CASE STUDIES GEO PAPER 3

USA as a superpower

Economic -

-The USA has one of the highest GDP in the world

-They dominate many sectors -Finance wall Street, entertainment -Hollywood, and Technology -Sillicon valley Valley

- The US dollar is used for international transcation

Politcal-

-The US is part of the UN which allows it to resolve global issues

-Has military bases all over the world

-Has fostered alliances such as NATO which amplifies there global and political reach

Social-

- Celebration such as Thanks giving is celebrated all over the world

-English is one of the most spoken languages abroad

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CHINA

Economic

It has one of the strongest purchasing power parity

-Has the strongest manufacturing power

Political

-Has invested globally such as the Belt and Road in which China invested in Asia and Africa

-Part of UN -Veto power

-Involvemnt in regional forums like Shangaicooperation amplifies it’s it local and global influence

-Social

-Lunar festivities are celebrated all over the world

Establishments like Conufican institutes promote language and culture globally

OECD

The organization for economic cooperation and development

Sustainable development

Pisa-

Global assesment--Assesses 15-year-old students' abilities in reading, math, and science

-Conducted every 3 years by the OECD in over 80 countries.

-Helps governments identify strengths and weaknesses in education.
- Inspires education reforms

-Isn’t based on memorization

-Some countries "teach to the test" to boost scores instead of improving overall education.

-Too much focus on rankings rather than deeper learning

Two contrasting detailed examples of TNCs and their global strategies and

supply chains

APPLE-

-Is a monpoly

-Often sets the standard in the industry

-Components come from various parts of the world to balance cost-effectiveness and quality.

-Has created a lot of jobs directly and indirectly

-Consumer loyalty as products are often interlinked

-Headquartes in Ireland however Manufactures in China factories eg Foxcann

-Often criticized for their labor practices

-Often critzed for their impact on environment

Unilever

-Range of products and services to do with food and personal care -large demographic

-Very focused on sustaibality, pledges to decrease its environmental impact by halving whilst doubling its size

-Makes sure its raw materials are sourced sustainably

-Sources globally however emphasises on local manufacturing to taste and preferences

--The company's sustainability initiatives aim to reduce waste, water usage, and greenhouse gas emissions.

Empowering women

Colombia

-Had one of the largest armed conflicts since 1950

-One of the most unequal countries in the world

-Poverty is concentrated in the rural areas

-The conflict mobilised women to push for equal rights

-Achievements include

32% of governemnet were women

Girls enrollment in secondary school out performed boys enrollement in secondary school

Adult literacy in women was 95.9

maternal mortality rates have declined

Empowering Indigenous groups

IFAD-The international fund for agricultural development

Supports projects to help agricultural development in LIC’S and eliminate rural poverty

-Mainly substience farmers,who have suffered historic land exploitation by non indigenous setllers

-Productivity is low due to environmental and soil degredation

-To restore land rights to indigenous communities, it provided financial and technical support to the communities

-Supported natural resource management based on traditional practices to stimulate intercultural relations and access to markets

Microfinance

The Grameen Bank in Bangladesh

-To provide small loans to the rural poor without requring collateral

-Target-poorer women in the rural

Grameen Bank has empowered millions of women by giving them financial independence.

-Repayment rate was typically very high showing how the poor are reliable borrowers .

Glocalization -Coca Cola

-An American TNC

-Operates in 200 countries

-2/3 revenue comes oversee and owns sprite and fanta

-Has promoted itself through global advertising campaigns and by sponsoring major sporting events

-One of the most recognizable brands worldwide

-Globally there are variations on the original formula to meet local demand

-Coca-cola lime only avialable in Canada,Usa and singapore

-Coca-Cola Citra only available in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Japan and NZ

There are only two countries that do not sell coca cola -Cuba ,North Korea

Case study -The Irish Diaspora

More than 80 million irish people are scattered around teh world such as Canada ,the UK and Australia ,

-The USA has the second largest diaspora after the UK

-The great famine in 1840 caused people to migrate

-most irish people are second or third generation but they have a Keen intrest in their Irish heritage

-In the USA they celebrate Saint Patricks day

-they wear green clothes and drink beers

-New York hosts the world largest parade drawing two million people

-The Chicago River, Illinois, is dyed green every March

-However, these traditions were not imported from Ireland but were made in America and blue, not green, was the traditional colour associated with Ireland’s patron saint prior to the 1798 Irish Rebellion

Examples of ant-immigration movements

-Countries like the New Zealand operate on a point-based system,which admits those who have the skill set that the countries require

-North korea and china limit travel opportunities

-Brexit was a nationalist movement to leave the EU

-Building the US/mexico wall

-President trump prevented migrants from 7 muslim countries from enetering the USA

Case study for geopolitical freedom

China’s great firewall

China is an authoritarian regime with a HFI of 9/100

-Chinese communist party keeps tight control of all aspects of life including -The media,university,religious practices ,and Buisnesses

-It is the only political party

-People who have tried to establish political parties are all in prison

-The political system is dominated by ethnic han men so there is little representation of men ,women,lgbtqi+

-China has a system of censorship -blocks websites,deletes social media and bans user accounts

-Have banned BBC,New york times,Youtube and X

-Facial recognition software are installed in public areas and trasnport

-Academic freedom is heavily restricted -Surveillance cameras in some classrooms

• Large-scale recruitment of student informants

• Special departments to supervise the political thinking of teaching staffs

Civil society challenges

-The Arab spring was a series of pro democracy uprising in several muslim countries.Including Tunisia,libya,egypt

-It began with the Jasmine revolution in 2010 when a Tunisian vendor set himself on fire in protests of the government seizing his vegatable stand as he didn’t have a permit for it

-Street protest mean that ben Ali authroitarian government fleeteingto saudi arabia

-The widespread flow of information on the country’s first democratic parliamentary election, held in October 2011, inspired activists in other countries to protest against their own authoritarian governments

These grassroots movements wanted increased social freedoms and participation in the political process

However, some of these protests became full-scale civil wars, such as in Libya, Syria and Yemen, with continued restrictions

The only country to maintain a form of democracy is Tunisia.

Widespread media coverage results in less mass violence

Countries with good access to social media usually gain support for protests

The south sea china dispute

Highlights how nationalism can escalate geopolitical tensions and political conflict

The south sea China have a wealth of resources and are an important trade route

This has led to terretorial claims by multiple nations

China has made claims about sovreignty over land and waters which have angered competing like Vietnam and Taiwan

-The dispute has caused diplomatic tensions, with countries like the US taking sides, further complicating the situation

In early 2023, the Philippines claimed that Chinese vessels had been shining lasers at boats to temporarily blind their crew

Acidfication in sweden

-Most acidifying pollutants deposited in Sweden have been carried on winds from other countries and international shipping

-Most soils in Sweden are poor in limestone and vulnerable to acidification

-Over 18 000 lakes in Sweden are acidified, and 4000 of them are seriously affected

-Fish stocks in about 9 000 Swedish lakes, mostly in the south and the centre of the country, are also very badly affected

-High levels of mercury in fish cause health problems when eaten

Acid rain has a negative impact on forests and trees.

Sulphur dioxide interferes with the process of photosynthesis

-Sweden banned the burning of high-sulphur oils in 1969, and then took a number of steps to lower sulphur emissions. Methods included:

• More efficient energy use

• Increasing the use of nuclear energy, which reduces the need to use fossil fuels

• Introducing requirements for flue gas cleaning at combustion plants

• In 1991, a tax on sulphur and NO_x was imposed further reducing emissions and a few years later, NO_x emissions had almost halved

Environmental civil society

Case Study

Greenpeace

• Growing from a small group in Canada to a worldwide force since 1971, Greenpeace is a good example of powerful, committed activism

• It's a leader in environmental action and has 25 regional offices operating in 55 countries

• Greenpeace has been a leader in marine protection for a long time

• Their fights against harmful fishing, plastic waste, and oil drilling have changed laws and made people more aware of these issues

• Greenpeace's reports on illegal logging, especially in fragile ecosystems like the Amazon, have made businesses rethink their supply chains and start using more environmentally friendly methods

• Greenpeace has done more than just lobby for renewable energy

• They have helped fund studies into these solutions, which has forced countries to rethink their energy plans

CASE STUDY CULTURAL DIFFUSION

-Is a port city with a range of cultures ,ethnicities and religions due to its global trade links