Geography and International Relations in the 21st Century Part I

1
Geography and International Relations in the 21st
Century Part I

• William B. Wood
• The Geographer and Deputy Assistant Secretary
• U.S. Department of State
• presentation to
• National Council for the Social Studies
• Washington DC
• November 17, 2001

2
Thesis Geography is critical to understanding
international relations and for achieving
national strategic goals

• What is geography?
• How does geography affect international
  relations?
• Why is geography relevant for US foreign policy?
• What are the geography-based data and tools that
  are changing the way we address global issues?

3
Geographers study how societies interact with
their world

• Multidisciplinary - integration of social and
  natural sciences, with a locational focus
• Spatial - distribution of features, events, and
  peoples on the earths surface (map-informed)
• Regional - patterns of shared characteristics at
  various scales among people and places
• Environmental - interaction between natural
  resources and societal/cultural systems

4
Political geography how do societies organize
and make decisions about their environment?

• Geopolitics was invented by geographers
• Ratzel - competing state organisms
• MacKinder - heartland theory, maritime vs. land
• Nazis - territorial nationalism, genocide
• Political scientists - regional rivalries,
  superpowers
• (geo oversimplified)
• Political geographers - social theory, critical
  geopolitics
• Applied political geography
• global vs. local
• intra- vs. inter-national conflict
• convergence vs. divergence of interests

5
Geography is essential for understanding current
international events..

• Underlying forces that influence current
  international relations
• population growth and distribution
• natural resource exploitation, depletion, and
  degradation (disparity in wealth of nations)
• competition among ethnic groups - frustration and
  violence
• territorial nationalism - transnational terrorism
• globalization vs. localization
• democratization - effective governance

6
Diplomats are often ignorant about geography
because...

• They think they know what it is and are wrong
• geography is not cartography or Jeopardy!
• They dont do enough field work, outside of state
  capitals
• They focus on short term policy objectives, not
  long term structural conditions

7
Schools and colleges perpetuate geographic
ignorance about international relations..

• Diplomats are products of geography-impaired
  educational programs
• K-12 grades are belatedly catching on (national
  geography education standards)
• Colleges rarely integrate geography programs with
  international affairs / political science

8
(No Transcript)
9
International Affairs and U.S. National Interests

• National Security
• Ensure regional stability and eliminate weapons
  of mass destruction.
• Economic Prosperity
• Open markets, expand exports, and promote
  broad-based growth.
• American Citizens and U.S. Borders
• Protect American citizens and safeguard U.S.
  borders.
• Law Enforcement
• Combat international crime, narcotics
  trafficking, and terrorism.
• Democracy and Human Rights
• Support democracies and uphold human rights.
• Humanitarian Response
• Provide assistance to victims of crisis and
  disaster.
• Global Issues
• Improve the global environment, stabilize
  population, and protect health

10
National Security Geography of Terrorism
11
Regional Stability Afghanistans Humanitarian
Crisis
12
American citizens and US borders

• Location of U.S. citizens near quake epicenter

TAIWAN, September 21, 1999 Earthquake Response
13
Law Enforcement
Law
14
Human rights geography of genocide
15
Democracy and Electoral Geography - More than
just fair elections
16
Humanitarian response
17
Geography of Global
Issuessociety-environment interactionsregiona
l variationsspatial patterns help explain
complex phenomenacultural and economic factors
influence societal responses We cannot address
global issues effectively without understanding
the geographic factors that drive them...
18
Global issues and local consequences Climate
Change
19
Population Geography Growth and
Distributionbirth death rates / life
expectancy / doubling time international
migrations / labor / refugees rural to urban
migration / urbanizationdemands for social
services work force
20
Geography of Natural Resources
Renewable vs. Non-renewableclean drinking
wateraffordable fossil fuelsarable, fertile
landsustainable forests (tropical
deforestation)sustainable seas (fisheries
depletion)
21
Geography of International
Environmental Issuesbiodiversity - threatened
species / ecosystems GMOs - agriculture / trade
/ geneticsclimate change - ozone depletion /
greenhouse gas emissionstransboundary air and
water pollutionnuclear waste - transportation /
dumpinginvasive species
22
Social and Medical Geographyinfant and
child nutrition / mortality patternsinfectious
diseases vectors (malaria, TB, cholera, AIDS,
etc.)chronic malnutrition / faminefamily
planning / rural health clinicsliteracy (esp.
for girls) and rural development