Not only capital but also goods and technology will move across national boundaries with increasing magnitude and speed. So too will people, pollutants, and popular culture. To add to the complexity, natural economic territories will emerge throughout the region. These new economic entities will often reflect and be reinforced by underlying ethnic and religious ties.
Because these global forces lie beyond the control of any single government, they require transnational and intergovernmental cooperation. New institutional arrangements―formal and informal―will be needed to cope not only with military and economic threats to regional peace and security, but also with such problems as HIV/AIDs, drugs, acid rain, crime, migration (both legal and illegal), and the rise in ethnic and religious tensions.
These new arrangements will have to be anchored in the diversity of cultures in the region. Differences in attitudes do matter, as the cases of India and Pakistan, and Korea and Japan, make all too clear. In the words of a Japanese analyst: "The positive and negative emotions people feel for each other... cannot be ignored, since they determine to a significant degree the nature of political and economic interactions and the emotions of those involved."
Impressive progress has been made in recent years, particularly in Asia Pacific, in creating intergovernmental organizations, such as ASEAN, ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF), APEC, as well as parallel private sector bodies, such as the Committee for Security Cooperation in Asia Pacific (CSCAP), Pacific Trade and Development conference series (PAFTAD), and Pacific Economic Cooperation Council (PECC). More will be needed. Similarly, business corporations will need to respond to globalization by entering into strategic alliances and other forms of cooperation. Other nongovernmental organizations―NGOs, foundations, think tanks―will need to strengthen their transnational ties to address such issues as human rights, religion, women, and the environment.
The forces of globalization will grow in strength and penetrate ever more deeply into Asian societies. But, as we have also seen, so too will the pressures toward localization. Globalization is not the same as homogenization. The issues confronting the region will have many commonalties. But how they are perceived, the priority accorded to them, and how they are responded to will be deeply imbedded in domestic politics and politics. The diversity and pluralism of the region will make building a consensus on appropriate mechanisms particularly difficult, if no less important.
Expectations of NPOs
In meeting the economic, political and social challenges confronting the region all three sectors of society will play critical roles. No one sector alone will have resources―human or financial―needed to meet the magnitude and complexity of societal needs. Fiscal as well as organizational constraints will mean governments will be able to do less. Their role will have to change from "doer" to "enabler" and "facilitator." "Big Government, Small Society" will have to shift to "Big Society, Small Government."
Commensurate with the increased role of the market, corporations will have to assume broader social as well as economic responsibilities. More also will be needed and expected of the nonprofit sector. All three sectors will have to move beyond the mutual indifference, suspicion, hostility and begrudging acceptance that too often characterize the relationship among them.
