Life & Society/Form 3

Module 20 International Interdependence

Reference Notes 1 (P.1 – P.5)

Class: ________ Name: ________________________ ( ) Date: _________________

(I) Reading on Textbook P. 5 ‘Mobile phone from fair trade – No bloody raw material’

Video link:
Demand a fair trade cell phone (Bandi Mbubi) (09:21)
https://www.ted.com/talks/bandi_mbubi_demand_a_fair_trade_cell_phone/transcript

Discussion:
1. An innovative phone-making team from the Netherlands is going to launch the 1st mobile phone made
out of ‘fair trade’ in October 2013.
Reflection: Response:
a. What is ‘fair trade’?

2. The process of raw material collection and production aims at improving the status of workers and
limiting the harm to the environment.
Reflection: Response:
a. What is the status of
workers like?

b. What kind of harm has

the production of mobile
phones done to the
1
 environment?
3. If the manufacturers use these materials to make the smartphone parts, it would be the same as
supporting military conflicts. Why?

4. What is the expected outcome of producing fair phone?

5. What are the three major values of fair trade?

6. Do you think trades can benefit all countries around the world or only developed countries?

(II) Features of Globalization and the Global Economy

How does the world become globalized? Brainstorm the features of globalization.

2.

2. ______________________
1. Marketing of goods and services capital flow
breaks ________________________
boundaries

3. Making use of 5. Rapid flow of

__________________ ______________________
__________________
of labour

4. ______________________
labour flow
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(III) Types of Globalization

1. _________________________ 2. _________________________ 3. _________________________

Giving examples:
Suggest TWO goods and TWO types of services that are provided by multinational corporations (MNCs)/
multinational enterprises (MNEs).
Goods Services

Stating impacts:
State ONE positive impact and ONE negative impact that multinational corporations (MNCs)/
multinational enterprises (MNEs) bring to consumers.
Goods Services

3
 (IV) Information Search
According to Fortune 500 (for U.S. enterprises) and Global 500 (for enterprises worldwide), business and
finance magazines, the world’s top 10 companies in 2018, 2019, 2020 and 2021 are:

A. Fortune 500 (within US; for US enterprises)

Rank/ 2018 2019 2020 2021 Nature of business
Year (for top 10 enterprises in 2021)
1 Walmart

2 Exxon Mobil

3 Berkshire
Hathaway
4 Apple

5 UnitedHealth
Group
6 McKesson

7 CVS Health

8 Amazon.com

9 AT&T

10 General Motors

B. Global 500 (for enterprises worldwide)

Rank/ 2019 Nature of 2020 Nature of 2021 Nature of
Year business/ business/ business/
Country of set-up Country of set-up Country of set-up
1 Retailing/ the US

2 Petroleum Refining
(energy)/ China

3 Petroleum Refining
(energy)/ the
Netherlands
4 Petroleum Refining
(energy)/ China

5 Utilities (energy)/
China

6 Mining, Crude-oil
Production (energy) /
Saudi Arabia

7 Petroleum Refining
(energy)/ Britain
8 Petroleum Refining
(en. ergy)/ the U.S.

4
9 Motor Vehicles &
Parts/ Germany

10 Motor Vehicles &

Parts/ Japan

Useful links:
Fortune 500
https://fortune.com/fortune500/

Global 500
https://fortune.com/global500/

C. Check any TWO of the companies above and see what you could find.
Fill in the company information below.

An Image of the
Company

Name of the Company

Year of establishment

Major business

Number of employees

Profit/ Sales

Is it a listed company?
If so, what is the latest
stock price of the
company?

Something else about

the company you would
like to share