Sunday, February 12, 2012

Its a Small World After All



Here is a great quote about the interrelatedness of the global economy, and it comes not from a famous economist but from someone you all know.

"Did you ever stop to think that you can’t leave for your job in the morning without being dependent on most of the world? You get up in the morning and go to the bathroom and reach over for the sponge, and that’s handed to you by a Pacific islander. You reach for a bar of soap, and that’s given to you at the hands of a Frenchman. And then you go into the kitchen to drink your coffee for the morning, and that’s poured into your cup by a South American. And maybe you want tea: that’s poured into your cup by a Chinese. Or maybe you’re desirous of having cocoa for breakfast, and that’s poured into your cup by a West African. And then you reach over for your toast, and that’s given to you at the hands of an English-speaking farmer, not to mention the baker. And before you finish eating breakfast in the morning, you’ve depended on more than half the world. This is the way our universe is structured, this is its interrelated quality." Martin Luther King, 1967

Your assignment this week is to find 5 items that you use in your everyday lives and determine where they are produced. Look on the bottom for the "Made in ..." stamp.
List the items and the country where they are made. Be creative. You'll be surprised at the journey that some of these common items have made to get into your hands.