Technological Development And The Third World Essay

, Research Paper

Technological Development and the Third World

TECHNOLOGICAL DEVELOPMENT AND THE THIRD WORLD

I wonder if people in Third World countries know that they are considered

the “Third World.” Do they use that term in reference to themselves. Do they

have any perception of the comparison, judgment and bias that goes into that

statement. I’d like to think that they don’t. In the film about the Ladack

people that we watched in class, it was mentioned that they didn’t have a word

for poverty. No such word even existed in their language. But that was before.

It was before the invasion of other cultures, and it was before they had

anything to compare themselves to. And in comparison, they saw that, materially,

they had less. And in that knowledge, they believed that they, as a people, were

less.

In this essay, I will examine third world communities and the

relationship between technological development and environmental degradation. I

will look first at the way in which development occurred in the South, and the

reason it happened the way that it did. From there, I will show how these

methods of development proceeded to eventually cause widespread environmental

damage and it’s effect on the local people. .

DEVELOPMENT: “WESTERN” STYLE

When I refer to “the environment”, I mean not only the habitat that

humans, plants and animals inhabit, but also the physical, emotional and

psychological attitudes that are encompassed by these in their daily existence.

Development, by my definition, will consequently refer to the technological

advancement of a community as well as the improved status of humans and other

species. This is my definition, and one that others employ frequently now.

However, the model I will be examining first is the development theory based on

the economic – political system. “A typical western (read: economic) definition

of development would be ‘ an ambiguous term for a multidimensional process

involving material, social and organizational change, accelerated economic

growth, [and] the reduction of absolute poverty and inequality.’” (1) The key

emphasis in this statement is the phrase “economic growth.” In Europe and North

America, development politics has revolved around the economic aspect of

producing surplus, and gaining capital. Because of our relatively rich land

resource base, our method of technological development has been quite successful.

Statistics show us as high wage earners, wealthy in public services such as

health care and education, low infant mortality rate, long lifespan, and high

GNP per person. Because of the comfort that our economic development has brought

us, we have omitted the aspect of development in regard to human psychological

well-being and the preservation of our natural surroundings that should be

concurrent with technological development. With ours as the only current model

of successful development, newly industrializing countries such as South and

Central America, and Africa (and up until quite recently many Asian countries)

attempted to achieve results in the same way. The problem that ensued for these

countries was that instead of working slowly towards their goals, they sold

themselves to get ahead economically. Instead of recognizing the problems that

this method was causing and stopping them, governments and the wealthy private

sector, took control of the industry and continued to exploit it. With the rich

in control, the poorer classes had little choice but to follow, and the downward

spiral of poverty and instability began.

HOW IT HAPPENED

As the Third World nations struggled to become “developed,” the rich

countries became involved in their affairs. Interest in the countries arose

primarily because of the trade resources that these lands provided. The

potential for profit became evident because the new countries were struggling

with their economy. They were experiencing internal unrest between their members

and they needed money and resources to get started. Before they had a stable

internal economy, they were bounding into the international market and selling

their resources for a quick profit. Cash-cropping became a way to enter the

international arena of market and trade, but the damage to the land took only a

few short years to be discovered, and by that time luxuries had become

“necessities.” People wanted the cash flow to continue and instead of finding

ways to use their land sustainable, they continued poor resource management

regardless of the consequences. Deforestation became another common practice

because of the demand forwood overseas. Export, although a seemingly beneficial

development strategy, became detrimental to third world countries because it

catered to the demand for certain items. Coffee beans are a large export item in

South and Central America. With the

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