Tom Gillespie and Seth Schindler argue that infrastructure megaprojects in Kenya and Ghana have driven rapid urbanisation processes in historically rural areas. Drawing on the concept of rentier capitalism, they show how infrastructure initiatives created opportunities for the appropriation of rents by various actors, from global real estate developers to local land speculators. If policy initiatives to socialise and redistribute land rents are to be successful, Gillespie and Schindler conclude, they must be accompanied by political movements to challenge the vested interests that benefit from rentier capitalism in Africa. The post Rentier capitalism and urban geography in Africa first appeared on ROAPE. The post Rentier capitalism and urban geography in Africa appeared first on ROAPE.
We are inviting abstracts for the IAG 2024 in Adelaide for our session on Energy Geography and Renewable Energy. Energy Geography and Renewable Energy Organised by: Gareth Bryant (USyd) gareth.bryant@sydney.edu.au, James Goodman (UTS) James.Goodman@UTS.edu.au, Lisa Lumsden (Next Economy) l.lumsden@nexteconomy.com.au, Sophie Webber (USyd) sophie.webber@sydney.edu.au Sponsored by the Economic Geography Study Group and the Nature, Risk and Resilience Study Group Transitions from fossil fuels to renewable energy are multilevel and transformative. Energy is rescaled, from distributed and household contexts to new greenfield or 'brownfield' wind, solar and storage utilities, regional renewable development modelling, national planning frameworks and global energy and climate policy-making. There is extensive scale shifting by renewable energy corporates and financial institutions as well as by critical climate NGOs and activist networks, that often leverage variations in regulatory regimes or in commitments to decarbonisation. Drivers of transition can be complementary, as 'co-benefits', but they can also collide. Much of the renewable sector is privately owned, albeit dependent on state authority, and the priority of maintaining investor returns can take precedence over emissions reduction. Efforts at maximising returns in neoliberal renewables can exacerbate social divisions, negate community or livelihood benefit and prevent wider democratic participation, involvement or social ownership. All these aspects pose problems for renewable energy legitimacy, driving new contestations and new forms of claim-making, including for social ownership and for socio-ecological priorities to take precedence over corporate interests. We seek papers that address how people interpret these and related transitions, how lives are re-ordered and how the meaning and potential of places is thereby transformed. We are especially interested in how the new socio-ecological geographies of energy can be generative, producing new capacity for climate agency and decarbonisation. Interested presenters should send (no more than) 250-word abstracts, with title, keywords, authors and contact information to the session organisers by Friday March 22. We will notify accepted papers before the IAG deadline. Cover image: Illustration by Matt Rota for The Transnational Institute The post CFP IAG 2024: Energy Geography and Renewable Energy appeared first on Progress in Political Economy (PPE).
by Burhan Can Karahasan (MEF University) and Mehmet Pinar (Universidad de Sevilla and Istanbul Bilgi University) In the 2016 Referendum, with a Leave vote of 51.89%, the United Kingdom (UK) became the first country to withdraw from the European Union (EU) officially. While the political and economic consequences of the Brexit process are still […] The post Institutional quality and geography of discontent in the EU appeared first on Ideas on Europe.
by Burhan Can Karahasan (MEF University) and Mehmet Pinar (Universidad de Sevilla and Istanbul Bilgi University) In the 2016 Referendum, with a Leave vote of 51.89%, the United Kingdom (UK) became the first country to withdraw from the European Union (EU) officially. While the political and economic consequences of the Brexit process are still […] The post Institutional quality and geography of discontent in the EU appeared first on The JCMS Blog.
'This is Just Practice' reads the sub-title of Marisa Holmes' book Organizing Occupy Wall Street, which is the latest addition to the Alternatives and Futures: Cultures, Practices, Activism and Utopias series. The book reverberates with revolutionary intent: a threat and a promise. The post A Human Geography of the Space of The Square appeared first on Progress in Political Economy (PPE).
Last week, Lloyd Austin became the first US defence secretary to visit Papua New Guinea, en route to the AUSMIN conclave in Brisbane. Austin was the latest in a long line of VIP visitors to ...
In The Future of Geography: How Power and Politics in Space Will Change Our World, Tim Marshall analyses the geopolitical dynamics and consequences of space exploration. According to Gary Wilson, the book is an illuminating insight into the political geography of space and the dynamics between world powers as they continue to expand the space frontier. The … Continued
Geography has long been a strong driver of Australia's national security and economic planning, the oft-noted tyranny of distance a blessing and curse. And while technology and globalisation have made the world much 'smaller', geography ...
The Baltic states remain vulnerable to a potential Russian military attack due to their geography. They are watching closely as NATO begins pivoting its posture of deterrence by punishment to deterrence by denial.
The Arab world 'has too much history and not enough geography'. Savour that vivid phrase as the essence of Bob Bowker's fine memoir of life as an Australian entranced by a Middle East that is ...
On page 27 of National defence, the report of the defence strategic review, is a map of Australia's strategic geography. It superbly situates us and perfectly explains why a power in the distant reaches of ...
Australia is a lucky country when it comes to the potential opportunities for space launch. Its geography means that sites close to the equator, which are sparsely populated and enjoy stable weather patterns, are ideal ...
Ann Eisenberg (University of South Carolina - School of Law) has posted The Geography of Unfreedom (Michigan Law Review, Vol. 121, No. 1049, 2023) on SSRN. Here is the abstract: Book review of Coal, Cages, Crisis: The Rise of the...
Dr. Oumar Ba of Cornell University visits the Hayseed Scholar podcast. Dr. Ba grew up in Senegal, attending his first school at an early age near the Senegal-Mauritania border. He developed an interest in politics in high school and at his first university (Cheik Anna Diop in Dakar) where he pursued Geography. Oumar moved to […]
The multiple dimensions of political polarization have become familiar to most informed Americans. One dimension that has become increasingly evident is geography. More Americans are living in communities where the great majority of residents share their politics. People are not staying in or moving to places according to local party registration rates so much as […]
