AP HUG Ch. 8

political geography

the study of the political organization of the world

state

a politically organized territory with a permanent population, a defined territory, and a government. To be a state, a politically organized area must be recognized as one by other states

To be a state…

a politically organized area must be recognized as one by other states

human territoriality

the attempt by an individual or group to affect, influence, or control people, phenomena, and relationships, by delimiting and asserting control over a geographic area

The birth of the modern state idea is traced back to…

17th century Western Europe

What are the two ways that helped create the birth of the modern state idea?

1. individual rulers gradually centralized power over former feudal domains

2. influential scholars and political figures called for a political order rooted in fixed political spaces governed by sovereign rulers.

What did the birth of the modern state idea help develop?

the modern concept of territory

the modern concept of territory

a system of political units with fixed, distinct boundaries and at least quasi-independent governments

What marked the formal beginning of the modern state system?

the Peace of Westphalia agreement

sovereignty

refers to a government’s legal right to control its own territory, both politically and militarily.

After the Westphalia agreement, territory came to be seen as

a fixed element of political identification, with states occupying exclusive, non-overlapping territories

Through colonialism, states…

took over territories across the world & ruled them for their benefit

Through mercantilism, government controlled…

trade & colonies & protected home industries

What did mercantilism & colonial promote?

rivalry and competition among European States

nation

refers to a group of people with a sense of cultural connection, shared political goals, and a shared identity that is attached to a territory, but not necessarily to a state

A nation could be tight-knit by….

a common religion, shared language, or a collective sense of ethnic identity

the nation-state idea

the idea that the map of states should align with the map of nations

What was the nation-state idea promoted by?

by the French Revolution of 1789 and their idea that people are the ultimate sovereign

multinational state

a state with more than one nation inside its borders

multistate nation

when a nation with a state of its own also stretches across borders into other states

stateless nation

nations that do not have a state

autonomous region

an area of a country that has freedom from an external authority

semi-autonomous region

can govern itself in certain agreed areas with the country to which it belongs

centrifugal forces

forces or attitudes that tend divide a state

centripetal forces

forces or attitudes that tend to bring a state together

Different state territorial characteristics can carry…

potential advantages and disadvantages

To understand why wealth is distributed unevenly, we need to understand..

where countries fit in the larger global political-economic picture

Proponents of world-systems theory view the world as…

much more than the sum total of the world’s states

World-systems theorists argue that to understand any state, we must also understand what?

its position within the global economy

3 basic tenets of world-systems theory:

1. The world economy has one market and a global division of labor

2. Although the world has multiple states, almost everything takes place within the context of the world economy

3. The world economy has a three-tier structure (core, semi-periphery, and periphery)

Mercantilism set the stage for…

the rise of an increasingly far-reaching capitalist economic order that encompassed the globe by 1900

Capitalism

refers to a system in which individuals, corporations, and states own land and produce goods and services that are exchanged for profit

Commodification

the process of placing a price on a good, service, or idea and then buying, selling, and trading that item

Core production methods include…

higher levels of education, higher salaries, and more technology

Periphery production methods incorporate…

lower levels of education, lower salaries, and less sophisticated technology

semiperiphery

places where core and periphery processes are both occurring

The semi-periphery acts as a…

buffer between the core and periphery, preventing the polarization of the world into two extremes

Detractors argue that the world-systems theory overemphasizes what?

economic factors and does not fully account for how places move from one category to another

unitary state

a sovereign state governed as a single entity in which the central government is the supreme authority

One strategy for keeping a state together:

giving control over certain policy areas to smaller-scale governments

Federalism accommodates…

regional interests by vesting primary power in substate units over all matters except those explicitly given to the central government

Devolution

is the transfer of power “downwards” from the central government to regional governments within a state

When can devolution occur?

when a constitution is revised to establish a federal system that recognizes the status of the regional governments

Devolutionary pressures associated with ethnocultural differences have produced what?

devastating wars

Devolutionary events are most likely to happen where?

the margins of states

What strengthens devolutionary tendencies?

distance, remoteness, and marginal location

What do electoral geographers examine?

how and where electoral districts emerge

What do electoral geographers consider?

how the voting patterns in particular elections reflect and influence social and political affairs

The geographic study of voting behavior helps us assess what?

whether people’s voting tendencies are influenced by their geographic situation

What do political geographers study to learn why voters in a certain region might vote the way they do?

church affiliation, income level, ethnic background, education attainment, and numerous other social and economic factors

Reapportionment

is the process by which districts are changed according to population shifts

Majority–minority districts

packed districts in which a majority of the population is from the minority

boundary

an imaginary vertical plane that separates two territories above & below the surface

Boundaries were created before subsoil resources were able to be extracted. What did this cause?

major disagreements when trying to gather these resources

Above the boundaries, in airspace, states insisted on…

controlling the airline traffic over their territories, but not the paths of satellites

How do states define their boundaries?

in treaty-like legal documents which has the actual points in the landscape or of longitude and latitude

delimit

determine the limits or boundaries of

demarcate

to set the boundaries or limits of

geometric boundaries

when boundaries are made using grid systems such as latitude & longitude or township & range

physical-political/natural-political boundaries

follow an agreed-upon feature in the natural landscape

What is an example of a physical-political/natural-political boundaries?

The Rio Grande boundary of the US and Mexico

Physical-political/natural-political boundaries are convenient but not static because…

the landforms may be affected by erosion and rivers may change direction or flood.

What does the United Nations Convection on Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) establish?

basic principles that are reflected in zones with varying levels of state control

What are the basic principles that UNCLOS established?

1. States have complete sovereign control over territorial seas that extend out 12 nautical miles (NM) from their coastlines.

2. States have the right to control fiscal transactions, immigration, and sanitation in the contiguous zone that extends an additional 12 NM beyond their territorial seas.

3. States have control over all resources found in the exclusive economic zone (EEZ) that extends out 200 NM from their coastlines.

4. States have complete control over resources found in their continental shelves

5. International waters, which are considered the common heritage of humankind, to be used by all, start at the end of the EEZs and include vast areas of oceans.

The 4 different types of boundary disputes

1. definitional

2. locational

3. operational

4. allocational

Definitional Boundary Disputes

focus on the legal language of the boundary agreement

Locational Boundary Disputes

• centers on differences over where the boundary should actually be placed

• the definition is not in dispute, but its fairness or implementation is contested

Operational Boundary Disputes

involve neighboring states that differ over the way their border should function over migration, smuggling items, & nomadic ways

Allocational Boundary Disputes

• involve international boundaries at sea with disputes over valuable resources

Some boundary conflicts are the product of what?

the raw exercise of brute force by a powerful country

What are the responses to the pressure of the Globalization on Borders:

1. build walls/fences

2. increase policing around borders

What is geopolitics concerned with?

how geographical circumstances influence international relations & the distribution of power

Classical geopolitics began in the late 19th and early 20th century which was a time of..

heightened state nationalism and interstate competition

The German school of thought of geopolitics

• sought to explain why and how certain states became powerful

• territory is an essential life-giving force

The British/American school of thought of geopolitics

• sought to offer political advice

• landmass > sea power

What does lebensraum mean?

life space

What are the main concepts of the Heartland Theory?

1. who rules East Europe commands the Heartland

2. who rules the Heartland commands the World Island

3. who rules the World Island commands the world

What do students of geopolitics focus on?

the underlying geological assumptions & perspectives of international actors

Who are intellectuals of statecraft?

presidents, prime ministers, foreign policy advisors, influential academics, & journalists

Intellectuals of statecraft construct ideas about…

geographical circumstances & places that interpret what happens

What do critical geopolitics explore?

the spatial ideas & understandings at the heart of geopolitical pursuits

What do political geographers seek to shed light on?

how critical geopolitical ideas influence policy approaches

What do critical geopolitics aim to identify & critique?

geopolitical ideas

What do geopolitical world orders describe?

a general consensus about the geographical character of international relations during a given period

deterritorialization

the loss of ‘natural’ relation between culture & the social & geographic territories

reterritorialization

initiatives that enhance the power of traditional political-territorial arrangement

supranational organization

an institution created by 3 or more states to promote cooperation

What are two examples of supranational organizations?

NATO & EU

What idea from US President Woodrow Wilson formed the League of Nations?

proposed international organization to include all states in the world

The League of Nations, although no longer in use, did what?

initiated other organizations

The League of Nations created the Permanent Court of International Justice which…

charged with adjudicating legal issues between states

The League of Nations created the United Nations which…

promoted international security and cooperation

Who participates in the general assembly of the UN?

193 states, nonmember states, & nongovernmental organizations

What happens when a country goes against the UN charter?

the country’s violations lead to collective action like economic sanctions or supported military action

Who are the 5 permanent members of the UN who also are the victors of World War II?

the United States, the United Kingdom, France, China, and Russia

What power does the 5 permanent members of the UN hold?

a veto power over council resolutions

What are opinions of UN reform state?

• the permanent 5 with the veto power destroy the UN’s credibility & reinforce outdated power arrangements

What do critics of the UN state?

• express concern about power being vested in an organization that is not directly reasonable to voters & provides little room for nonstate interests

Why do states organize regional supranational organizations at regional scales?

to advance economic & political agendas

What are examples of regional supranational organizations?

• United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA)

• Asia-Pacific Economic Council (APEC)

• Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS)