Absent some catastrophic event such as the economic crisis of 1929, expanded focus on this synergism will be critical to understanding social relations in the future. We emphasize the critical importance of promoting such study and understanding. Globalization presents tough challenges to the modern social welfare state and the social contracts between peoples, their societies, and their governments. The temptation to retreat toward isolationism and reflexive nationalism certainly contributed to the crises that precipitated the global depression and both world wars of the 20th Century. Balancing growth, rights, security, and justice in local arenas requires a better understanding of globalization and how the interconnectedness of societies affects their abilities to attain and allocate such goods.
Globalization constitutes an ongoing process.
History contains developments that dramatically altered the nature of social, political and economic interactions within and across borders. These help illuminate the shifting nature of the local-global nexus. More recently, development of global financial networks and enhanced capital mobility alter opportunities for growth and investment, in some cases spurring rapid growth and in others increasing disparities and inequalities. Globalization has not been smooth, nor without severe costs, nor is it determinate and unstoppable. Globalization and its resulting gains face many challenges as problems arise from the closer networking of national communities.