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ECONOMIC GEOGRAPHY

1. Economy and geography

2. Economy, space and time

3. A) Economic spatial theories

3. B) Growth and development theories

4. Economy and ecology

5. Globalization as a consequence of technological change

6. Summary and discussion

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Economic Geography 1

Economy and geography

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What is “economy”?Oikos = house, householdProvisions for the houseRelated to goods, objects (especially

material)Cycle of materials (from raw materials

to a finished product)Profit

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Elements of definitions Production and distribution of goods Production in order to satisfy a demand Balancing the demand for goods with the

supply from a limited stock of resources Produce for one‘s own needs (subsistence) Produce for the needs of others (surplus)

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What is “geography“Spatial scienceStructures and processesSPACE and TIME

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Economic geography is ...

… a geography of man's struggle to make a living. As such it should concern itself with the production, use and reproduction of the social and material conditions of man's existence. In fact economic geography is firmly asocial. Emphasis has traditionally been placed upon the production and the use of the environmental and man-made material conditions of existence. (Lee, Dict. Human Geography)

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Where do we place economic geography ?

Environmental science

Social sciences, humanities

Cultural geography

Economics

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Work – work?Associated with the economyActivityRemunerated?Pleasure and satisfaction?A chore?

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A typology of work

Activities

Free time Work

Remunerated

Formal economy

‘Grey’ economy

Illegal activities

Legal activities

Unremunerated

Household Voluntary ‘economy’

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Views of the economy Investor: profit, shareholder valueEntrepreneur: a challengeEmployee: a job, a salaryCitizen: almighty powerPolitician: source of income and

influenceGeographer ? see next

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A modern view of the economyA complex systemHuman activities, based on rational and

irrational decisionsLimited predictabilityEmbedded in the natural environmentPart of the social environmentDirected by changing perceptions

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The future economy in a twofold dilemma

Solidarity Egoism

Soft technologies

Hard technologies

?

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The future economy and sustainable development• Sustainable development means to guarantee that

future generations can continue to live on this earth.• This implies that we take care of the basic requirements

of the ecosystem (the basis for all human existence on the planet).

• Which way leads to an economy that has the potential to guarantee the survival of mankind over a long period?

• Can technology alone achieve this goal?

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The 3 economic sectors

Classification of the economic activities:Primary sector: preparing the raw

materialsSecondary sector: transforming the raw

materials into manufactured productsTertiary sector: ensuring the functioning

of the economy

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The dynamics of the three sectors (Fourastié model)

time

% Secondary

Tertiary

Primary

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Characteristics of the sectorsPrimary sector: agriculture, forestry,

hunting, gathering, fishing, miningSecondary sector: manufacturing,

construction workTertiary sector: ‘all the rest’ – but in a

highly differentiated way

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The tertiary sectorAlways present, but in 20th century

growth in importance and differentiationComprises a variety of activities that

demand different skills, are of unequal importance for various human groups and has both a public and a private side

Can be classed according to a choice of perspectives

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Possible definitions of the tertiary sector (A. Bailly)

Public, non competitive Private, competitive

Archaic/traditional Modern

Common Rare

Production-oriented Consumer-oriented

Management Service

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General commentThe T-sector is more complex than the

P- and the S-sectors as it finds itself in a mediating position: both P and S require services

We use all forms of the T-sector, but at different times and with varying frequencies

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Specific commentPublic/private: self-explainingArchaic/modern: bound to history (pre-

industrial vs. post-industrial)Common/rare: self-explainingProduction/consumer-oriented: services

for firms vs. services for householdsManagement/service: self-explaining;

service = executing, not directing

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Dimensions of the T-sector The Bailly classification shows the breadth of

the service domain Traditional classifications use six groups of

activities: administration, trade, finances, education, communication, health

They have to be confronted with the entire breadth to show a clear picture of this field

This yields 60 combinations – clearly too much for a simple classification!

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2-dimensional T-sectorPub Pri Arc Mod Com Rar Pro Con Man Ser

ADM

TRA

FIN

EDU

COM

HEA

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Informal economyActivities that are legal as such but not

bound to formal places and installations (street vendors, street musicians)

They offer a service close to the passer-by who is a potential customer (e.g. the hairdresser or the dentist on the roadside in India)

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Illegal (‘black’) economy Activities that are forbidden by law (drug

dealing) Activities that are legal as such but are

exercised under specific conditions:- illegal workers (low salaries, no social security, exploitation)- Saturday and Sunday work for friends that are not declared (no taxes and social security premium paid)

Such activities are pursued by the state

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The clandestine economy Being an ‘underground‘ field, there are no

official figures on its share of the GDI Estimates (1980s):

- US 13-14 %- Italy 10-25 %- England 7-8 %- Switzerland 3-5 %

Figures are subject to change according to knowledge and investigation