ABSTRACT

The greatest political debate of our time is about the blind rush towards a single global economy, its consequences for jobs, democracy, human well-being and cultural diversity, and its impact on the natural world that sustains us. Its effects will be profound and irreversible, but globalization itself is not inevitable. In The Case Against the Global Economy, 24 leading economic, agricultural, cultural and environmental authorities, drawn from across the world, argue that free trade and economic globalization are producing exactly the opposite results to those promised. From a detailed analysis of the new global economy, its structures and its full social and ecological implications, they show how it is undermining our liberty, our security and our well-being, and is devastating the planet. First published in the USA in 1996, in an edition focused on North America, the book won the American Political Science Association award for the Best Book in Ecological and Transformational Politics. This completely revised and updated international edition presents a passionate and persuasive case for the need to reverse course, away from globalization and towards a revitalized democracy, local self-sufficiency and ecological health.

chapter |15 pages

Introduction

Facing the Rising Tide

part |108 pages

Engines of Globalization

chapter |14 pages

Monsanto

A Profile of Corporate Arrogance

chapter |10 pages

Free Trade

The Great Destroyer

part |113 pages

Impacts of Globalization

chapter |5 pages

Jurassic Fund

chapter |6 pages

Seeds of Exploitation

Free Trade Zones in the Global Economy

part |68 pages

Steps Towards Relocalization

chapter |13 pages

Shifting Direction

From Global Dependence to Local Interdependence

chapter |11 pages

Local Money

A Currency for Every Community

chapter |11 pages

The Last Word

A Personal Commentary by Edward Goldsmith