Theorizing Economic Geographies of Asia

Abstract

Economic geographies of Asia are highly fascinating, not the least because Asia has increasingly emerged as a significant economic player in all spheres of global competition: production, consumption, and circulation. This dynamic mosaic of economic landscapes in Asia was further complicated during the 1997-1998 economic crisis and thereafter. While some aspects of these economic geographies of Asia have already received research attention, many complex economic geographic processes in Asia have been undertheorized in the literature. This agenda-setting article makes two critical observations. First, the theorization of dynamic economic changes in Asia needs to be more critical of economic geography theories developed elsewhere in the Anglo-American context. The Asian case may significantly challenge existing theories in economic geography. Second, certain geographic processes in Asia require fundamentally new approaches to theorization that may contribute to the development of broader theories in economic geography. The economic dynamism of Asia has provided a useful site for the development of theory and empirical understanding in contemporary economic geography. To support our arguments and observations, we discuss the situatedness and specificity of influential theories of economic geography and offer some constructive suggestions for an intellectual agenda for developing new theories in economic geography.

The enclosure of “waste land”: Rethinking informality and dispossession

“…There are good reasons why this should concern us. The analysis of dispossession in China can shed light on particular forms that primitive accumulation assumes in this geoinstitutional context and greatly contributes to economic geography (Liu, ; Yeung & Lin, ). Therefore, the paper contends that investigating waste recycling in Beijing provides particularly fertile ground for filling this major gap in the literature.…”

Spatial Mobility of Migrant Workers in Beijing, China

“…Critical geography • The role of the State and market in the city-space change (Wu 2007aWu et al 2007 ;Ma and Wu 2005 ; Arkaraprasertkul 2010 ) • The social and political origins of land development in the transitional period Yeung and Lin 2003 ;Lin 2009Lin , 2011 • The confl icts of interest between the 'real estate machine' and residents inhabiting the city (Zhang 2010 ). In Chap.…”

The Creation of Local Innovation Systems in Emerging Countries

“…This aspect has been highlighted by scholars examining the characteristics and specificities of national and regional innovation systems of some developing nations (Intarakumnerd et al 2002;Patibandla and Peterson 2002;Finegold et al 2004;. Their contributions are primarily descriptive in character, not offering alternative theoretical models, but have the benefit of showing certain peculiarities of developing nation innovation systems that clearly distinguish them from the models proposed for developed nations (Park and Markusen 1995;Yeung and Lin 2003).…”