Globalization is the way in which the world has continually been enabled to reach to individuals, groups, companies, and countries faster and further than previously (Friedman 2006). When Thomas Friedman argues that the world is flattened he simply points out the fact that there has always been a force bringing about an equalizing effect. Therefore, a flat-world platform is a world full of attainable opportunities especially through individual agency or collaboration more than before. And this has been made possible through the process of globalization which is discussed below. In his book The World Is Flat: A Brief History of the Twenty-first Century, Friedman identifies that the world has so far undergone through three eras of globalization. …show more content…
This is after the successful voyages of discovery and the opening of the New World. The agent of change at that time was countries and in this case, Western actors influenced by either imperialism or religion. According to Friedman, Globalization 1.0 shrank the world from large to a medium size. The second era, Globalization 2.0, which spanned from 1800 up to 2000 had multinational corporations (MNCs) as the agent of change and global integration. It was characterized by cheaper and faster transportation and communication hence improved international trade and travel. The multinationals were out looking for raw materials, market and cheap labor. What Globalization 2.0 did was to shrink the world from medium to small size. Globalization 3.0 is the third era of the process and spanned from 2000 up to the present times. The dynamic force behind the further integration of the world was what Friedman calls a breakthrough in hardware and the power of individuals to be the lead agents. Digital life began with the widespread of the personal computer and smartphones. The world really became a global village as Globalization 3.0 further shrank the world from small size to tiny (Friedman