The distance between them is approximately 9000 kilometers; but the eruption of a volcano in Iceland can affect the wages of agricultural workers in Nairobi.

Last weekend the Grimsvotn volcano started to fling lava. Experts maintain that this was the largest eruption in 100 years. The Keflavik airport already has been closed on grounds that the ashes are dangerous for air traffic. Last year, the Eyjafjallajokull volcano, which I still do not know how to pronounce, erupted and the ash clouds spread South, shutting down a substantial part of the European air traffic. The British Guardian reported that Heathrow Airport in London might be affected by the end of the week. Then, it appears that the agricultural workers in Kenya will not be paid their wages.

When the Eyjafjallajokull volcano erupted in April 2010 and the European air zone was closed down for a week, travelers tried to take care of themselves. This was when we learned that there were many people traveling. The famous British actor John Cleese, whom I remember from the TV series "Fawlty Towers," took a cab from Oslo to Brussels and made the news. Cleese paid €3300 for a 1500-kilometer ride. But the disruption of the air traffic had a series of marked outcomes. Many fruits unique to the Equatorial region - pineapples, mangoes, and passion fruits - became rare and finally disappeared in European shops, beginning with Britain. Similarly, it became difficult to find fresh cut flowers and approximately three tons of roses went to waste in Kenya. The daily loss is estimated to have been US$2 million. During this period, agricultural workers never got paid for their one-week of work.

In fact, there are many volcanoes in Iceland. Active and inactive volcanoes in the country add up to 130. These erupt occasionally and the same thing happens every time. But the overall impact gradually grows. Why? Evidently due to the changes in our lifestyles, and the rising mutual interaction brought by globalization. To begin with, I feel that the outcomes of the eruption of the Grimsvötn closely interests me. I need to be in the capital of Norway, Oslo, in the mid-week, but I would not prefer to take a cab from Oslo to Brussels. This is still a "would rather" case for me; but more and more people are working in a city or place other than their residence. In the past, only Americans had such lives. Now, however, European airports in particular have become indispensible parts of our lifestyle. I believe this is the first point to keep in mind.

Second, take the flowers, for instance. There are two regions where the flower trade is carried out in large volumes. The first is Europe.  The flowers traded here are produced mainly in Africa, Kenya in particular. The second region is the USA where the production is carried out in Latin America, Columbia in particular. How do they transport the fresh cut flowers? Primarily via air cargo. Therefore, it is of critical importance for agricultural workers in Nairobi that the air traffic over Europe is not interrupted. In 1950 the global scale of the fresh cut flower trade was around US$ 3 billion. Now it has became into a huge industry worth hundreds of  billions of dollars. Thus, airports are more critical now. Let this be the second point.

I guess the third one must go like this: When making regional plans, Turkey must build airports not with the "Why not, it could be good" approach, but in association with the new industries to be developed. Regional development is closely associated with urban planning. We will wait and see.

Last week New Yorkers protested the horse-driven carriages in Central Park and debated whether or not to ban them. Following the protests, a Syrian human rights activist said, "I also want to live in a country where people protest the violation of animal rights rather than human rights." Me too. But this is not up to our will.

This commentary was published in Radikal daily on 24.05.2011