Global Citizenship!

Interesting idea, but I personally think as long as there are individual nations, and national boundaries, then we're never going to see truly "Global Citizens".

This has been proven out by numerous trading blocs, some which facilitate movement between countries a bit, and may even share a common currency... but in the end, citizenship is a whole different ball of wax. Naturalization in any nation is always at the discretion of that country's government and the requirements one must meet in some cases are staggering.

I think that, at least for the foreseeable future, you are still going to see that the prevailing attitude is.... You can trade with me, and I'll trade with you. Maybe we can even use the same currency, but please don't expect to put nationality and citizenship on the table!!!

Cheers,
James      Expat-blog Experts Team

I don't think this discussion is about the legal construct of citizenship and nation states. (In my opinion, borders drawn in the sand and moved almost randomly, together with rules saying things are different on one side compared to the other are unnatural and will eventually vanish from this world - but unfortunately not during my lifetime.)
Instead, the topic here is the philosophical concept of seeing the world as one and focusing on our similarities (which unify) rather than the differences (which separate). This is also what Bahaullah (founder of the Bahai faith) meant in his famous quote "The earth is but one country and mankind its citizens."
I think that the diversity of this world is one of its most positive aspects. When I am asking "Where are you from?" I mean to hear more about places I have yet to discover and people who could enrich my life as much as I could theirs.
This diversity will probably decrease (but not altogether vanish) due to globalization, communication and intermixing of cultures, peoples, ideas. Let's enjoy it at it's fullest now!

senwl wrote:

we are being taught to greet a stranger with "Where are you from?", I wonder whether the very thought of ever becoming a "Global Me" is a mere utopia or not.

This is the question -- where are you from? -- that I hear all the time from Ecuadorian taxi drivers.

I usually respond by turning down the taxista's radio and singing a verse from La Canción del Mariachi (the Song of the Mariachi) which Antonio Banderas immortalized in the movies -- my modified version, that is...

  Somos vaqueros estadounidenses que nos gusta lo mejor,
      A mujeres no nos faltan, ni al dinero ni el amor.
       Jineteando en nuestros caballos, por la sierra vamos hoy.
         Las estrellas y la luna, ellas me dicen donde voy.

    We are American (USA) cowboys who enjoy having the best,
      We do not lack for women nor for money nor "amor."
        Riding on our horses, to the mountains we go today.
           The stars and the moon, they tell me where to head.

This usually takes the conversation out of the ordinary, warms it up, and broadens the international aspect of it -- a U.S.A. citizen singing to an Ecuadorian in the latter's own language from a classically Mexican song.

cccmedia in Quito, Ecuador

Cccmedia is a real global spirit. I like it!

Thanks for sharing your thoughts.

@James
I agree with you.
I think, the word “Citizenship” is bit misleading in this context.
‘Global Citizenship’ from a legal and geopolitical point of view is a myth. It’s NEVER a feasible option in this big bad Darwinian world of ‘competitive advantage’ based on pure SWOT ideology.

@Beppi
You are right.
This discussion is about how we continue to evolve and mature with an open and more tolerant vision of life in a growingly homogeneous world. As you’ve mentioned, “The earth is but one country and mankind its citizens."… can we really live up to it in foreseeable future?

The question “Where are you from?” is a harmless question that satisfies our innocent curiosity about this immensely diverse world that surrounds us. We love diversity and we celebrate it in every moment of our existence on this beautiful blue planet.
Nothing wrong in asking this question as such …but when we greet a complete stranger with that question, it MAY have some other connotations. Of course, it all depends on how you place the question to a stranger.
Chances are, it could be perceived as an attempt to do a quick profiling (positive or negative) to cast that person into an established stereotype. That, I'm afraid, may not be in true spirit of acknowledging the global identity of an individual.

Personally, I find it bit impolite and feel uncomfortable to ask this question to somebody I’ve just met not even a minute ago. I am happy to hold back my curiosity to know where the person is from until the right ‘moment and context’ arrives. For me the most important thing, when I meet a person for the first time, is what kind of a person he/she is in terms of manners, attitude, friendliness etc. etc. His/her nationality or the “local cultural identity” could be talked about and explored later in due course.

Over the years I have met many long-term expats now settled far away from the country of their origin in a completely different culture and have successfully adopted the new lifestyle , customs, cuisine etc. etc. For many of them, as I’ve found, this apparently innocent question is bit baffling. After spending more than two decades outside of their country, soaking up the diversity of multiple cultures in multiple countries, their ‘local me’ has given way to their new identity as a ‘global me’. Hence the question "Where are you from?" has become sort of irrelevant for them.

On the other hand, there are expats who, although living in a different country for years, have successfully drawn a fine line around their everyday existence to keep these two identities well apart.

There are even others, who refuse to adapt to the local culture and are in constant search for their “own clans and kingdoms” in a foreign land to secure their survival.

All are welcome.
Yet what I find interesting is the constant clash between that ‘local me’ and ‘global me’ deep within us, the expats, at various levels of tolerance.

Today the question for us is….
Should we or should we not encourage people to see “things that no longer are as valid as they used to be.” ?

The answer to this question, I believe, holds the key to some of the nagging social problems of 21st century..and beyond.

(quote)
“Our ways of thinking and being are still colored by the trapping of old allegiances and ways of seeing things that no longer are as valid as they used to be. “ – Ronald C. Israel.

@Cccmedia
Yes, that's exactly what needs to be done!
I do something similar whenever greeted with that question.
And I love to see that confused expression on their faces ....

senwl wrote:

For many of them, as I’ve found, this apparently innocent question is bit baffling. After spending more than two decades outside of their country, soaking up the diversity of multiple cultures in multiple countries, their ‘local me’ has given way to their new identity as a ‘global me’. Hence the question "Where are you from?" has become sort of irrelevant for them.

On the other hand, there are expats who, although living in a different country for years, have successfully drawn a fine line around their everyday existence to keep these two identities well apart.

There are even others, who refuse to adapt to the local culture and are in constant search for their “own clans and kingdoms” in a foreign land to secure their survival.

These are the three categories of Expats as described in the Wikipedia entry for "Culture Shock" (which I co-authored - but the ideas and classifications are from known researchers).

senwl wrote:

@Cccmedia
Yes, that's exactly what needs to be done!
I do something similar whenever greeted with that question.
And I love to see that confused expression on their faces ....

For some time (and in countries that use "Where you come from?" as an annoyingly standard greeting phrase), I used to answer "From that street over there" or "I arrived from XXX town yesterday" - but my favourite (at least in Indonesia and Japan) is "Saya dari Bulan" - I come from the moon - and "Watashi wa Uchuujin" - I am from outer space.

beppi wrote:

... in countries that use "Where you come from?" as an annoyingly standard greeting phrase .....

It can be even more annoying when after you reply (truthfully) to that all-enthusiastic “Where you come from?”, there comes an eerie silence in conversation.
And if it happens at a shop in the local market, I am sure you instinctively know what that pretty lady behind the counter is busy in.
Yes, you guessed it right!
She is just calculating the right “rip-off” price for customers from the country you are from.