A little insight over some questions…

What does it mean to be a citizen? What does it mean to be a consumer? How are these terms related to your daily life?Is it possible to be a global citizen? Is it possible to be a global consumer?How are all of the above concepts related to understanding the world and your place and role within it? Citizen, I was once taught that to be a citizen meant to be a part of a society. But then, which society? Before communication was such a strong tool, before the rapid advances of technology, a citizen was a member of a city within a country. But is it still this way? Nowadays we find ourselves living within a society influenced by numerous cultures, traditions, cities and countries, to the extent that I would believe we are not citizens of the world. We claim that ” our culture” is still intact, that we are still unique, when we really are no longer unique. We may speak different languages, do things a little differently, but we have all now gotten to a point where, we practically think alike. We share the same concerns for the world economy. We share the same concerns for the war in Iraq, and by that, you don’t have to be a U.S “citizen”, just simply a citizen, a member of this grand society called the world.Many may argue with my opinion, but after growing up outside of the U.S, while my parents instigated in me all of the Asian traditions, education, but at the same time growing up in a third world country, my so loved Brazil, I no longer have just one identity, or just one country of which I relate to. I am a global citizen.I still remember when I was little and to get a pair of Nike shoes was so hard and expensive. Nike shoes, where the “must have” between kids. It was a tool to show off and to be able to say “look my shoes are from the United States”. Nowadays, Nike shoes are everywhere for everyone. Some may not be real ones…like you would find on the streets of Brazil, but again, the idea is that one countries products are no longer just limited for those in the country. Japanese consumer can get a hold of Italian products, and vise versa. Maybe I can’t find my favorite fruits in this country yet, but this is about to change. Passion fruit used to be a fruit that only us Brazilians used to have, now I can find then in California and even Taiwan. So is it possible to be a world consumer? Most definitely.We live in a very different world compared to the world we grew up in. Ten years ago, things were very different. Our world was the things around us, the people we met, and the country we lived in. But it has all changed.We travel, we meet different people. We are well connected and capable of communication with everyone, everywhere at anytime. We have a role in society and that is to be “open minded”, willing to learn as much as we can and not live in a self centered society. We need to think how much our actions can affect people and what we can do to change…hm I see I got a little carried on…oaps!

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