Geoeconomics (2235.YR.004309.1)

General information

Type:	BAS	Curs:	2	Period:	S semester
ECTS Credits:	3 ECTS

Teaching Staff:

Group	Teacher	Department	Language
Year 2	Jordi Molina Alsina	Derecho	ENG

Geoeconomics is a rising field of study that can be approached in at least three different ways: 1) the interplays between economic phenomena and geopolitics, 2) the increasing economic tools that states are using to achieve their political objectives and 3) how geography can be linked to economic imperatives and trends at the national, regional and global levels.

This subject assesses the three approaches and provides insights and perspectives on how economics is becoming a defining tool of statecraft in an increasing globalized and interdependent world.

The scope and content of the topics include: sea power, trade, energy, resource scarcity and the increasing competition between old and emerging powers for access, connectivity and infrastructures.

· Explaining the links between state power, politics and economic tools

· Assessing the role of trade links and routes, energy and infrastructures in regional and global politics

· Outlining the key interpretations, theories and approaches to the contemporary world in terms of political economy

1. Content One class per week (2h 30m each) Class topics: · Sea power and maritime routes (includes teamwork presentations) · The rise of European empires and sea power · Sovereign Wealth Funds (SWFs) · State-Owned Enterprises (SOEs) · Introduction to the geopolitics of water, minerals and energy · Trade and globalizations · US vs. China · Sanctions as a geoeconomic tool: The cases of Ukraine and North Korea · Saudi Arabia vs Qatar · India vs. Pakistan · Technology and geoeconomics. The order of classes will be subject to the availability of guest speakers. The content of some sessions, their means and methodology (classroom, online) can vary due to geopolitical/geoeconomic breaking news during the course and/or restrictions or recommendations issued by governmental authorities.

2.

Methodology & key attendance considerations

· Class sessions include lectures, news analyses, fire-chats and debates.

· Students are expected to share their views, comments and questions.

· Throughout the subject, faculty will recommend articles and books and/or upload them to Moodle for students to prepare or complete key topics. Students are also expected to conduct research on their own to enrich class contents.

· Smartphones must be switched off in class; laptops are welcome except during the last three sessions (team presentations).

· Students must maintain the proper attitude in class at all times.

· Team presentations serve to strengthen syllabus content and further develop the participants' skills and abilities.


Skills and competencies linked to the syllabus

· Critical thinking

· Interdisciplinary analysis

· Holistic thinking

· Teamwork

· Presentation and writing skills

Essential reading:
· Chapters 1, 6, 7 and 8 in The Ages of Globalization by Jeffrey D. Sachs. Columbia University Press.

Recommended reading:
· The New Silk Roads by Peter Frankopan. Bloomsbury Publishing.
· The Dawn of Eurasia by Bruno Maçaes. Allen Lane-Penguin Books.


Optional reading for further background information:
· Economic Statecraft by David A. Baldwin. Princeton University Press.
· The Political Economy of International Relations by Robert Gilpin. Princeton University Press.

Faculty will recommend other articles and material during the course to reinforce key concepts.

Group	Teacher	Department
Year 2	Jordi Molina Alsina	Derecho