Regionalism LMS
Regionalism LMS
The concept of region may, however, also be used to refer to macro-regions (so-called world
or international regions), which are larger territorial units. They exist between the state level
and the global system level. The macro-region has been the most common object of analysis
in International Relations, while micro-regions have more commonly been considered in the
study of domestic politics. A conventional definition of a macro-region, originally coined by
Joseph Nye, is a limited number of states linked together by a geographical relationship and by
a degree of mutual interdependence. Historically, a plethora of opinions has been advanced
regarding which mutual interdependencies matter most: economic, political and social
interrelationships or historical, cultural and ethnic bonds. It has been argued that the definitions
of what constitutes a region may vary according to the particular issue under investigation. This
may lead to the identification of overlapping types of regions, such as economic regions,
security regions, environmental regions and cultural regions. The overwhelming majority of
studies in the field of Political Science and International Relations has focused on pre-defined
regions in the form of state-led and inter-state regional organizations and frameworks.
Examples include AU, ASEAN, EU.
Focus is often placed on processes of region-building and regionalization, which implies that
the distinction between regionalism and regionalization is emphasized. “Regionalism” means
the body of ideas, values and objectives that contribute to the creation, maintenance or
modification of a particular region or type of world order. It is usually associated with a formal
policy and project, and often leads to institution-building. Furthermore, regionalism ties agents
to a specific project that is limited spatially or socially but not in time. “Regionalization” refers
to the process of region formation. It implies a focus on the process by which regions come
into existence. In its most basic sense, the term may imply no more than a concentration of
goods, services, investment, people and ideas at the regional level. This interaction may lead
to the emergence of regional actors, networks and organizations. When they are active at the
regional level, regional actors bring about regionalization, so-called region-building.
Regionalization may be caused by regionalism, but it may also emerge in the absence of a
regionalist project and ideology. Hence, regionalism may not always have much practical
significance for the reality of regionalization.
Many regionalists contend that regions have become critical to contemporary word politics. It
is generally agreed that globalization challenges the Westphalian nation-state. By comparison
with economic and market-led globalization, regionalism is more anchored to territorial
domains. By comparison with multilateralism, it is a more exclusive relationship based on
conscious political strategies, potentially guided by world order values such as multiculturalism
and interregional dialogue and cooperation.