International Relations in Action: A World Politics Simulation PDF
Preview International Relations in Action: A World Politics Simulation
International Relations in Action International Relations in Action A WORLD POLITICS SIMULATION BROCK F. TESSMAN To David Liebowitz, Stephen Lester, and my fantastic students at the University of Denver and University of Colorado Published in the United States of America in 2007 by Lynne Rienner Publishers, Inc. 1800 30th Street, Boulder, Colorado 80301 www.rienner.com and in the United Kingdom by Lynne Rienner Publishers, Inc. 3 Henrietta Street, Covent Garden, London WC2E 8LU ©2007 by the Lynne Rienner Publishers, Inc. All rights reserved Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Tessman, Brock, 1976– International relations in action : a world politics simulation / by Brock Tessman. p. cm. ISBN-13: 978-1-58826-464-0 (pbk. : alk. paper) ISBN-10: 1-58826-464-5 (pbk. : alk. paper) 1. International relations—Study and teaching (Secondary)—Simulation methods. 2. Diplomacy—Study and teaching (Secondary)—Simulation methods. I. Title. JZ1305.T44 2006 327.1071'2—dc22 2006030142 British Cataloguing in Publication Data ACataloguing in Publication record for this book is available from the British Library. Printed and bound in the United States of America The paper used in this publication meets the requirements of the American National Standard for Permanence of Paper for Printed Library Materials Z39.48-1992. 5 4 3 2 1 Contents List of Figures and Tables vi Introduction 1 Part 1 Let the Games Begin 1 Individual and Team Objectives 5 2 History and Geography 9 Part 2 Basic Components of the Simulation 3 Resource Factors 19 4 Diplomacy 25 5 Trade 29 6 Conflict 33 Part 3 The Simulation Scenarios 7 Alliance Politics 39 8 Territorial Disputes 47 9 Nuclear Proliferation 55 10 Ethnic Conflict 63 11 Free Trade vs. Protectionism 71 12 Natural Resource Politics 79 13 Currency Crises 87 14 Foreign Aid 95 15 Global Security Organizations 103 16 International Criminal Courts 111 17 Collective Action Problems 119 18 Environmental Challenges 125 Instructor’s Guide 133 About the Book 138 v Figures and Tables Figures 2.1 Map of Politica 10 4.1 Sample Country Action Report 27 Tables 1.1 Tracking Your Objective Points 8 3.1 Initial Factor Allocations 20 3.2 Factor Distribution Worksheet 23 3.3 Factor Distribution Worksheet: An Example 23 5.1 Natural Resources 30 5.2 Natural Resources Trading 32 vi Introduction Congratulations! As an influential leader of a powerful country in the land of Politica, you have the ability to change the course of history. In the International Relations in Action (IRiA) Simulation, you will work on your own and with teammates to achieve a set of individual and country objectives that you will find in this book. The future of your country is in your hands—will you guide it to greatness or lead it down the path to ruin? In the IRiASimulation you will have the chance to gain firsthand experi- ence with some of the theories and concepts you have learned about during lec- ture, while reading, or in the process of classroom discussion. You will also be asked to write short reports that will allow you to apply lessons from the simu- lation to what you have learned about international relations in the “real” world. Your country will be faced with some of the same challenges confronted by his- tory’s greatest leaders, strategists, and diplomats. Depending on the objectives assigned to your country, you might be tasked with reforming an international organization, promoting a free trade agreement, resolving an ethnic conflict, or preventing a global pandemic. Along the way, you and your team will decide which countries are natural allies and which may emerge as potential rivals. You will also have to make tough decisions about how to allocate economic resources and how to trade for the resources your country needs to reach its full potential. Through diplomatic interaction, compromise, and clever negotiating, your country will find its place in Politican politics. The only question is—will that place be at the top of the heap or at the bottom of the pile? You will be assigned a specific government position on your team. Depending on the size of your class and other variables, your country might include up to five government positions: chief decisionmaker (CDM), diplomat (DIP), economic adviser (ECA), intelligence officer (INT), and opposition leader (OPP). While you will work with your teammates to achieve a set of shared team objectives, you 1 2 INTRODUCTION might also want to pursue the individual objective associated with your particu- lar position. The rest of this book follows a rather simple plan. In Part 1, you will be introduced to the individual position that you will occupy in your country’s gov- ernment, and the responsibilities that accompany each position. You will also learn about the tension that exists between individual and team objectives in the simulation. Finally, you will be given a crash course in the geography and his- tory of each country in Politica. In Part 2, you will learn about the four basic components of each turn during the IRiASimulation: allocation of resource fac- tors, diplomacy, trade, and conflict. On every turn, you will have to make impor- tant decisions about challenges in the first three areas; occasionally, the fourth area—conflict—will also play an important role in your decisionmaking. Part 3 contains the twelve simulation scenarios that serve as the core of the IRiASim- ulation. The scenarios are grouped into three broad categories of international security, international political economy, and international organization. Along with each scenario comes a new objective, but you will find that achieving one objective might require some compromise on another.
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