References to nationalism and patriotism abound in the news and even in entertainment. Many Americans, including politicians, espouse their desire to protect values they associate with American democracy. At the same time, citizens and politicians alike hold a range of perspectives -- from isolationalist to globalist. To see how connected and reliant we are on people around the world, try tracing the journey of an everyday product in your life.
- Choose an item that you use daily, like a pen or pencil, your coffee, your shoes or other article of clothing, a favorite food, or an electrical device.
- Note the name of the company that sells this item.
- Identify the different raw materials or ingredients used to make your item.
- Identify the origin of each material. For example, if your item has chocolate in it, the raw ingredient cocoa may come from Central and South America, West Africa, and parts of Asia; sugar may come from Brazil, India, and China; and milk may come from the United States, India, or China.
- Identify how each ingredient got from its source to its manufacturer. For example, the sugar from Brazil got to its manufacturer in Mexico by train.
- Identify the retailer for the item as well as the manufacturers and distributors who got the product to the store. For example, the chocolate bar was flown from Texas to Chicago, Illinois, where it was sold at Walgreens.
- Note the price of the item.
After completing the above, take a few minutes to consider the following:
- How many people were involved in the growing, making, and distributing of the item you chose?
- Did getting this item to market have any positive or negative effects on the people involved in bringing it from its inception to its retailer?
- Were there any positive or negative effects on the environment in each place you identified?
- How many products can you think of whose entire journey is within your city limits, your state, or our country?
- Did this process cause you to think differently about the product? How?
- Does this exercise impact what you think about patriotism, nationalism, and globalism?