What Does It Mean To Be A Global Citizen Essay

There is indeed too much diversity in our world today. Different races, various cultures, divided geographies and opposing beliefs separate each state or country from each other. The world is a very diverse place with a little hope to for global unity. Countries fight over territories. Leaders battle over power. Governments take advantage of their constituents. Racism raises social injustice among multiracial societies. All of these social problems create an unnecessary segregation of various groups in our planet. There is too much nationalism going on that we tend to forget what unity is all about.

Upon encountering the word “global citizen”, what immediately comes to my head is the image of a person deeply concerned with the world around him as a whole regardless of race or geography. This person sees the world in one piece without any barriers such as race, culture or geography. A global citizen for me does not limit him—or herself within his or her native land or hometown.

According to Elizabeth Kruempelmann, the author of The Global Citizen: A Guide to Creating an International Life and Career, “Global citizens are global-minded people like you and me who crave international experience and are passionate about living fulfilling lives” (1). She defines the term as any person who has the passion to live a diverse way of life by the involvement of different cultures, languages etc. She also added that, “The term ‘global citizen’ creates awareness of a whole category of internationally oriented people who derive satisfaction from life by discovering the world” (1).

Get quality help now

KarrieWrites

Verified

Proficient in: Citizenship

5 (339)

“ KarrieWrites did such a phenomenal job on this assignment! He completed it prior to its deadline and was thorough and informative. ”

+84 relevant experts are online

Hire writer

What Does It Mean To Be A Global Citizen Essay

Kruempelmann’s statement gave me a clearer picture of what a global citizen is. The most significant realization here is the fact that I am and can be considered as a global citizen. I love life and enjoy traveling. I am very much concerned with how the economic, political and social circles operate in the world. I lived in Pakistan for quite a long time and studying in the United States of America have taught me how important it is to take notice of all the other countries worldwide. Most especially today when the threat of global crisis is endangering the world’s economic growth, it is the best time for each one of us to become concerned not merely as a national citizen but rather a global citizen who is determined to make a change for a better world. It is time that we stop thinking exclusively for our own nations. It is the best time for us to start anew as a citizen who is concerned for the world as a whole nation.

A global citizen can either be you or me. It can be anyone who has a taste for diversity and readiness to accept differences as part of a whole. It can be an international student like me who wishes to study abroad to learn new ideas apart from my traditional education back from my hometown. It can be a traveler who enjoys discovering new places and foods which fulfills his very purpose. It can be any language teacher wanting to share his or her native language to foreign people. Most important of all, it can be everybody who wishes to make this world a better place by uniting them.

Works Cited

Kruempelmann, Elizabeth. The Global Citizen: A Guide to Creating an International Life and Career. Canada: Ten Speed Press, 2002.