Monday, June 1, 2015

Thinking Globally, Acting Locally

  There are people all around the world that wants to make a difference in some sort of way; whether it concerns pollution, homeless people, or even a law thats about to be passed. This is a concept that people will think about the plant as a unit but act upon an issue within their own community. Thinking about a global issue that actually was acted on in London was a protest supporting the company Peta. People in London was protesting that the hats that 'Bobbies,' wear were made out of bear skins and it was not right. The thing is Peta is a global company, but the ladies were protesting in their London community because they felt that the bear skin hats were against the bear's rights. So the reason that I know this event happened was because of Constable Watson. He was presenting a slide show about events they had to control and how protesting is a big thing. No matter where someone is located, there is always protest about some sort of issue. But at the same time I believe it is a prime example of thinking globally but acting locally.
   London has shown me more them a different methods of a criminal justice department. It has open my eyes to come to the realization that if something happens in the states, it can easily effect the entire world. I have mentioned this example in a pervious blog but I also believe it is fitting for this blog as well. The Boston Marathon Bombing, it was hundreds of miles away from London but London had to act in a security matter within their community when their marathon was about to happen weeks later. Constable Watson has served his time to more high in the ranks in London's chain of command; within that comes more responsibility. He told us that his routine at home was to always keep an eye on the news and what is going on around the world because no matter what happens in can effect London. The effect it can have is security, because it has happened one place it can easily happen anywhere else in the world. Those are just a few example that I took away from my trip in London that I believe fit perfectly in the matter of thinking globally and acting locally.
   Back to the topic of being a global citizen. I believe that a global citizen needs to have the mentality to think globally and act locally, because global citizens can take what they learned all over the world and apply it in their community for hopefully a positive impact. Before this trip I was a person that thought and acted only locally. But since my return from my trip, my mindset has changed. I watch the news more, I even check up on London's news. There is so much going on in the world that I think everyone should take the time to learn about and if they want a different outcome then they need to act on it. Even though every country is different and have their own way of living, we can always be effect as an entire world.  

Global Competence

  A global citizen is a person who is knowledgable about everything that is happening around the world. It is also some one that is not  bias in anyway. Also a global citizen will be supportive of global situations and events and could even put forth some effort. I was defiantly not a global citizen before traveling to London, but now my interest is sparked to see what the life as a global citizen has to offer. I believe that global competence is the start of formation of a global citizen.  
   Some people see that there is more to the world then what it is right in front of them, then there are people that believe the world has nothing else to offer then what is in front of them. In the world today, it is very common for people to stay in their hometown for the rest of their life because they are content with living in a place they have always known the ways of living. These certain people are very closed minded people because they are not changing their life by moving somewhere else or exploring other places. When is comes to global competence it is a different story because it takes someone that is curious about the world.
  Global competence comes down to becoming aware and interested in learning about the world and also the way it works. A person needs to have the ambition to want to go investigate the world and the different cultures within. Ever since I travelled to London for study of broad, I have been interested in knowing more. I want to go travel other places and see how they handle their criminal justice department. I can easily say that I was that closed minded American and thought the world has nothing to offer but what was held within the states. That all changed when I went to London! There is so many different opportunity the world has to offer, it just comes down to a person and if they are going to pursue a global experience. I personally want to contribute to global competence once I finish my college degree, by knowing more about criminal justice around the world. There are so many different tasks and issues around the world to learn about but what has gotten my interest is exploring the different methods within the criminal justice departments in different countries. I want to be able to benefit the American justice system but learning more methods that are practiced around the world.
   It is great to go explore the world and learn the ways of different cultures. But what is the point of that if nothing is going to be given back to others? Some benefits of global competence is widening a person's perspective of things outside of their immediate environment, take actions of bettering conditions somewhere, and having diverse point of views. People can learn so much by seeing different parts of the world were by learning something from one place and bringing it back home lets say could easily better the conditions of a situation. An example I took from London and would really like to see in America is the handcuffs that they use over in London. Their handcuffs were more sturdy and allowed officers to have more power. To me their handcuffs made more sense to me to have and do not know why America does not have handcuffs like that. Something so simple like that can made a huge difference. Global competence starts with a person being interested and curious about the world, but people have to pursue that curiosity to bring the information back to others to get them curious as well. I plan to do just that and I can easily say that it is because of the London Study of Broad Program that has my curiosity of the world started!