Ethical and moral geographies of 'FDI-led' development (and the impacts of out-sourcing within global production networks)

Dr Simon Oakes, Bancroft’s School •Chief Examiner for IB Diploma Geography •Principal Examiner for Edexcel AS Geography & GCSE Citizenship

1. Raising the bar for ‘FDI-led development’ knowledge and understanding within KS5 geography

2. Deeper critical thinking about ethical geographies of intervention (‘bridging the development gap’)

3. Building better geography (stretching learners’ geographical imaginations)

Outline

KS5 SpecificationsAQA – ‘social impacts of TNCs on their host countries’Edexcel – explicit focus on ‘ethical and moral consequences’OCR – ‘what are the issues associated with globalisation?’WJEC – ‘who wins and loses from global shift?’CCEA – ‘understanding of globalisation and trade’IB – ‘FDI and the transfer of capital’Cross-curricular dimension: RS, GS, Citizenship, Sociology, Economics, World Development

Globalisation, FDI & ethics

‘Costs & benefits of TNCs’

TNCs are presented as: (i) a uniform group (ii) tangible players (rather than as networks)

‘A company with operation in more than one country’ Distinguishing FDI, branch plant operations, out-

sourcing, contracting, off-shoring, shadow factories, supply networks, acquisitions and mergers, etc.

Distinguishing work, pay and human rights in Foxconn Shenzhen, Bangalore, Johor Bahru, Jakarta, Dhaka etc.

Practices are embedded in varied social-political contexts e.g. legal framework, unionisation, etc.

Complexity

Supply chain systems & ethics

Limits to ethical intervention?

Global workers are seen as: (i) a homogenous group (ii) located & knowable

Trade / FDI / TNC = a richer seam for spatial and ethical explorations than KS5 geography currently encourages

Economics, RS, sociology, etc. share this common ground: but may lack the same geographical imagination

Teaching of tiers, etc. gives learners building blocks for critique of two-speed / multi-speed development & interventions

Edexcel and IB courses have made some movement (global networks, global interactions)

Conclusions: focus on development