Lesson 3a - Community

What is a community? Before I really considered this question, I would have thought of it as the town I live in, how I contribute to issues within my town, and how I interact with other residents of my town. But when I actually consider this question, there are so many communities that I am involved in that it's nearly overwhelming.

We are all part of a global community that includes everyone from around the world. In some way, we all contribute to our global community: some in large ways, such as holding a parliamentary seat in the government, and some in a smaller way, such as being in an organization that promotes health and wealth for world.

We are also a part of virtual communities: online communities within a website, blog, or instant messaging list. You don't even have to know the people within your virutal community in real-life to share in a community with them. You could be a part of many communities, and not even realize it.

Of course, there are also downsides to virtual communities. Some critics say that they foster poor real-life communication skills, because they are always interacting with people through a screen instead of face-to-face. No matter what your take on these communities, they are most definitely there, and choosing to or not to join them is one way that each of us is responding to globalization.