Essay 4: Tisha Buelto - Localization in a Developing Nation

Tisha Buelto

Essay 3

06.15.07

Blogging for Darfur: Localization in a Developing Nation

First and foremost, to present a back drop, non-profit governmental organizations (NGOs), such as Save Darfur, an alliance of organizations committed to making the public aware of the ongoing genocide in Darfur, utilize blogging as a means of heralding their mission around the world (2007). The site blog is cross-posted between SaveDarfur.org and GlobeforDarfur.org. And with Internet access barely penetrating one-sixth of the world's population, GlobeforDarfur.org, in particular, stands as a prime example of human rights blogging sites that contradictorily call upon the world to take action. GlobeforDarfur.org blogs in several different languages. For the most part, the blogs tend to be translated from one language to the next, but particular stories are catered to particular countries as well. The manner in which the blogging sites are translated and cater particular articles to different blogs is at the very least, minimal evidence contradicting Hardt and Negri's theory of a global empire (2000).

Building upon these thoughts, ?the idea that globalization erodes the power of the state,? is a theory that Morris and Waisbord examine in their article, ?Media and Globalization: Why the State Matters? (2001). Massey discusses a specific problem of this function of globalization, when she addresses the notion that there are receivers of globalization who are not senders (1993). A reaction to this sort of globalization is localization. Localization is the process of adapting something to a particular community. Hines elaborates on localization as ?a process which reverses the trend of globalization by discriminating in favour of the local? (2000). This idea of localization is significant in that ?localization can further the aims of a wider range of movements concerned with improving social infrastructure (such as schools, housing, hospitals, transport, etc), environmental protection and the economic position of the majority in the developing world? (Hines 2000).

Hines discusses several criteria for which community sustainability can be achieved. Among these ten criteria are: (1) diverse wildlife and good air, water and soil quality; (2) low energy use and waste, coupled with warm homes and resource-efficient businesses; and (3) sustainable lifestyles, requiring less unhealthy and unnecessary consumption and resource use, encouraged and facilitated by education, information and opportunities supporting lifestyle change (2000). It is important that these criteria are met from a local standpoint, as there is variance from each local community to the next.

Henceforth, in applying this concept to the Globe for Darfur blogging site, it is important that they continue their own sort of localization in adapting their blogs to different communities. For GlobeforDarfur.org, their audience or community is divisible by language. So it is necessary that they cater blogs to those address those differences.

References:

Globe for Darfur (2007). ?Blog.? Retrieved May 25, 2007, from http://www.globefordarfur.org/blog.

Hardt, Michael, and Negri, Antonio (2000). ?Preface? (pp.xi-xvii) and Part I (pp. 1-66), Empire. Cambridge, MA, 	and London, England: Harvard University Press. Online: 	http://social.chass.ncsu.edu/~wiley/courses/447/hardtnegri2000.pdf.

Hines, Colin (2000). ?From Globalization to Localization- A Potential Rallying Call.? Ch. 4., Localization: A Global 	Manifesto. James & James: Earthscan. Pp.27-37. Online: 
	http://books.google.com/books?hl=en&lr=&id=w0c0QHxgdSUC&oi=fnd&pg=PR5&dq=localization+ 	globalization&ots=hOYkp4RQDr&sig= oo8hctjiGZxvML2NkvtQHG9hTxY#PPA27,M1

Massey, Doreen (1993). ?Power-geometry and a Progressive Sense of Place.? Ch. 4. in Bird, John, et al.
    (editors), Mapping the Futures: Local Cultures, Global Change. London: Routledge. Pp.59-69. Electronic
    reserve: http://www.lib.ncsu.edu/eresdocs/files/h5217.pdf.

Save Darfur (2007). ?Blog.? Retrieved May 25, 2007, from http://www.savedarfur.org/blog.

Waisbord, Silvio, and Morris, Nancy (2001). Introduction: Rethinking media globalization and state power. In
    Silvio Waisbord and Nancy Morris (editors), Media and Globalization: Why the State Matters. Lanham,         MD;Boulder, CO; New York, NY; and Oxford, UK: Rowman and Littlefield. Pp. vii-xvi. Online:
    http://social.chass.ncsu.edu/~wiley/courses/447/WaisbordMorris2001.pdf

Posted at 01:35PM Jun 15, 2007 by BUELTO, TISHA in General  |  Comments[1]