Globalization and society UC3M

WEEK 3

1. In groups, look for news or a report related to globalization or with an issue

related to it.

"EU, US to align global minerals push against China’s supply grip.”

By Alberto Nardelli and Iain Marlow, Feb.12, 2024
https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/small-biz/trade/exports/insights/eu-us-to-align-
global-minerals-push-against-chinas-supply-grip/articleshow/107614454.cms

2. Make a short sum up about what’s going on: where it is happening, why, the
context, any issue related to it.

The US and the European Union are teaming up to reduce their reliance on China for
critical minerals needed in technologies of the future. They plan to merge their
approaches by combining the EU's policy focus with the US's project-oriented strategy.
The initiative, called a "minerals security partnership forum," aims to collaborate with
buyers in developed and resource-rich nations. Both the US and the EU are working to
establish standards with these nations, offering an alternative to relying on China.
Despite the challenge of replacing China's dominance, they aim to finalize an agreement
in March. Talks on a separate EU-US critical minerals agreement are on hold, and
discussions about the plan will take place at the Munich Security Conference. The goal
is to streamline efforts, reduce confusion, and align on the broader objective of
decreasing dependence on China. Central Asian nations have also shown interest in the
partnership. However, talks on a bilateral critical minerals agreement between the EU
and the US face obstacles like labor rights and concerns about a trade pact during an
election year.

3. Make a table with the different theories we studied and indicate the strengths
and weaknesses of each one to understand what is going on in your case study.
 Castells Sassen Brenner Wallerstein
Network Global Cities Globalisation as World-Systems
Society Reterritorialisat Theory
ion: Re-scaling:

Strengths - Provides a - Provides - Offers a - Provides a

comprehensive insights into nuanced macro-level
framework for the complex understanding framework for
understanding dynamics of the complex understanding
the profound between relationship the historical
impact of ICTs globalization between development
on various and globalization and structure of
aspects of urbanization. and territorial the modern
society. governance. world-economy.
- Highlights the
- Offers importance of - Highlights the - Highlights the
insights into cities in the role of states interconnectedn
the dynamics global and regions in ess of global
of power, economy and shaping the economic
communication their role in spatial processes and
, and shaping global dynamics of the role of
organization in processes. globalization. power relations
the digital era. in shaping
- Offers a - Emphasizes unequal
- Emphasizes framework for the importance development.
the understanding of considering
interconnected the unequal multiple spatial - Offers insights
ness of social, distribution of scales in into the
economic, and resources and analyzing persistence of
political opportunities economic, poverty,
processes in within urban political, and inequality, and
the Network spaces. social underdevelopme
Society. processes. nt in peripheral
regions within
the world-
system.

Weaknesses - Castells' - Sassen's focus - Brenner's - World-

theory may on global cities focus on state- Systems Theory
overemphasize overlooks the led strategies may
the positive experiences of may overlook oversimplify the
aspects of ICTs smaller cities the agency of complexities of
while and rural areas non-state actors global economic
overlooking impacted by and relations and
potential globalization. transnational overlook the
negative networks in agency of
consequences - The shaping individual actors
such as digital generalizability globalization. and non-
 divides, of Sassen's economic
privacy theory beyond - The theory factors.
concerns, and major global may not fully
surveillance. cities and account for the
- The theory has
suggest it may fluid and been criticized
-The Network not fully contested for its
Society capture the nature of Eurocentric bias,
framework diversity of territorial focusing
may not urban boundaries in
primarily on the
adequately experiences the era of experiences of
address issues globally. globalization.
European
of inequality, colonialism and
exclusion, and - The theory - Brenner's capitalism while
social may not emphasis on re- neglecting non-
fragmentation adequately scaling Western
exacerbated by address the overlooks the perspectives and
digital intersectionalit transformative histories.
technologies. y of factors potential of
such as race, global networks - The theory's
- The theory gender, and and flows that emphasis on
may struggle to class in shaping transcend structural
keep pace with urban traditional determinism
rapid dynamics and territorial may downplay
technological inequalities. constraints. the importance
advancements of contingency,
and evolving agency, and
patterns of historical
digital culture contingency in
and society. shaping global
dynamics.

4. Select one theory and propose a possible research problem.

Because the news is about the efforts of the European Union and the United States to
join forces and establish common policies and strategies to reduce dependence and
influence on China, we believe that the theory that fits best is that of Neil Brenner.
Brenner deals with "glocalization" and reterritorialization, where the national state loses
its role, giving rise to greater power of supranational entities. Furthermore, Brenner also
focuses on the dynamics of states in the reshape and reshuffle of globalization.
The research problem can be the following one:
The Impact of Transnational Collaborations on State Competences in the
Global Critical Minerals Supply Chain.
This research problem seeks to understand the implications of this collaboration on the
reconfiguration of territorial boundaries, governance structures, and policy-making
processes related to the critical minerals sector.

5. We are going to debate and explain it in class and then you are going to upload it
at Aula Global.