Unit 3 Area of Study 1: Global actors

Outcome 1

Evaluate the power of key global actors and assess the extent to which they achieve their aims and are able to challenge state sovereignty.

Examples of learning activities

• Create queue cards or a quizlet for the following terms and find contemporary examples to support the definition: ‘nation’, ‘state’, ‘sovereignty’, ‘power’, ‘global governance’, ‘multilateralism’, ‘globalisation’.
• Research and outline the basis of power of each global actor; rank the global actors in order of importance; justify the ranking.
• Research the European Union as an example of a regional grouping. List the different treaties and agreements that exist for member states and how these requirements challenge state sovereignty.
• Research Brexit in the UK and its subsequent relationship with the EU. Analyse whether the EU still impacts on the UK’s sovereignty despite the UK leaving the regional grouping.
• Research a situation in which the sovereignty of a state has been challenged by an issue of contested or changing borders, such as in the Ukraine.
• Investigate two non-state actors and find a case study for each where they have influenced global politics. for example, Amnesty International (human rights NGO) and Greenpeace (environmental NGO). Based on the case study, assess the extent that each non-state actor achieved its aim. Compare the results of each case study and determine which non-state actor has more power.
• 
  Prepare a group presentation on an intergovernmental organisation (IGO); explain its aims, roles and power and the extent to which it achieves its aims, based on contemporary case studies.
• Using the information from their group presentations, students write an essay on the following topic: ‘Intergovernmental Organisations face too many challenges to achieve their aims to be effective in managing global politics’. Discuss.
• Compile a media file on global actors. Include at least ten articles from the last 12 months and at least one cartoon. Outline the key points of each article and explain how the issues in the articles and cartoon relate to the aims, roles and power of relevant global actors.
• Evaluate the power of one Transnational Corporation (TNC) in terms of achieving its aims and its roles in global politics and the global economy.
• Plan an essay response, including topic sentences and evidence, to the following statement: ‘States are the most powerful actors in global politics.’
• Develop a class wiki in which class members discuss the influence of the key global actors.
• Individually select an NGO and conduct research on its aims, roles and power of the non-state actors; share research in a blog or a collaborative document.
• Create a poster to illustrate the different sources of power of various global actors and how they interact with one another.
• Compile a list of technological, communication and economic changes which have facilitated the growth and power of non-state actors and one TNC.
• Role-play a meeting of the UN Security Council regarding one or more contemporary issues and attempt to pass a resolution on that issue. Each student represents a different member of the UN Security Council and the P5 (UN Security Council’s 5 permanent members) must be included if the class is smaller than 15. Afterwards, analyse which states had the most power in the room and the reasons the resolution either passed or failed. Visit the United Nations Association of the United States of America website for guidance on how to run a model UN.
• Investigate a TNC. Explain whether the TNC is trying to achieve any aims other than maximising profits. If so, analyse what is motivating that TNC to try to achieve those aims.

 

Detailed example

Create a presentation on an Intergovernmental Organisation (IGO)

In groups, students research the IGO under the following headings:

• aims
• roles
• size of membership
• aims achieved (with at least one case study)
• aims not achieved (with at least one case study)
• challenges and difficulties in achieving aims
• criticisms of its work
• overall evaluation of the power of the IGO.

Students create the presentation using key facts, words, examples and evidence.

During group presentations, students not presenting complete a table on each institution using the points above as headings.