(in Polish) Politics of regional and global development-OGUN

general courses

The main goal of this lecture course is to analyze systemic links between politics and economic development in both democratic and authoritarian regimes.

Globalization/Regionalization as a mechanism for development has as many supporters as enemies. Some argue that it emerged in the late 1970s, while some devoted many books to show that globalization is as old as trade. We can show some remarkable successes of globalization, as well as disturbing failures. In other words the notion of globalization has penetrated our minds and created a situation that everyone talks about, but in most cases the debate is visibly shallow and unbalanced. This lecture course is designed to provide an introduction to theories, concepts and key issues in regional political economy. It will examine the notion of development and navigate through key aspects such as democracy, regional integration, poverty, migration, urbanization, environmental crisis, fundamentalism and war.

Seminar 1 :

Topic: Global politics – Possible Interpretations.

What is globalization? What are the main approaches studying globalization? What are controversies surrounding globalization?

Readings:

1. Jan Art Scholte, Globalization: A Critical Introduction 2000. Chapters 1 and 2, pp.13 – 61.

2. Jenny Edkins and Maja Zehfuss, ‘Introduction’ in Jenny Edkins and Maja Zehfuss, eds., Global Politics: A New Introduction, 2nd edition. London: Routledge 2013, (Chapter 1, Textbook)

3. John Baylis et al, ‘Chapter 1: Introduction to Global Politics’ in Steve L. Lamy et al, Introduction to Global Politics: Brief Second Edition. Oxford: OUP, 2014.

Questions for discussion:

It is a rare find to come across a textbook that treats globalization as a settled concept for one simple reason: Globalization is a term loaded with meaning. The task of this week’s workshop session is to unpack some of these meanings so that we can gain a better grasp of the major issues and debates that make-up the broader research and policy-agenda associated with the term. To start, look over the questions below and keep in mind that globalization is a contested concept that may not have the same effects on all people, in all places, at all times.

1) How can we understand the process of globalization? Is it a natural process? If not, who or what is the engine that drives globalization?

2) Does globalization have any synonyms? What terms would you consider equivalent to, or inseparable from, globalization? Back-up your answers with explanations.

3) How does globalization affect the structure of political, social and economic cleavages around the world? Consider the following in your answer: a) American hegemony; b) Western culture; c) the wealth gap.

Seminar 2 :

Topic: New 21st Century and Global Politics

Late 20th century global macro shifts of power and influence and “globalization trends”. Causes and Consequences.

Readings:

1. Tim Dunne et al, ‘Chapter 3: Theories of Global Politics’ in Steve L. Lamy et al, Introduction to Global Politics: Brief Second Edition. Oxford: OUP, 2014.

2. Ha-Joon Chang with Manuel F. Montes “If you make consistent, gradual changes, they can add up to something enormous” in “22 Ideas to Fix the World” Textbook

Questions for discussion:

1) Which regions benefited most and suffered most as a result of last half-century global shifts?

2) Why some countries succeeded and others did not? Is that a matter of culture, governance, environment or resources?

Seminar 3 :

Topic: Wealth, Poverty and Global politics

Readings:

1) Zygmunt Bauman with Vincent Della Sala “Re-create the social state” in “22 Ideas to Fix the World”, Textbook.

2) Bob Deacon with Rianne Mahon “Create global social policy” in “22 ideas to Fix the World” Textbook.

3) Caroline Thomas, Steven L. Lamy and John Masker, Poverty, Development, and Hunger in Steven Lamy, John S. Masker, John Baylis, Introduction to Global Politics, Brief Second Edition. 2014.

Questions for discussion:

Poverty as a national phenomenon has proven difficult to resolve. Even some of the richest countries in the world with well-developed systems of governance and infrastructure find it difficult to distribute wealth in a manner that ensures a basic minimum standard of living. Poverty as a global phenomenon has proven even more difficult. Without a well-developed system of global governance and infrastructure how can the development of regions stricken with poverty be coordinated? This week’s workshop aims to tease out what policy mechanisms are available and how they should be used in the alleviation of global poverty.

1) Consider the following statement: “Sovereign states have a responsibility to their constituents that exists above and beyond considerations of the global community at large. They cannot, therefore, be responsible for the coordination of global poverty alleviation.”

Seminar 4

Topic: Environment and the politics of Global Energy Governance

Readings:

1) Paul Watson with Jan Dutkiewicz “This is not Planet Earth; it’s Planet Ocean” in “22 ideas to Fix the World” Textbook

2) Mike Davis with Joe Day “We need to become a planet of gardeners . . . to make our cities function as integral parts of nature” in “22 Ideas to Fix the World” Textbook

Questions for discussion:

Energy security is a significant topic for 21st century politics. It’s fraught with questions of state-security, human-security and governmentality. In the past, Western countries comprised the primary energy resource importers, but this has now been complemented by the rise of the rest, with China surpassing the United States as the world’s largest importer. This threatens to place strains on relations between energy-importing countries and energy-exporting countries as well, as competition for supply intensifies. While this has a positive spin-off in the form of global economic development, it has further negative potentials. Human-security relating primarily to global environmental degradation is at issue for the populations of consuming, supplying and transit countries, raising questions regarding the health of the human population and environmental sustainability. The production and consumption of energy is also closely linked to major environmental concerns such as climate change, deforestation and broader use of natural resources. How this overall scenario will be managed locally, regionally and globally has rarely if ever been a higher priority?

Seminar 5 :

Topic: Global Migration: causes and consequences.

What is migration? How migration affects globalization. What are political effects of mass migration?

Readings:

1. John P. Martin, Migration and the Global Economy, 2007, pp 1-6

2. Stuart Elden, ‘Why is the world divided territorially?’ in Jenny Edkins and Maja Zehfuss, eds., Global Politics: A New Introduction, 2nd edition. London: Routledge 2013, (Chapter 11, Textbook)

Questions for discussion:

There are a variety of factors that influence the scale and direction of global migration. Natural disasters, economic growth and decay, geopolitical shifts, etc. can all play a significant role in the movement of people within and across state boundaries. Sometimes governments are forced to respond to these events as a matter of adjustment and humanitarian accommodation, and in other cases governments design proactive policies to encourage or discourage certain types of migration into and out of their jurisdictions. This week’s workshop looks at how a particular group of states in the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) manage the process of global migration. Imagine that you are part of a panel that is advising the government of one of these states on how to provide the best possible migration policy for its domestic constituents while keeping in mind the welfare of the international community in general.

1) Evaluate the pros and cons of the following statement: “The free flow of people across state boundaries is as much a part of the global market as finance and trade in commodities.”

2) Evaluate the pros and cons of the following statement: “Migration policy has to be tailored to the economic needs of a state before all other considerations.”

Seminar 6

Topic: Global terrorism, Genocide and Globalization.

Readings

1) Linda Melvern, 2004, Conspiracy to Murder: The Rwandan Genocide. Chapter 1, pp.1-19 and chapter 11, pp.245 – 265

2) Richard A. Clarke, 2004, Against All Enemies: Inside America’s war on Terror. Chapter 10, pp. 227-247 and Chapter 11, pp. 347 - 289

3) Seyour M. Hersh 2004, Chain of Command, Chapter VIII, pp 324 -361

Questions for discussion:

Imagine the following scenario: your country has caught a dangerous notorious terrorist with possible knowledge about an imminent attack. Your options are either to torture the terrorist in order to retrieve valuable information that could prevent a terrorist attack or to put the terrorist on trial through legal channels which may be lengthy and ultimately result in the inability to prevent the attack. The class is divided in half. Half the class must argue for torture while the other half for trial. Students do not necessarily have to argue their personal opinion but rather engage the complexity of the argument and exercise their skills in public debate.

Seminar 7

Topic: Global Politics and Fundamentalisms.

Readings:

1) Muhammad Ynus with Piotr Dutkiewicz “All human beings have unlimited potential, unlimited capacity, unlimited creative energy” in “22 ideas to Fix the World” Textbook

2) Will Kymlicka with Raffaele Marchetti “Minority rights are a part of human rights” in “22 Ideas to Fix the World” Textbook

3) Retort – Iain Boal, T.J. Clark, J. Matthews, M. Watts. Afflicted Powers. 2005, Chapter 5 pp.132- 171.

4) Questions for discussion:

Fundamentalism and globalization appear to be at odds. Fundamentalism is described as an atavistic or static perspective on social conduct and organization, while globalization is described as a progressive and dynamic phenomenon. This week’s workshop explores how globalization and fundamentalism can coexist, and how an exploration of the two concepts as an ensemble might lead us to rethink their meaning and significance.

1) Is fundamentalism just a religious phenomenon? Provide examples of other real fundamentalisms to support a positive answer, or provide examples of other avowed fundamentalisms to support a negative answer. Explain how these examples do or do not fit the definition of fundamentalism.

2) What are the major causes of fundamentalism? How might an understanding of these causes help us to manage the existence of fundamentalism?

Seminar 8

Topic: Modern war and Warfare and Global Politics

Readings:

1) Louise Amoore & Marieke de Goede, ‘What Counts as Violence?’ in Jenny Edkins and Maja Zehfuss editors, Global Politics: A New Introduction. 2nd edition. London: Routledge, 2013. (Chapter 23, Textbook)

2) Joanna Bourke, ‘Why does Politics turn to Violence?’ Jenny Edkins and Maja Zehfuss editors, Global Politics: A New Introduction. 2nd edition. London: Routledge, 2013. (Chapter 22, Textbook)

Questions for discussion:

1) How war is changing?

2) What are the main causes of wars; how you can prioritize them; is war inevitable?

3) What is the “war business model?

4) Can wars be made private in the future?

Seminar 9

Topic: The Future of Democracy and Global Politics

Readings:

1) David Held, Models of Democracy, 2006. Chapter 3, pp. 56-95

2) V. Inozemtsev & P. Dutkiewicz (eds.) (2012) Democracy versus Modernization, Chapters 2, 4, 5, 10 and 11.

Questions for discussion:

This class seeks to “re-think democracy.” Over the past years, there has been a tendency in the global policy community and, even more widely, in the world media, to focus on democracy as the “gold standard” by which all things political are measured. It became a sort of untouchable, western liberal religion. As David Held has observed, democracy, which had seemed rather triumphant (as desired ideal) for the last two decades is today experiencing intense pressures both from within and without. Questions are mounting about whether democracies can effectively deliver to their citizens everything that is expected from them – security, equality, and prosperity. The crisis of 2007 – 2009 (and its continuing aftermath) has put democratic states under severe pressure and has demonstrated a growing dissatisfaction (as demonstrated by social turmoil across the globe, from Athens to New York to London) with the way democratic regimes operate. This, in turn, has placed the whole notion of democracy under the political and analytical microscope for the first time in decades.

Seminar 10

Topic: Scenarios of the Possible Futures- Respond to Economic Crisis, Make Development Possible

How should the institutional configuration of global governance change to meet XXI century expectations? Will we see new global alliances?

Readings:

1) Roland Bleiker “Can we move beyond conflict?” in Jenny Edkins and Maja Zehfuss editors, Global Politics: A New Introduction. 2nd edition. London: Routledge, 2013. (Chapter 24)

2) Maja Zehfuss “Conclusion: What Can We do to Change the World?” Jenny Edkins and Maja Zehfuss editors, Global Politics: A New Introduction. 2nd edition. London: Routledge, 2013. (Chapter 28).

3) Shimshon Bichler and Jonathan Nitzan with Piotr Dutkiewicz “Capitalism as a mode of power” in “22 ideas to Fix the World” Textbook

4) Vladimir Popov with Piotr Dutkiewicz “Because the Chinese growth model became so successful in ensuring catch-up development it has become extremely appealing in the developing world” in “22 Ideas to Fix the World” Textbook.

A. Literatura podstawowa:

Wybrane rozdzialy z nastepujacych prac w jezyku angielskim:

1. Piotr Dutkiewicz and Richard Sakwa (eds.), Eurasian Integration – The View From Within, Routledge 2015.

2. Piotr Dutkiewicz and Richard Sakwa (eds.), 22 Ideas to Fix the World . Conversations with the World's Foremost Thinkers, New York University Press, 2013.

3. Piotr Dutkiewicz and Vladislav Inozemtsev (eds.), Democracy versus Modernization, A Dilemma for Russia and for the World, Routledge Publishers, 2012.

Oraz w jezyku polskim:

1 Z.Bauman, 44 listy ze świata płynnej nowoczesności, Wydawnictwo Literackie, Warszawa 2011.

Kozłowski, Krzysztof. Kolory rewolucji / Krzysztof Kozłowski. Warszawa: Poltext, 2012. 176 s. Współczesne Stosunki Międzynarodowe.

After completing the course, students should have a knowledge about:

1. Notions and definitions related to macro political economy.

2. Links between politics and development.

3. Critical approach to “classic” models of market as related to power.

4. Trajectories of change linked to social and political structures in democratic and authoritarian regimes.

Student can choose one of two convenient for him/her options:

1. Write a test covering material presented during the lectures (5 open questions, max. 15 points, 8 points give the lowest grade 3).

2. Write and present an essay on the developmental problems of contemporary cities accordingly to the guidelines (5 pages+literature).