Global Economy, Politics, and Regionalism

Vocabulary flashcards covering the historical eras of the global economy, international political theories, global poverty metrics, and Asian regional organizations.

Middle Age (Global Economy)

The first era of the global economy, during which Marco Polo's travels and European demand for Asian goods stimulated the search for new trade routes, eventually leading to the Age of Exploration.

Second Era of Global Economy

An era of international economic expansion led by Portugal and Spain, largely structured around mercantilism.

Third Era of Global Economy

The global economic period marked by the Industrial Revolution and the economic theories of Adam Smith promoting free trade.

Age of Exploration

The historical era that transformed regional trade networks into a broader global economic system connecting four major regions: Europe, Africa, the Americas, and Asia.

Free Trade (Adam Smith)

The principle that countries should produce goods in which they are relatively efficient and trade them with other nations, establishing international trade based on specialization.

Industrial Revolution

A transformation beginning in Britain in the late eighteenth century that transitioned economies from agricultural to industrial systems, establishing mass production and expanding international commerce.

The Bretton Woods System

A post-war international economic system founded in $1944$ in Bretton Woods, New Hampshire, aimed at promoting monetary stability, international economic cooperation, economic reconstruction, and international trade.

Radical Connectivity

The transfer of power from traditional institutions to individuals as a consequence of the digital revolution.

Second Machine Age

A concept and title of the book Work, Progress and Prosperity in a Time of Brilliant Technologies authored by Erik Brynjolfsson and Andrew McAffee.

Global System

The sum of all interactions among actors in global politics and the collective consequences of those interactions.

Individual Level of Analysis

A level of analysis in global politics focusing on personality traits, decision-making methods, and core beliefs of individual leaders.

State Level of Analysis

A level of analysis focusing on governments, policy-making agencies, and domestic decision-making groups that determine foreign policies.

Global Level of Analysis

A level of analysis examining structural properties, distributions of power and wealth, nationality, and worldwide characteristics as a whole.

Realism

An approach to global politics rooted in the tradition of power politics, centering on the search for and distribution of power.

Liberalism

An optimistic approach to global politics emphasizing the perfectibility of humankind, free trade, and democracy, placing primary focus on individuals rather than states.

Neorealism (Structural Realism)

A school of realism arguing that conflicts and wars are primarily driven by structural properties of global politics, specifically international anarchy and the distribution of power among states.

Neoliberalism

A school of liberalism maintaining that international organizations play a critical role in strengthening order, cooperation, and peace among nations.

Capitalism

An economic system characterized by private ownership of property and the means of production, with free-market competition governing the exchange of goods and services.

Communism

A classless, stateless social system featuring common ownership of property, organized around the principle that each member contributes according to ability and receives according to need.

Populism

A political rhetoric, ideology, strategy, and style—defined by Torcuato Di Tella in $1965$ as a political movement primarily supported by peasants and the working class.

Hegemony

The political struggle over inclusion and exclusion in dominant discourse, where holding power equates to controlling dominant interpretations of reality.

Group of Eight (G8)

An intergovernmental forum that met periodically on international economic and monetary issues, consisting of Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom, the United States, and Russia (suspended in $2014$).

The Golden Age ($1944$-$1971$)

A hegemonic era in which a dominant state and social forces, including transnational corporations and financial institutions, shaped global economic order.

Absolute Poverty

A condition defined by the severe deprivation of basic human needs, encompassing food, safe drinking water, sanitation facilities, health, shelter, education, and access to information.

Poverty Line

An income threshold below which a person cannot afford the bare minimum requirements to exist, calculated by governments based on the annual average cost of basic necessities.

Millennium Development Goals (MDGs)

A series of eight international human development targets established through the UN Millennium Declaration by $189$ member countries, targeted for achievement by $2015$.

Informal Economy

Economic activity involving the exchange of goods and services outside national and international regulatory frameworks, leaving workers without legal protections or formal benefits.

ASEAN Community

A Southeast Asian regional organization characterized by consensus decision-making, diversity, and three central pillars: political-security, sociocultural, and economic.

Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC)

A regional economic forum established in $1989$ designed to leverage growing interdependence and create greater prosperity throughout the Asia-Pacific region.

South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC)

An economic and political organization established in $1985$ by Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka, which later admitted Afghanistan in $2007$.

Pax Silica

An initiative launched in December $2025$ by nine nations to secure critical mineral and semiconductor supply chains, build trusted infrastructure, and advance AI cooperation.