Global Politics, Governance and Security
Overview
- Credit value: 30 credits at Level 7
- Tutor: Prof Alex Colas
- Assessment: a 4000-word essay (90%) and 1000-word seminar log (10%)
Module description
The end of the Cold War ushered in a world characterised by both integration and fragmentation. Economic globalisation and the recharging of international institutions of global and regional governance have been accompanied by the outbreak of 'new wars' within and across states, and the development of fresh geopolitical fractures across East and West that pose distinctive security challenges to state and non-state actors alike.
In this module we consider the multiple tensions between transnational networks and territorial sovereignty, offering an overview of key concepts such as governance, globalisation, development, security, networks, inequality, humanitarianism, justice, legitimacy and geopolitics as they apply to the world today. We will explore a range of policy issues, including international economic policy coordination, development aid, finance, climate change and human rights. We will also consider the contemporary doctrines and practices of security, geopolitics and humanitarianism, looking at their historical evolution since the nineteenth century to the present, and asking: what has actually changed in global politics since the end of the Cold War?
Learning objectives
On completing this module, you will:
- be familiar with the main concepts and theories applied to the study of globalisation and global governance
- be conversant with debates concerning the nature and evolution of the idea of sovereignty
- be able to engage in debates surrounding the emergence of new forms of global governance
- have grasped the links between contemporary forms of global integration and its historical predecessors
- be able to assess the validity of analytical distinctions, to give oral presentations and to produce well-sourced argument-driven essays.