To what extent is the concept
of nationalism useful for understanding contemporary political geography? Use
examples to illustrate your answer.

In order to analyse to what extent the concept of nationalism is useful for understating contemporary political geography, it is important to define what is meant by the concepts. Nationalism can be defined as an ‘identification with one’s own nation and support for its interests.’ (Dictionaries, 2018) However, the concept of nationalism is much more complexed and I intend to expand on this during the course of the essay.  When discussing political geography it refers to ‘the branch of geography that deals with the boundaries, divisions, and possessions of states.’ (Dictionaries, 2018) With the key concepts defined it allows us to examine the question in depth. In this essay I intend to demonstrate, using a variety of examples that the concept of nationalism forms a core foundation in several contemporary debates in political geography and thus it can be useful to understanding it.

One
of the main reasons that nationalism has become present in contemporary
political geography is due to geographical reasons.  It can be concluded that those countries with
a stronger sense of national identity have a more isolationist approach and
place the benefits of their own countries above that of everything else. It is
evident that geographical location plays a large part in a countries sense of
national identity. Britain has already acquired a strong sense of national
identity, however, many argue that this sense of national identity has
developed further due to its geographical location – they have no bordering
nations. This concept is also visible in other countries with few bordering
nations such as the USA. (Agnew, et al., 2003)This isolation means
that they form more nationalist viewpoints which as I will demonstrate has a
direct impact of contemporary political debates.

Nationalism
has also come about in contemporary political geography due to historical
reasons which have, again, led to nationalist viewpoint and approaches and thus
impacted several contemporary political debates. Using the example of Europe,
it becomes clear to see that certain countries overtime have become dominant
through their military power and strong trade links. Countries have fought for
authority and those that have come out on top such as Britain can see this
reflected in their national identity, which is one of pride. Their dominance
over Europe has led the country to have an isolationist approach to
contemporary political geography issues. 
In contrast, those countries in Europe such as France which has over
history suffered greatly from its vulnerability and military weakness has led
to them needed strong ties with its neighbouring countries in order to help
protect themselves. This has meant that over time their sense of national
identity has diminished. This is reflected in contemporary political geography
issues as they are certainly more open to changes, such as further integration
in Europe and the issues surrounding asylum seekers, than countries with a
stronger sense of national identity such as Britain. (Agnew, et al., 2003) Britain’s political
stability has remained similar over time and this is what has brought about
such a strong sense of national identity.

In
the context of nationalism and contemporary political geography the current
issues faced in regards to integration in Europe are a prime example of an
issue in which the two concepts are present. 
The concept of nationalism is apparent here because while some are encouraging
an improvement in integration, others are concerned that this will decrease
individual state sovereignty.  It can be
concluded that state sovereignty is one of the key aspects of nationalism. It
has allowed each nation to govern itself and have its own authority, elections
have made people feel part of the governance of their own nation and thus has
allowed each nation to develop its own sense of national identity. For example,
over history, Britain and its national sovereignty has allowed it to rule over
its empire and colonies. This has led to a strong sense of national identity
within the nation and a cautious view towards European integration. (Adler-Nissen, 2015) Political geography
is present in this debate because it concerns the boundaries of states. In this
example there are many who argue that a more integrated Europe should be one in
which boundaries are broken down between nations, allowing the free movement of
goods and labour. 

On a
similar line to this, the current debate surrounding asylum seekers and the
control of European Union borders is one in which nationalism forms a central
basis. It occurs across almost every country in the world and has become a
significant issue in current political geography debates. The movement of
people across borders has always caused conflict due to the negative representations
of asylum seekers. (Manara, 2018)These negative representations of asylum
seekers are ultimately aimed at protecting individual state sovereignty.
(Appendix 1) A prime example of this is in the UK, one of the main driving
forces behind ensuring votes to ‘leave’ Brexit was to implement stricter
criteria in relation to asylum and immigration. In 2016, 75% of potential
‘leave’ voters mentioned immigration as the most important issue, this was at a
time in which asylum seekers were arriving to the UK at near-record levels. (Hirschler,
2017)
 The concept of nationalism is evident
here because the UK was more concerned about protecting its individual state
sovereignty and economy rather than helping refugee’s during the crisis.

Environmental
issues also play a key part in current political geographical debates, in
particular global warming and destruction of rainforests.  Climate change has profound implications for
the future of the planet. In relation to political geography the debate is
whether those countries who are responsible for climate change should be
obliged to contribute more into the Green Climate Fund. (Goodwin,
2014)
This is because it has been proven that emissions produced by these countries
are affecting not only the whole earth but in particular those countries within
their borders. Since President Trump announced the United States withdraw from
Paris Agreement in 2017, there have been several debates. The United States is
responsible for almost a third of the excess carbon dioxide that is heating the
planet. (Appendix 2) The nationalist view of President Trump here was that the
contributions the country was making as part of the Paris Agreement was
affecting the United States economy. However, the counter argument is that the
large role the United States has played in causing climate change creates an
outsize responsibility to help control the issue.

A
further example of an environmental issue in contemporary political geography
is the destruction of the rainforests. At the centre of this debate is South
America, here most deforestation takes place because of their need for
agricultural land. (Goodwin, 2014) In poor countries such as South America
people very often turn to agriculture in order to make money to meet every day
needs of living. The farmers migrate to agricultural settlement areas, and cut
down several acres of land to use for farming. The stumps are burnt which
releases the nutrients into the soil that are needed to grow crops. The
nationalist view here is that it is a source of income and helps boost the
nation’s economy and that the forests are within the nation’s border. However,
the argument is that it is affecting the entire planet as it is adding to
climate change and the greenhouse effect to the large scale destruction. Not
only does it affect climate change but also wildlife.  ‘It is obvious that there is no clear solution
to these problems, but the result of nationalism in this sense, on the world
could be disastrous.’

Nationalism
has been a concept which has appeared throughout the ongoing political issues
linked to immigration in Europe. It was one of the main reasons behind the
choice that Britain made to leave the European Union in 2017. The European
Union allows people to have free movement between the countries, and although
many people would see this as a benefit it can be argued that Britain did not.
Perhaps this was because of the countries strong sense of nationalism and
representations of asylum seekers in the British media which meant that
citizens would see the arrival of immigrants as a hindrance on the British
economy. Many British people believed that it was unfair that workers who were
unskilled and unable to support themselves were moving to the country and being
supported by the government. (Delanty & O’Mahony, 2002)  I believe that this sense of nationalism can,
again, be contributed to Britain’s isolationist approach. Ex Tory Leader
William Hague defined the British nationalist approach in one of his
interviews. In which his response to the immigration dilemma was that ‘first we
must learn to look after our own people, then we can look at helping
others.’  This has been a statement which
has symbolised many of Britain’s nationalistic tendencies.

One
final example of where it is apparent that nationalism is at the core to a
contemporary political geography issue is over world economy, in particular the
subject of poverty. It becomes apparent from the previous examples that a
countries national interests always dominate other factors to contemporary
political geography issues and it is no different here. It is well known that
over the past years, the world’s wealthiest countries have been exploiting
third world countries for their own economic benefits. (Delanty &
O’Mahony, 2002)
For example, countries such as the United States and United Kingdom have
benefited from the exploitation of labour forces in third world countries, such
as Africa, as it allows them to increase profit on trade goods.  Nationalism is evident here as countries such
as the US and UK are accepting the exploitation of third world countries in
order to benefit their economies and increase profit maximisation. However,
this in turn increases the amount of debt and poverty experienced in third
world countries. The political debate surrounding this issue is that there are
two standards. In the developing world, a minimum wage is required whereas in
the underdeveloped world it can be said that they are being exploited in order
to make more money. Perhaps this is one of the main reasons why disparity
exists in the world and nationalism is the cause, which priorities its own
economic benefits above that of equality.

In
conclusion, from the examples discussed above it becomes clear to see that
nationalism forms a core foundation in several current political geography
issues. Whether it is environmental or social issues they all unanimously point
to nationalism as the centre topic. Therefore from this it can be concluded
that nationalism is extremely useful to understanding a wide range of
contemporary political geography issues. Nationalism is both a symptom and a
cause of contemporary political geography issues, due to countries prioritising
their own interest above all else.  There
are many contemporary political geography issues relating to nationalism which
need to be addressed in order for them to be resolved.

Bibliography

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Agnew, J. A., Toal, G. & Mitchell, K., 2003. A
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Delanty, G. & O’Mahony, P., 2002. Nationalism and Social Theory: Modernity and the Recalcitrance of the Nation. London: Sage Publications.

Dictionaries, O., 2018. Oxford Dictionaries. [Online] Available at: https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/nationalism [Accessed 16 April 2018].

Dictionaries, O., 2018. Oxford Dictionaries. [Online] Available at: https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/political_geography [Accessed 16 April 2018].

Goodwin, B., 2014. Using Political Ideas. 6th ed. West Sussex: John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Hirschler, S., 2017. Brexit, immigration and expanded markets of social control. Safer Communities, 16(4), pp. 176-185.

Insitute, W. R., 2016. World Resoruces Insitute, London: World Resources Insitute.

Manara, M., 2018. The depoliticisation of asylum seekers. Political Geography, Volume 64, pp. 43-52.

Periwal, S., 1995. Notions of Nationalism. London: Central European University Press Book.

Stewart, H., 2016. The Guardian. [Online] Available at: https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2016/jun/16/nigel-farage-defends-ukip-breaking-point-poster-queue-of-migrants [Accessed 19 April 2018].

Appendix 1

Appendix 2