Political+Organization+of+Space

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=//__ College Board: Political Organization of Space Unit Outline __//=

__ IV. Political Organization of Space __
__ A. Territorial dimensions of politics __
 * 1) The concept of territoriality
 * 2) The nature and meaning of boundaries
 * 3) Influences of boundaries on identity, interaction, and exchange

__ B. Evolution of the contemporary political pattern __
 * 1) The nation-state concept
 * 2) Colonialism and imperialism
 * 3) Federal and unitary states

__ C. Challenges to inherited political–territorial arrangements __
 * 1) Changing nature of sovereignty
 * 2) Fragmentation, unification, alliance
 * 3) Spatial relationships between political patterns and patterns of ethnicity, economy, and environment
 * 4) Electoral geography, including gerrymandering

=//__ **Territorial Dimensions of Politics** __//=

__ Territoriality __

 * Territoriality is typically defined as a state attempting to influence or control people, events, and relationships by asserting their dominance over an area.
 * The concept of territoriality is closely intertwined with sovereignty.
 * Territoriality implies that the state has control over a territory. With this control, it can affect everything that occurs in the area.

__Boundaries__[[image:mhsaphuge1/boundaries.jpg align="right"]]

 * A boundary is an imaginary barrier that separates territory.
 * A boundary can result from an imaginary line, or from natural features like rivers or valleys.
 * A boundary is actually recognized as a vertical plane dividing the territory. It extends into the airspace and below the rocks (a.k.a. subsoil).

__ Spatial relationships __
= = =//__** Evolution of the concept **__//=
 * The relationships between spaces is one of the most important relationships that human geographers examine.
 * Boundaries between ethnicities and social classes can cause tension and conflict.
 * The division of the world into independent states has affected the globe's ability to tackle problems like hunger, disease, and environmental decay.
 * The independent states are focused on their own agendas and this diminishes the possibilities of borders more open to trade and immigration.

__ Nation-State Concept __

 * A nation-state is a independent state where a nation of people and the politically recognized state are occupying the same area.
 * This concept derived from the European model of the independent state. It inspired nations around the globe to aspire toward the goal of a nation-state.

__ Colonialism and Imperialism __

 * During the 18th and 19th century, dominating European powers forced their concepts of sovereignty onto weaker countries around the globe.
 * These European countries established colonies in less developed areas of the world, and typically tried to exploit its people.
 * Even 200 years into the future, the imprints of European Colonialism still are apparent today, because of the superimposed boundaries that still exist.

__ Democratization [[image:mhsaphuge1/103664-004-EB882DDB.gif width="382" height="376" align="right"]]__
= = =**//__ Changes to contemporary political arrangements __//**=
 * Democratization is the process of changing a state's government into a more democratic variation.
 * Causes can include revolution and civilian unrest, and even desire for a more equal distribution of rights.
 * An effective representation of this concept would be the fall of the former Soviet Union in 1991.

__ Changing the nature of sovereignty __

 * Over the past couple of centuries, the definition of a sovereign state has evolved.
 * Developments at various scales within a country is undermining the traditional state-territorial system.
 * The increasing influence of multinational and global corporations is reducing a governments ability to control it's own domestic economy.
 * Eventually the private sector and the governments of these sovereign nations could engage in a power struggle, forever changing the state-territorial system.

__ Fragmentation, Unification and Alliances __

 * The changing political climate in recent years has affected the make up of political geography.
 * Supranational organizations or alliances like the European Union have changed the traditional world economy.
 * States with superimposed boundaries set in place by the UN or imperial powers are fragmenting into regions and states with one dominant ethnic group (nation-states). [[image:mhsaphuge1/european_union2.jpg width="267" height="227" align="right"]]
 * Areas that have been divided into multistate nations in the past have been unified into a single nation-state in recent years.

__ Supranationalism and Devolution __

 * Devolution is the migration of power from a central government to various regional governments.
 * Occasionally devolution can be permanent because of a reworking of the states constitution and it's recognition of regional offices.
 * Supranationalism is the process of decision making in multinational communities. During this process, power is transmitted to another authority by the member states.

__ Electoral Geography __

 * Electoral Geography is the final piece of the spatial organization of a government.
 * Electoral geographers study the distribution of the districts and voting patterns.[[image:mhsaphuge1/Map%20of%20Senate%20Districts.gif width="222" height="252" align="right"]]
 * Reapportionment is the process of moving districts according to population shifts.
 * Sometimes Majority-minority districts can form. This is when the majority of the population in the district is a minority.
 * Sometimes these districts can be corrupted to favor a particular political group. This is typically called gerrymandering.

__ Shapes of States __
Prorupted- A state that exhibits a narrow, elongated land extension, leading away from the main territory. Compact- A state that possess a roughly circular from which geometric center is relatively equidistant. Elongated- A state with a long and narrow shape. Perforated- A state that completely encompasses another independent state. Enclave- A state that is surrounded by another independent state. Exclave- An area that is under a state's control and influence, but is separated from it.

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=__ //**Game:**// __= media type="custom" key="21874198" =**//__ Videos: __//**= media type="custom" key="21877528"

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=**//__ Case Studies __//**=

Compact State Case Study Elongated State Case Study Enclave State Case Study

=**//__ Citations and Sources __//**=

Political Organization of Space Citations

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