This emerging international perspective must resist the compartmentalization that leads to isolation. There is a tendency to address the increasing global interdependence our students will face by adding a course on the international aspects of a given discipline. This misses the point. All disciplines are being influenced by activities outside our borders, and our graduates will not be practicing their disciplines in isolation from these global influences. In short, the education we faculty members received is not satisfactory for our students.
International issues have a cumulative impact on all aspects of modern life.
Population growth, for example, affects academic disciplines as diverse as agriculture, economics and business, engineering, and education. Jet planes whisk people from country to country, transporting virulent new strains of such killer diseases as malaria and tuberculosis. A nuclear accident in Chernobyl affects the milk supply in Scotland. During a recent tour of Pernod Industries in Paris, I saw bottles of French pastis being labeled for Japan, Wild Turkey Kentucky bourbon being labeled for France, and Yahoo chocolate drink being labeled for the United States. The packaging featured marketing promotions and product information appropriate to each culture.