The clash between globalized relations and nationalist imperatives is one of the main political fault lines of our times. As shown in Brexit in the UK, the victory of Donald Trump in the US, and the recent Macron v. Le Pen competition in France, this tension is emerging time and time again as countries choose between a philosophy featuring openness to the world on one hand, and nationalist leaders who argue for an inward turn, separation and a go-it-alone policy approach. This global fault line, along with the markers of modernization we imagine as characterizing our societies, are the product of the transnational relations shaping these expectations and realities that increasingly connect the local to the global. These expectations are the outcome of what has come to be called ‘globalization’ and the complex web of relations with social, economic and cultural implications supporting it.
This module will introduce you more deeply to the concept of globalization and to the relations that make it possible. It will focus especially on the environmental implications of a globalized world as both a driver and an effect of the phenomenon’s emergence. It will be especially useful for students interested in global environmental issues, human geography, development studies, or international relations.