MODERNITY AND GLOBALIZATION IN NEPAL

Student Activity: Using Edward O'Donnell's SIGHT™ method, students will analyze the above photograph.

1. Scan for important details

2. Identify the conflict or tension.

3. Guess the creator's intent or message

4. Hear the voices

5. Talk or write about your observations

QUESTIONS TO CONSIDER:

1) What details in the photograph above reflects modernity and globalization in Nepal?

2) What are the possible tensions between traditional and modern/commercial values?

3) Who would possibly welcome or reject the values the photograph symbolizes?

4) How does this photograph reflect the growth of a middle class and material culture in Nepal?

5) How does this photograph relate to migration?

Link to a related article

Helpful reference: James Watson's Golden Arches East offers an interesting insight into spread of globalization, issues of modernity and cultural identity through analyzing interactions between McDonald's and five different East Asian countries.

The Relationship Between Tourism and Globalization

Introduction: Have students reflect on trips they have taken abroad. How has tourism affected the local culture, values and economy of the countries they visited?

Click below to watch PBS documentary, Nepal, A Girl's Life

John Wood initially visited Nepal as a tourist and later returned to set up a non-profit organization, Room to Read, that focuses on spreading literacy.

1) How does this video illustrate the impact of tourism on globalization in Nepal?

2) How has tourists turned activists such as John Wood influenced the value system of Nepalese society?

Get Involved!

Activity: You are a celebrity who has recently visited a poor village in Nepal. What type of charitable organization would you establish to help the people in the village? Which values and convictions drove your decisions? How do you think your organization would impact the cultures and values of the village? How do you think your efforts may be perceived by the villagers as well as your peers?