GEOG 4 Lecture Notes - Lecture 5: Free Trade, Absolute Advantage, World Trade Organization
Document Summary
With the rise of globalization, industrialized and developing nations across the globe have embraced free trade as a means for expanding markets and reducing consumer prices, while still being able to maintain profitable status quos. Free trade has essentially shaped the expanse of the global economy that we witness today, however it is also a concept that is heavily criticized. Ranging from human rights organizations to environmental activists, critics blame free trade for degrading the rights of the working class and its harmful effects on the environment, all for the lure of profit. The benefits of free trade can often detract from its unintended repercussions, because it is widely acclaimed for its positive contributions in encouraging global economic growth. However, observing the consequences of free trade, it is only natural to contemplate whether our materialistic interests are worth exploiting cheap labor and harming the environment.
