Abstract: This essay explores the issue of globalization, focusing on damage caused to jobs, wages, and incomes of poor people by the dislocations and competition of international trade and foreign investment, and the weakening of the ability of the state to compensate for this damage and alleviate poverty. It discusses the poor as self-employed workers, as wage workers, and as users of public services and common property resources. It argues that in the medium-to-long run, globalization need not make the poor much worse off if appropriate domestic policies and institutions are in place and appropriate coordination among the involved parties can be organized. If the institutional prerequisites can be managed, globalization opens the door for some new opportunities even for the poor.

Keywords: globalization, trade, self-employed workers, wage workers, public services, common property resources,