GEOG 1982 1st Edition Lecture 7Outline of Last Lecture I. RecapII. Europe after the cold warIII. What does it mean to be European?IV. EurozoneV. Eurozone HistoryVI. Eurozone: a region made through moneyVII. Eurozone outcomesVIII. Eurozone: disparities and tensions IX. PIIGS?Outline of Current Lecture I. Political GeographyII. Is Russia Part of Europe?III. Fur TradeIV. Russian Revolution 1917V. State SocialismVI. Colonizing an EmpireVII. Collapse 1970s & 1980sVIII. Dissolution of Soviet UnionThese notes represent a detailed interpretation of the professor’s lecture. GradeBuddy is best used as a supplement to your own notes, not as a substitute.IX. NeoliberalismX. Russia: InequalityXI. Arctic claimsXII. Back to RussiaXIII. RecapCurrent LectureFrom Russia to the Soviet Union (and back again)I. Political geography = how politics and conflict create spaces, places and are, in turn, shaped by geographya. Nation = a group of people sharing common elements of a culture, such as religion, language, a history, or political identityb. State = an independent political unit with territorial boundaries that ae recognized by other statesc. Nation-state= “… ideal form of a state, considering of a homogenous group of people living in the same territory.”d. Clicker question 1: What best explains the organizing logic of this region?i. It was all initially part of the Russian EmpireII. Is Russia part of Europe?a. “yes” – historically on the periphery of Europe, though culturally and economically tied to iti. Bolshevik revolution 1917ii. Role in world wars 1 & 2 iii. Cold warb. “no” – part of empires based in Asia, evolved historically in ways very different from Europe c. Feudalism persists through into the 20th centuryd. No industrial revolution until the late 19th and early 20th centurye. Developed a continental empire mainly outside of regions claimed by European powers III. Fur tradea. Muscovy center of fur trade in Asia and Europe from 500 CE forwardb. 17th-19th century, world’s largest supplier of fursc. Main competition came from British colonies in N. AmericaIV. Russian Revolution 1917a. Alexander II ends feudalism (1861)b. Grain exports to import industrial technologiesc. Fivefold increase in grain exports, 1850-1900d. Displacement of peasants to citiese. 1905: failed revolutionf. Mass strikes continuous to 1917g. Bypass worst of industrial revolutionh. Urban basedi. Industrial focusj. Led by intellects and middle class (Bolsheviks)k. Strikes organized by soviets- worker councilsV. State socialisma. State control over industry, servicesb. Collective ownershipc. State provides housing, education, health care at little or no costd. From revolution to state: the union of soviet socialist republicsi. Build industry and improve working conditions in agricultural sectorii. Dissolve nationalist/ethnic basis of soviet republics in favor of communism iii. Build a new society on principles of science, equality, progressVI. Colonizing an Empirea. “russification” = through emigration of ethnic Russians to republicans b. Population of ”empty” regions (Siberia)c. Suppression of organized dissenti. Gulagsii. Pogromsd. Russification- Lasting Effectsi. Sports= see new Kontinental Hockey Leagueii. Ethnic tensions: settler states or independent nations?iii. Patterns of wealth accumulationVII. Collapse, 1970s and 1980sa. Economic stagnationb. Booming informal economyc. Accentuated regional inequalitiesd. Emphasis on militarye. Resentment of central state powerVIII. Dissolution of the soviet union, 1988-1991a. Republicans press for independenceb. Nationalism used as justificationc. “democratization” = states represent nationd. Nation= a group of people sharing common elements of culture, such as language, religion, ahistory, or political identity e. Independence equates with joining the “west” (Europe) IX. Neoliberalisma. Political and economic doctrine> free market should be the organizing principle of political, social life (p.30-31)b. Minimize state regulation of the economyc. Maximize access to marketsd. Privatize= state owned assets, state-controlled services (land, factories; health care, education, utilities)e. Stabilize=currency values by allowing market to determine value (and not state policy)f. Liberalize= trade by removing tariffs, subsidies g. Neoliberalism and the break-up of the former soviet bloci. Origins in economic crisis of the 1970s (revisit this history with Middle East, Latin America)ii. Collapse of soviet-bloc provides ideal setting for its applicationiii. Closely tied to idea that the west won the cold war, capitalism defeated communismh. Clicker question: what have been some of the outcomes of the dissolution of the USSR for the region?i. Polarization of wealth, income disparityii. Struggles for independence by ethnic and nationalist movementsiii. Russia’s emergence as one of the most powerful economics in the worldi. Back to Russia: Neoliberalismi. State owned enterprises privatized by elite (neoliberalism)ii. Tremendous accumulation of wealth at the top1. 74 billionaires in Moscow alone (more than New York in 2008)iii. Oligarchsiv. MafiyasX. Russia: inequalitya. “winners”= are same regions, people who benefitted during Soviet-erab. Population, wealth concentrated in urban areasc. Declining levels of prosperity in resource-poor regions, areas of conflictd. Deteriorating labor conditions, especially in primary productionXI. Artic Claimsa. Reports of 30% of undiscovered natural gas, and 13% of undiscovered oil located in Arcticb. Lower levels of sea ice make this region more accessiblec. Law of the Sea limits claims to 200 miles from shored. Russia, US, Canada all moving to use continental shelf to define areas of control XII. Back to Russia: democratizationa. More politically open societyb. Declining quality of health care, education, social equalityc. Continued crackdown on dissent, though now carried out in the name of the economyd. Democratic pluralism?e. Ongoing ethnic tensionsXIII. Recapa. How politics and conflict shape regions…i. Regions is an artifact of Russian imperialism, Cold warii. Transition to capitalism accentuates uneven development of this regioniii. Sharp inequalities between regions, populationsiv. … how regions are shaped by politics and conflict1. Faces continuous ethnic, national divisionsv. On Thursday: Nationalism and conflict in the Transcaucasia and Central