Economic geography under postcolonial scrutiny

Abstract

Because the economy is not found as an empirical object among other worldly things, in order for it to be ‘seen’ by the human perceptual apparatus it has to undergo a process, crucial for science, of representational mapping. This is doubling, but with a difference; the map shifts the point of view so that viewers can see the whole as if from the outside, in a way that allows them, from a specific position inside, to find their bearings. (Buck‐Morss 1995, 440)

Shifting conceptualizations of ethical consumption: Cause-related marketing in India and the USA

“…Perhaps most importantly, there is a problematic tendency to hold the Global North in a prioritized position in comparative work as a kind of base line to which the Global South can be compared (Pollard et al, 2009). Often this plays out in research that treats the Global South as a kind of laboratory through which to test theories developed in the Global North (Pollard et al, 2009;Raghuram and Madge, 2006: 280). This observation may be particularly important because ethical consumption research is skewed toward studying consumers (but not producers) in the Global North and producers (but not consumers) in the Global South.…”

“…Furthermore, comparisons often understand the context or culture of a place as stable and occurring only at large scales (e.g., 'Indian culture') rather than as malleable over time and constituted through everyday processes (Mitra, 2012). Perhaps most importantly, there is a problematic tendency to hold the Global North in a prioritized position in comparative work as a kind of base line to which the Global South can be compared (Pollard et al, 2009). Often this plays out in research that treats the Global South as a kind of laboratory through which to test theories developed in the Global North (Pollard et al, 2009;Raghuram and Madge, 2006: 280).…”

“…A final important component of this framework is a postcolonial approach, which could help to circumvent tendencies in comparative work to centre the Global North as a place of theory or policy creation and the Global South as a place of application (Pollard et al, 2009;Raghuram and Madge, 2006: 280). Pollard et al (2009) call for a postcolonial economic geography.…”

Japanese Cities in Chinese Perspective: Towards a Contextual, Regional Approach to Comparative Urbanism

“…This is predicated on a rich understanding of the regional context, and indeed it is the regional focus that opens up possibilities for a more sensitive understanding of convergence and difference. In other words, I am advocating here a reassessment of the conceptual mileage that can be gained from area studies, in line with arguments recently advanced by Pollard et al (2009). An area-or regional-focus (I am treating the terms as interchangeable) recognizes the historical weight that proximity has brought to bear in terms of human ties over a long period of time (Legg and McFarlane, 2008).…”

“…There is surely much to be gained from this sort of strategic comparison. Issues of expertise, which all too easily become a real barrier to contextually rich urban comparison (Ma, 2002;Pollard et al, 2009), can be overcome through the combined use of expert knowledge in the two different geographical areas or through recourse to local -home-based‖ accretions of understanding.…”