As we move further into the 21st century, the prominence of regions can no longer be taken for granted. A certain skepticism has developed with regard to the feasibility of marginal regions achieving self-sustained growth and states have maintained their role as regulators of economic and social activities. Thus, the notion of the region and its significance is currently much debated and contested. Illustrated with a wide range of European case studies, this volume brings together the main strands of these contestations, as economic, political and social actors attempt to institutionalise their vision of their region as the dominant form of territorial governance. It questions both the external delimitation and the internal constitution of regions and critically analyses the societal processes circumscribing ways in which regions are created, maintained and undermined. The volume provides a wide range of analytical perspectives to enable an understanding of the current mosaic of regionalism in Europe.

Multiplicity of regional and sub-national assertions of diverse ethnic groups in post-colonial India is no doubt a serious factor in the Indian nation building process. In order to understand the regionalism, the social scientists have identified a few factors on the basis of their research approaches. Social, economic, communal, political and cultural factors have been treated as the dynamics of the regional and sub-national; movements.

Deepening regionalism in Asia demands new leadership. Strong elites who are committed to a supranational identity are a minimum requirement of successful regionalism. Regional leaders are increasingly seen as a new set of leaders in Europe. Currently, Asian regional leaders largely come from the diplomacy community, or trade and economic sectors. Yet further regionalization demands a new type of leadership from civil society and citizens. In this context it is important to cultivate new regional leadership through the development of regional citizenship. This book examines contested ideas of regionalism in Asia with a particular focus on two competing ideas of pan-Asianism and Pacificism. It also identifies a new trend and contestation, the fundamental shift from a civilization understanding of regionalism to a technocratic and functional understanding of regionalism in the form of regulatory regionalism. It also examines the other contested imaginations of regionalism in Asia including elitist versus participatory approaches to regionalism, and democracy-centric versus nationalism-centric approaches to regionalism.

Textbook on regionalism and its role in a global marketplace, ideal for students of IR and globalisation.

This book offers a timely analysis, and a novel and nuanced argument about post-neoliberal models of regional governance in non-European contexts. It provides the first in-depth, empirically-driven analysis of current models of regional governance in Latin America that emerged out of the crisis of liberalism in the region. It contributes to comparative studies of the contemporary global political economy as it advances current literature on the topic by analysing distinctive, overlapping and conflicting trajectories of regionalism in Latin America. The book critically explores models of transformative regionalism and specific dimensions articulating those models beyond neoliberal consensus-building. As such it contests the overstated case of integration as converging towards global capitalism. It provides an analytical framework that not only examines the 'what, how, who and why' in the emergence of a specific form of regionalism but sets the ground for addressing two relevant questions that will push the study of regionalism further: What factors enable or constrain how transformative a given regionalism is (or can be) with respect to the powers and policies of states encompassed by it? and: What factors govern how resilient a given regionalism is likely to be under changing political and economic conditions?

The Routledge Handbook of Asian Regionalism is a definitive introduction to, and analysis of, the development of regionalism in Asia, including coverage of East Asia, Southeast Asia and South Asia. The contributors engage in a comprehensive exploration of what is arguably the most dynamic and important region in the world. Significantly, this volume addresses the multiple manifestations of regionalism in Asia and is consequently organised thematically under the headings of: conceptualizing the region economic issues political issues strategic issues regional organizations As such, the Handbook presents some of the key elements of the competing interpretations of this important and highly contested topic, giving the reader a chance to evaluate not just where Asian regionalism is going but also how the scholarship on Asian regionalism is analysing these trends and events. This book will be an indispensable resource for students and scholars of Asian politics, international relations and regionalism.

Bringing together comparative case studies from Central Europe and South America, this book focuses on 'new' regions – regions created as political projects of modernization and 're-scaling'. Through this approach it de-codes 'New Regionalism' in terms of its contributions to institutional change, while acknowledging its contested nature and contradictions. It questions whether these regions are merely a strategy of neo-liberal adjustment to changing political and economic conditions, or whether they are indicative of true reform, greater citizen participation and empowerment. It assesses whether these regions are really representing something new or whether they are a reconfiguration of traditional power relationships. It provides a timely critical analysis of 'region-building' and the extent to which national processes of decentralization and sub-national processes of regionalism can enhance the effectiveness and responsiveness of governance.