FINANCIAL-POLITICAL GEOGRAPHY

The course aims to provide students with the main conceptual and methodological tools of economic and political geography. The fundamental objective of the course is to provide knowledge related to the main geo-economic and geopolitical dynamics, useful for understanding the importance of the geographic perspective in the study of International Relations.

At the end of the course, students will have acquired the basic concepts of economic and political geography and the related reference terminology.
Moreover, they will be able to:
a) understand the main spatial and territorial dimensions of the actions of states and international organizations;
b) manage confidently the basic concepts of economic and political geography and its language as to interpret the evolution of contemporary geo-economic systems;
c) utilize the main concepts and tools of geopolitics to interpret the evolution of the international relations system in a synchronic perspective;
d) to formulate and argue simple interpretative hypotheses regarding the evolution of possible geo-economic scenarios;
e) to select the most reliable sources, to constructively criticize reports and papers relevant to the study path;
f) represent and synthesize the acquired knowledge in an efficient and coherent way.

Basic principles of economics and of international political economics.

The course considers the main contemporary geoeconomic and geopolitical dynamics, with particular attention to those that contribute to the evolution of the international relations system. The main scenarios and contemporary geopolitical changes are analyzed, paying particular attention to the role of the State in global processes.
In this perspective, the central topics of the course are the following:
- Geographical perspective on globalization
- The new economic and political geographies of globalization: the role of nation-states and of non-state actors; the new global social movements
- Globalization and regionalism
- Globalization, instability and inequalities
- Globalization and the city
- Globalization and sustainable development
- Geopolitical scenarios and international relations: order and disorder in a multipolar world

Students (attending- and not-attending ones) can prepare the exam on the study material/readings listed below:
1. W.E. Murray, J. Overton, Geographies of Globalization, Second Edition, London and New York, Routledge, 2015, chapters 1-2,3 (pp. 72-93),4-5, 7-10.
2. I. Talia, V. Amato, Scenari e mutamenti geopolitici. Competizione ed egemonia nei grandi spazi, Bologna, Pàtron, 2015.
3. The class slides that will be made available before the end of the course in the moodle page of the class.

For all students (attending-, and not-attending ones), the exam consists of a written test, with 5 open questions on the course topics. Each answer is worth a maximum of 6 points.
The test lasts 120 minutes.
The test is aimed at verifying students' preparation on the topics of the course, as well as their ability to use these concepts to interpret and summarize the main contemporary geo-economic and geopolitical trends, with particular attention to those that invest the nature and role of States in global processes and in the evolution of the international relations system.
In the final lesson of the course, the teacher will explain to students the nature and type of questions that will be the subject of the official and final test.

The course is organized with frontal-lectures. In each lesson the final part is destined for discussion with the students, according to modalities consistent with the number of the class.

Italian

written

This subject deals with topics related to the macro-area "International cooperation" and contributes to the achievement of one or more goals of U. N. Agenda for Sustainable Development