Australia’s regional and global links

Australia has numerous regional and global links; these links include sports, culture, tourism, migration, aid and communication. Australia is a continent which is strongly engaged with the rest of the world and not only because so many of its people originate from so many parts of the world but also because of its longstanding relationships with the USA and the UK and their more recent links with the countries in the Asia Pacific. It is imperative that Australia establishes and maintains these links to ensure the stability, security and prosperity of Australia.

Sport is one of Australia’s most developed global links because of previous ties with the traditionally British Commonwealth countries. Sport is considered to be a national ‘religion’ or ‘obsession’ amongst Australians. Australia competes in numerous tournaments annually such as the Commonwealth Games, Asia-Pacific Games, Australian Formula One Grand Prix, the tennis Australian Open, the World Rugby 7’s and Test cricket – one of Australia’s oldest sporting ties with England in which countries such as New Zealand, India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, the West Indies, South Africa and Zimbabwe participate in.

Australia’s sporting links are good for the country because it brings the Australian people closer together and also creates business relationships with other countries, however, sports can also harm relationships with countries when players personal lives start becoming an issue in sports, for example Ian Thorpe’s sexuality and the impact that had on his career. Australia is a country of multiculturalism, not only because of the Indigenous people which grace the land, but also due to the amount of immigrants that enter Australia every year and their countries of origin – immigrants from Africa, Europe, America and the Asia-Pacific Region. Australia’s cultural links were traditionally European and very Christian, however, due to changing times, Australian culture is becoming more and more Americanised – the food we eat (McDonalds, Hungry Jacks, Coca-Cola) the TV shows we watch (The Simpsons, Oprah, Big Brother, Survivor).

This does however have its advantages and disadvantages, the Americanisation of Australian culture is a process where Australians are bombarded everyday with images of American lifestyle so much that it merges into their own lifestyle almost unnoticed, yes it does bring with it profits in the business industry and introduces Australians to ‘newer’ things, but it also destroys Australia’s home-grown entertainment industry is overwhelmed by huge American economy. The importance of tourism for Australia can be seen in the number of Australians who travel overseas as well as the thousands of overseas tourists who visit Australia each year. Tourism has been Australia’s single largest source of foreign exchange dollars and a significant source of employment and economic growth and international visitors have consumed a large number of Australian goods and services.

Most of the tourists that travel to Australia come from Europe (708 300 people) and North America (446 200 people), but in more recent times there has been a significant increase in tourists from the Asia-Pacific countries coming into Australia; these are countries such as New Zealand (1 098 700 people) and Japan (685 500 people). Most Australians tend to travel to New Zealand (662 800 people), the United Kingdom (312 900 people), the USA (296 300 people) and Indonesia (186 400 people). Not only does tourism create jobs, but it also helps to maintain a steady relationship between countries – this is because both countries benefit from tourism. Each year tourism contributes approximately $8.1 billion to the GDP and 550 000 are employed in the tourism industry. Diversity not only brings a country together but also helps other people learn new cultures. Migration is the movement of people across international borders and Australia is considered to be a nation which is built on international.

Nearly half a million people continually arrive on Australian shores annually. Approximately 13% of the arrivals are from Britain and New Zealand, 7% from China, 6% from India and 5% from South Africa. Migrants have brought many cultural traits with them and today Australia is regarded as a multicultural society because 25% of its 19.9 million people have been born overseas. The arrival of these migrants and numerous others has played an important role in Australia’s population levels and has reinforced Australia’s links to the world. Positive impacts of migration to Australia include the increase and demand for infrastructure through the spending by migrants on food and housing, the expansion of regional business and investment links and additions to labour and skills levels brought by the migrants, there are also some negative impacts of migrants to Australia include higher levels of poverty, unemployment and crime.

However the most visible impact has been the overall increase in the range of Australia’s cultural backgrounds, with an overseas-born population of 140 recognised ethnic groups which speak more than 90 languages and practice about 80 religions. Australia’s international aid programme was one of the first overseas aid initiatives which was taken by western industrialised countries in the world. It is mainly focused on the Asia-Pacific region and the poorer parts of East Asia; however, it does also contribute to the developmental needs in the South Asian, African and Middle Eastern countries. In the early 1980s, Australia contributed a total of $840 million worth of international aid, and this figure, by 1998 had increased to about 1.429 billion dollars. Australia’s international aid funding rose to about $2.946 billion between 2006 and 2007 – this was directed at 58 million people globally. Australia benefits from aid programmes because it gives Australia an ability to target problems that require international efforts and it extends Australia’s influence on areas of international development that are beneficial to its interests.

Australia’s aid programme funds such organisations through the International Development Association (IDA), the Asian Development Fund (ADF) and the Global Environment Facility (GEF). Australia is geographically an isolated country; therefore it is important that we have access to advanced communications and transport systems in a world that seems to be coming extremely technological. Broadband and satellite internet, mobile phone networks and digital television not only help ordinary Australians to stay in contact with one another, but also ensure the Australia is linked to the rest of the world; the communication links allows for Australia to be an active player in the global financial markets.

Advantages of communication links include Australia being able to trade with more nations which then boosts the economy and allows for a national identity to other countries – disadvantages of communication links would be that too much money and dependence can be spent on communication. From 2004-2005, it was estimated that 67% of Australian homes had at least one computer, 59% of homes were connected to the internet and 90% of people had a mobile phone, therefore making communication a prominent aspect of the Australian’s life. Australia is the smallest continent, but it is constantly growing into a country that could ultimately have a large impact on the rest of the world. We have numerous regional and global links such as sport, culture, tourism, migration, aid and communication, and these links seem to be developing stronger and stronger each day. It is utterly important that we maintain and establish these links to ensure that Australia is able to have a big enough impact on the rest of the world.