1. Regionalism What makes a region?

2. Learning Objectives To explain different views on what makes a region To judge whether regional identities are real or imagined, natural or imposed

3. What makes a region?

4. Geography Regions may form a distinctive geographical area Can be identified by consulting maps Leads to tendency to identify regions with continents Examples?Weaknesses?

5. Socio-cultural Regions can be based on similarities of religion, language, history or ideological belief A region may even be the geographical expression of a ‘civilisation’ Examples?Weaknesses?

6. Overlapping identities Regional identities are not simple – Multiple and overlapping Mexico? (NAFTA, Central America, Latin America, APEC) Not mutually exclusive – and not incompatible with national identity

7. Political & Social constructs The region is an ‘imagined community’ (like nations) They are ideas – not concrete entities Almost endlessly fluid – Change shape and size over time – Changing extent and purposes of cooperation Explains why regional identities are contested

8. Your nation state Invent a nation state and note down statistics and facts about it Using the example of your nation state – – What regional bodies would it belong to? – What purpose would they serve? – Would there be multiple, overlapping identities?

9. Regions as a popular idea? How much are regions a grassroots idea, coming from ‘the people’? How much are regions imposed from above?

10. NAFTA http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mSXmB_ my0ls http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mSXmB_ my0ls How does the film present NAFTA? Is this fair?