Superpowers

Superpower Geographies

1. Superpower Geographies a) defining superpowers b) influencing power b) changing patterns of power c) theories explaining the growth of superpowers

Learning Objectives:

• To know what a superpower is

• To know the changing order of superpowers since 1945

• To be able to suggest and justify criteria for becoming a superpower

• http://current.com/items/88914010_superpower-politics.htm

• http://current.com/items/88911076_superpower-firepower.htm

• http://current.com/items/88911077_superpower-culture.htm

• http://current.com/items/88912435_superpower-money.htm

What criteria defines a superpower?

© Geography Department, London Academy

Criteria for defininga superpower

size

population resources

military strength Economic

strength

TASK: In pairs choose one of the criteria and discuss your ideas as to how it could define a superpower. Can you think of any examples that you already know?

Each territory’s size on the map is drawn according to its land area

SIZE How might size be included in the criteria for a superpower?

A map showing the proportion of worldwide population relative to territory size

POPULATION Why might population be included in the criteria for a superpower?

A map showing the proportion of worldwide fuel imports relative to territory size

RESOURCES Why is access to resources a criteria for superpower?

A map showing the proportion of armed forces personnel relative to territory size

MILITARY INDICATORS

Why is military strength a criteria for superpower?

Economic Power

© Geography Department, London Academy

Wealth allows superpowers to export their power around the world, buy resources and influence trade patterns.

© Geography Department, London Academy

Source:

Forbes, 2008

The world’s top ten richest companies.

Where do you think these companies originate?

Five of the the top 10 richest companies are from the USA.

776 of the top 2000 are from the USA.

The USA has the world’s most powerful military machine and this is geographically widespread.

(p103 in your book shows military bases)

45% of all world spending on military is by the U.S.A.

•Nuclear Weapons

•Army Personnel

•Satellite Technology

•Spies

© Geography Department, London Academy

Military Power

Cultural Power

What is cultural power?

What examples of cultural power are illustrated in the article?

What other examples of cultural power can you think of?

Geographical Power

This is the sphere of influence a superpower has.

What geographical power is identified in these images?

Criteria for defining a superpower

Military PowerEconomic PowerCultural PowerGeographical Power

How do each of these powers affect each other?

Which of these is the most important? Why?Think!Japan holds the world’s second largest economy and almost half of the world’s top 100 companies are Japanese. What reason could you think of which might explain why Japan is not a “superpower”?

• The superpowers in 2009 are a group of countries across a power spectrum:

• USA hyper-power.

• Dominates a uni-polar geopolitical world.

• Contrasts with the bi-polar cold war world

• The multi-polar world of the future?

The Good Old Days

The contenders?

• BRICs - demographic powers, some have economic power and individual strengths.

• EU - slightly uncomfortable position: lack of full integration – superpower status?

• The Gulf States - increasingly important from an energy and ‘cash’ perspective.

• Japan - power on the slide? 1990s.

Quantifying power

• Most rankings confirm the status of the USA, and the fact that emerging powers have weaknesses in some areas – such as the lack of Chinese TNCs and innovation in India.

• Regional powers tend to have one or two aces in an otherwise weak hand, such as the Gulf States energy resources and Japan’s level of innovation.

Can’t touch this....

Superpower under threat?

• The pie chart illustrates this by showing the world population by region in 2020.

• This graphic comes from the USA National Intelligence Council.

• Vision 2015:• http://www.dni.gov/reports/

Vision_2015.pdf• Global Trends 2025 • http://www.dni.gov/reports/

2025_Global_Trends_Final_Report.pdf

• .

The BRICS

The emerging superpowers have taken quite different paths as they

have grown:

• Increasingly, the emerging superpowers have an impact on global prosperity and economics.

• They have a significant slice of global population:

…although their slice of the world economy is much smaller, but growing rapidly.

% of World Population 2007

BRICs42%

EU, USA & Japan

14%

Rest of the World

44%

% of World GDP 2007

BRICs11%

EU, USA & Japan

67%

Rest of the World

22%

Global consumers

• India’s first budget airline, Air Deccan, gets 63% of its bookings online.

• Car sales 1.6 million by 2010

• Energy consumption set to double 1995-2010

• Around 1 million new mobile phone customers per month; 2 million in October 2005 (World IT report,2005)

• Evidence of ‘technological leapfrogging’.

As in other countries which have experienced rapid growth, only certain parts of India have benefited as the map above

shows (data in $ per capita).

• Chinese economic growth is staggering; its economy has grown 10-fold since 1990, rising from 10th to 4th place in terms of total GDP:

Factors• Economic reforms begun in 1978• The setting up of Special Economic Zones (SEZs)

beginning with Shenzhen on the Pearl River Delta in 1980.

• The size of the local market in China.• A huge pool of low wage but highly skilled and motivated

labour. • A focus on exports that undercut MEDC prices• Huge investment in infrastructure (ports, roads, airports,

telecommunications and energy) by the PRC government

• Proximity to Asian markets and capital

• http://current.com/items/88914010_superpower-politics.htm

• http://current.com/items/88911076_superpower-firepower.htm

• http://current.com/items/88911077_superpower-culture.htm

• http://current.com/items/88912435_superpower-money.htm

Topic 4: SUPERPOWER GEOGRAPHIES – who are the emerging powers??

• Superpower Geographies is really about the changing Geography of power and opportunity, and divides into three parts:

• The past – the Geography of the British Empire and Cold War

• The present – the Geography of the world with the USA as the only superpower

• The future – the Geography of the future, in an increasingly multi-polar world

• The future world is likely to be the most unfamiliar. There are several good sources of information on this topic such as The World Economic Forum

Indigenous firms• The car industry illustrates how China has managed FDI

to its advantage. • Car production has risen from under 1 million vehicles in

2000 to over 3 million by 2005. • The vast majority are joint venture made, but indigenous

production has leapt since 2002

• Major joint ventures include Shanghai GM, Tianjin Toyota and FAW-VW.

• However the big two local firms Chery and Geely are growing rapidly.

• Chery increased its production 114% between 2004 and 2005.

• Chery were sued by GM for copying the Daewoo Matiz.

In terms of who the superpowers are:• A superpower is a country (or grouping of

countries) which has global economic, cultural, military and geographical influence. On this basis:

• The USA is clearly a superpower.• The BRICs are emerging superpowers, especially

Russia, India and China• The EU is usually viewed as an emerging

superpower • The Middle East has economic influence and

should be viewed as an emerging power. • Some countries have more of a regional

influence, and should be viewed as regional powers such as Brazil, Japan and South Africa.

Neo-colonialism?

• In the last few years, China has changed tack in terms of investment, and begun investing abroad.

• This is particularly the case in Africa, where China is increasingly seeking to secure resources – oil in the first instance, but also ores and timber.

• FDI from China to Africa has risen dramatically since 2003 from $75 million to $400 million by 2005.

• There are fears however, that some of the increasing trade is linked to arms sales to African nations.

Consumption worries:• Chinese consumption has risen

dramatically. If economic growth continues, consumption would reach USA levels by 2031:

• 1350 million tonnes grain /yr (66% of current world production)

• 180 million tonnes of meat / yr (80% of current world production)

• 2.8 billion tonnes coal /yr (current global production 2.6)

• 1.1 billion cars (800 million globally now)