The Inuit in the Age of Globalization Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

The Inuit in the Age of Globalization - Essay Example This essay researches the modern lifestyle of Inuit tribes. A lifestyle that has been profoundly affected by the process of globalization. Relatively healthy from their lives as subsistence hunters and gatherers of the sparse Arctic tundra, the Inuit were completely self-sufficient until they first came into contact with Europeans in the 19th century. By the late 1880s, the Inuit Eskimos were already strongly affected by the same sorts of ‘white man’s diseases’ that had affected more southern tribes, such as measles and smallpox, brought in by traders and whaling ships. At the same time, however, the Inuit have been able to gain increased access to medical care, making it possible for the population to restore itself following initial introduction. This essay also describes significant economic changes that were brought about, both for the good and the detriment of the indigenous people. Positive changes included the introduction of metal, which could be used for everything from knives to fish hooks and increased the Inuit’s ability to catch food for their villages. Negative changes included the over-fishing of their waters, making it increasingly difficult for them to continue competing for their necessary food with outsiders who were better equipped with new technologies. Increasingly, Inuits are turning to money and store-bought items as preferable alternatives to the traditional hand-made products once relied upon. Author of this essay also covered climate change topic and the way in which the Inuit live through the actions of other countries.