This week, we’ll be exploring a topic that is literally all around us- globalization!  While most of us, if we are lucky, do not have daily personal experience of many of the topics we cover in IR, such as armed conflict, terrorism, or transnational criminal activity, all of us have daily interactions with at least some aspects of globalization.  Think about what you eat each day- where did the food come from, and how did it get to you?  What clothes are you wearing?  Where were they designed? Sewn? Where were the fibres grown or created?  How did they come to you? Where will they go when you are done with them? Do you ever communicate with family or friends who are hundreds or thousands of miles away from you?  What device are you reading this post on right now, and where was it made/how did it get into your hands?  (if these questions are resonating with you, you might consider doing the Globalization Photo Essay Project– a suggested due date is April 14, but like all due dates this semester, that is definitely flexible.)  

This week, we’ll look at different definitions of globalization and the economic explanations of globalization (increased trade due to specialization and comparative advantage!).  Liberal institutionalism definitely claims trade and globalization as a primary area- state cooperate in international institutions to mutually benefit from increased trade (but don’t worry- we’ll also explore the ways other IR theories approach trade and globalization).   What does state sovereignty mean in a globalized world?  How does globalization relate to the topics we’ve covered already- armed conflict, terrorism, and transnational organized crime?  And if that wasn’t enough, we’ll discuss development- is GDP the best way to measure economic development, or is the Gini coefficient or Human Development Index more appropriate?   

A heads up on an excellent event happening on campus this week: Ger Duany will speak on Thursday, April 11 from 9:45am to 11:45am in the MAC Rotunda. He is a South Sudanese and US-American movie actor and former refugee born in southern Sudan, who was resettled to the United States at the age of 15. If you are able to attend the event and post a blog describing the event and connecting it to our course topics (this will not be difficult to do), you can earn 7 points for our class.

Finally, this week, I’ll ask you to write an extra blog post.  In addition to your weekly blog post (something related to Globalization), this post should be your mid-semester check in with yourself, where you assess your performance so far and make a plan to finish the semester strong. 

In your blog post, go back and look at that first blog post you wrote, where you set goals for yourself and made a plan for what assignments you would do/how you would get them done.  How many points have you earned so far?  How are you doing now, compared to what you said you would do?  If you’re right on track, congratulate yourself and keep up the great work.  If you’re not where you want to be, make a new plan for the rest of the semester, so your learning (and your grade) are where you want them to be in June.  Your plan should be realistic and specific – try to identify your specific challenges and come up with realistic solutions (for example, if you have trouble fitting in the work for this class around your job, but you need to keep your job to pay your rent, quitting your job would not be a realistic solution to needing more time for this class.  So find the realistic solutions, that you can actually put into practice!)  Please note- you don’t have to disclose any information in your blog that you are not comfortable sharing.  The point of this post is to be helpful to you in setting yourself up for the rest of the semester, so write what works for that purpose.  If you need help making your plan, please see me in student hours (or make an appointment if the regularly scheduled ones don’t work for you).  If you still haven’t started blogging, then make this your first post and include a realistic plan for how you will blog in the second half of the class.   Finally, your blog post should assess your first half of blogging (for weeks 1-6), and include the score you’d give yourself (out of 10 possible points) for the first half of the semester; there are instructions for assessing your blogging at the end of the blog instructions.

So get to work on our course readings (the OECD Better Life Index is especially fun to play with) and your blogging, and have a great week!