Introduction for Chapter 30

30 Life in an Age of Globalization

1990 TO THE PRESENT

On November 9, 2009, the twentieth anniversary of the opening of the Berlin Wall, jubilant crowds filled the streets around the Brandenburg Gate at the former border between East and West Berlin. World leaders and tens of thousands of onlookers applauded as former Polish president Lech Wałęsa pushed over a line of one thousand eight-foot-tall foam dominos, symbolizing the collapse of communism.

The crowd had reason to celebrate. The revolutions of 1989 had opened a new chapter in European and world history. Capitalism spread across the former East Bloc and Soviet Union (now the Russian Federation and fourteen other republics), along with the potential for political reform. Some of these hopes were realized, but the new era also brought problems and tragedies. The process of remaking formerly Communist societies was more difficult than expected. In addition, across the West and around the world, globalization, the digital revolution, and the ongoing flow of immigrants into western Europe had impacts both positive and negative.

As Europeans faced serious tensions and complex changes in the twenty-first century, they also came together to form a strong new European Union that would prove a formidable economic competitor to the United States. Ties between western Europe and the United States began to loosen, but Europe and North America — as well as the rest of the world — confronted common challenges. Finding solutions to problems in the Muslim world and addressing challenges regarding economic growth, energy needs, the environment, and human rights would require not only innovation but also creative cooperation.

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Life in a Globalizing World. Rapid globalization has had a profound impact on many aspects of society and culture. Here spectators view i-city, an interactive artwork in the Russian Pavilion at the 2012 Venice Biennale exhibition of contemporary art. By pointing their tablet iPads at the QR codes embedded in the pavilion’s walls, they download bits of information on the city of the future. (© Giulia Candussi/XianPix/Corbis)

CHAPTER PREVIEW

Reshaping Russia and the Former East Bloc

How did life change in Russia and the former East Bloc countries after 1989?

The New Global System

How did globalization affect European life and society?

Toward a Multicultural Continent

What are the main causes and effects of growing ethnic diversity in contemporary Europe?

Confronting Twenty-First-Century Challenges

What challenges will Europeans face in the coming decades?

Chronology

1980s–1990s Emergence of globalization
1990s–2010s New waves of legal and illegal immigration to Europe
1991 Maastricht Treaty
1991–2001 Civil war in Yugoslavia
1992–1997 Decline of Russian economy
1993 Creation of the European Union
1999 Protests against WTO in Seattle
2000–2008 Resurgence of Russian economy under Putin
2001 September 11 terrorist attack on the United States; war in Afghanistan begins
2002 Euro replaces national currencies in Eurozone
2003–2011 Iraq War
2004 Train bombings in Madrid by Islamic extremists
2005 Young Muslims riot in France; subway bombing in London by Islamic extremists
2008 Worldwide financial crisis begins
2009 Ratification of Treaty of Lisbon; young Muslims riot in France
2011 Start of Arab Spring
2012–2013 Mass protests against government austerity plans in Greece and Spain
2013 France legalizes same-sex marriage