World Economic Geography
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Instructor: Dr. Truong Thi Kim Chuyen
Email: worldeconomicgeography@gmail.com
Weblog: www.socialscience09.wordpress.com
World Economic Geography
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Paul Knox (2008),The geography of the world
economy, Routledge; 5th edition
Neil M.Coe, Phillip F Kelly, Henry W.C. Yeung (2007),
Economic Geography, Blackwell Publishing
Readings: Fellmann – Getis - Getis (1998). Human
Geography: Landscapes of Human Activities. Brown &
Benchmark.
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Course Description
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Course Objectives
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Grades
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Attendance, Assignment, Seminar:
30 %
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Mid-term Exam:
30 %
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Final Exam:
40 %
• You should read the materials assigned before the
class, as it will facilitate your understanding.
• Additional readings might be assigned throughout the
quarter on special topics/issues. They will be
distributed in class and/or via email.
Course Description
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Course provides various dimensions of the world
economy geography (WEG) in the age of globalization.
In a world, the trend of global trade is increasingly
vital, WEG is an imperative for all who wish to know
what is happening to their global economy.
Course gives the very basic concepts and terms in
studying world economic geography.
In economic aspects, it concerns:
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the varied ways of people earning,
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the patterns of human activities to produce,
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the distributed and consumed good and services, and
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the geographic framework of world trade and
business.
Course Description (cont.)
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The lectures will have a emphasis on geographic
changes in the world economy.
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We will examine the geographic organization of
economic activity around the world at different
geographical scales (global, regional and local) as
well as the relationship between geographic
conditions and economic development in different
states
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Course requires critical thinking on current economic
and social problems from a geographic perspective.
Expected outcome are able to:
By the end of the course, students will be able to:
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Identify, describe, and explain the roles of space,place,
scale, and nature in the constitution, operation, and
outcome of economic processes;
Analyze economic events, processes, and structures
from a geographic point of view;
Broadly define the economy in a way that incorporates
its social, political (power), cultural, and environmental
dimensions;
Identify and distinguish between different analytical
approaches in economic geography;
differentiate relationships of economic interdependence
of the states,
Understand of the characteristics of transnational
corporations (TNCs) and regional economic blocs.
Course Outline
The geography of the
world economy
Economic Geography
Conceptual
foundations
01/ Conceptual foundations
Page 1-25
02/ The changing world
Dynamics
economy
of economic 04/ Patterns of Development
and Change
space
05/ Services going global
03/ Commodity chains
Page 87-115
04’/ Technology and
agglomeration
Actors in
economic
space
06/ The state
Page 187-219
07/ The transnational
corporation
Page 223-251
08/ Labour power
Page 254-281
09/ Consumption
10/ International and
supranational
institutionalized integration
01/ CONCEPTUAL FOUNDATIONS
Aims:
To understand the assumptions used by
economists in understanding the
economy.
To recognize the limitations of economic
approaches to the economy
To appreciate key concepts in economic
geography
03/ COMMODITY CHAINS –
WHERE DOES YOUR BREAKFAST COME FROM?
Aims:
To demonstrate how capitalism serves to
conceal the conditions of commodity
production
To introduce commodity chains and their basic
components
To appreciate the differentiation of commodity
chains in terms of their structure and geography
To recognize the possibilities for, and
limitations of, more ethical ways of organizing
commodity chains
06/ THE STATE –
WHO CONTROLS THE ECONOMY: FIRMS OR
GOVERNMENTS?
Aims:
To understand how state and supra-national
institutions shape economic process
To recognize the different kinds of states within
the global economy
To appreciate the changing role of the state in
an era of globalization
To demonstrate why geographical scales matter
in the reconfiguration of the state.
07/ THE TRANSNATIONAL CORPORATION
- HOW DOES THE GLOBAL FIRM KEEP IT ALL TOGETHER?
Aims:
To question the claim that transnational
corporations are really “global’
To understand how firms organize complex
global activities
To explore the variety of organizational forms
used by transnational corporations
To appreciate the inherent limits to the global
reach of firms
08/ LABOUR POWER
– CAN WORKERS SHAPE ECONOMIC GEOGRAPHIES?
Aims:
To recognize the ways in which capital’s
mobility gives it bargaining power over labour
To appreciate the rangr of mechanisms used by
states and firms to control labour
To understand the different geographical
strategies that workers may use to improve
their position
To reflect on the possibilities for alternative or
non-capitalist labour geographies
09/ CONSUMPTION
– WHO CONTROLS SPACES OF SALES AND CONSUMPTION?
Aims:
To recognize the position and importance of the
consumption process within the capitalist
system
To appreciate the changing geographies of
consumption and in particular, retailing
To understand how consumption spaces are
actively designed and used
To reflect on the ways in which consumption,
place and identity are interrelated