Topic 4.9

Essential Knowledge 

• Devolution occurs when states fragment into autonomous regions; subnational political-territorial units, such as those within Spain, Belgium, Canada, and Nigeria; or when states disintegrate, as happened in Eritrea, South Sudan, East Timor, and states that were part of the former Soviet Union. 
• Advances in communication technology have facilitated devolution, supranationalism, and democratization.  
• Global efforts to address transnational and environmental challenges and to create economies of scale, trade agreements, and military alliances to help further supranationalism.  
• Supranational organizations–including the United Nations (UN), North Atlantic Treaty Organizations (NATO), European Unions (EU), Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), Arctic Council, and African Union–can challenge state sovereignty by limiting the economic or political actions of member states.  

How Devolution Occurs 

Devolution can create: 

• Autonomous regions (Spain’s Catalonia) 
• Subnational units (Belgium’s communities) 
• New independent states (Eritrea, South Sudan, East Timor) 
• Dissolved states (breakup of the USSR and Yugoslavia) 

Role of Technology 

Modern communication: 

• Spreads nationalist ideas 
• Strengthens local political voices 
• Allows minority groups to organize 
• Facilitates both devolution and democratization 
• Supranationalism 
• When three or more countries form an organization to achieve shared goals (economic, political, or military). 

Major supranational organizations: 

• UN 
• NATO 
• EU 
• ASEAN 
• African Union 
• Arctic Council 

These organizations can limit state sovereignty because member states must follow shared rules or policies. 

Contextualization

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In Practice

Essential Question: 

Explain how political, economic, cultural, and technological changes challenge state sovereignty.  

Conceptual Analysis: 

1. Describe the benefits of supranational organizations  for a state with a small GDP.  
2. Explain how a supranational organization may challenge a sovereignty of state.  
3. Identify two contemporary examples of democratization.  

Vocab Review:  

Provide a shorthand working definition for each of the following terms. This means it needs to be in YOUR OWN WORDS. 

• Supra-Nationalism  
• United Nations (UN)  
• European Union (EU) 
• North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA)  
• African Union (AU)  
• North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) 
• Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) 
• Arctic Council  
• Military Alliance  
• Trade Agreement  
• Economies of Scale  
• The Paris Agreement  

MCQ

(You only need to write the letter of the answer that you select)

1. Which of the following best describes devolution?

A. The transfer of power from local governments to a national government
B. The fragmentation of a state into autonomous regions or independent states
C. The creation of a military alliance among neighboring countries
D. The expansion of a state’s territory through conquest

2. Which of the following is the best example of devolution creating an autonomous region rather than a new independent state?

A. South Sudan separating from Sudan
B. Eritrea gaining independence from Ethiopia
C. Catalonia exercising self-government within Spain
D. The breakup of the Soviet Union

3. Advances in communication technology have contributed to devolution primarily because they

A. eliminate cultural differences among populations
B. make national governments more powerful than local governments
C. allow minority groups to organize and spread political ideas more effectively
D. reduce demands for regional autonomy