and national citizenship (Yemini, 2017), conflict between global citizenship
and individual differences (Isin & Nyers, 2014. in Isin & Nyers, 2014. eds.), and development of the
imagination for global citizenship (Richardson, 2008).
11
Learning Assessment Task
• Create your own artwork describing your interpretation of a global citizen, with the interconnection of
the issues confronting the whole world. (100 points)
Example
Rubrics
Relevance: 50
Creativity: 30
Uniqueness 10
Timeliness 10
Total 100
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