BEXP 14A10 - The Atlantic rewired. Ports, Powers, Digital Oceans and Planetary Shift

This course explores the Atlantic as a critical space of geopolitical interaction, historical transformation, and strategic innovation. From the Viking voyages and Iberian empires to Cold War alliances and digital infrastructure, the Atlantic has shaped global power dynamics for centuries. Through 12 thematic seminars, students will investigate how historical legacies inform current geopolitical challenges, examining trade, conflict, cultural exchange, and strategic foresight.

The course adopts a planetary perspective to understand the Atlantic's evolving role in global affairs. By "planetary shift," we refer to the fundamental transformations reshaping international relations at a global scale: climate change and its systemic effects on maritime security, the reconfiguration of power structures beyond traditional Euro-American centrality toward multipolarity, and the emergence of interconnected digital and ecological governance challenges that transcend national boundaries. This approach draws on recent scholarship theorizing planetary politics in the Anthropocene, where oceanic spaces become critical sites for understanding humanity's collective future. The Atlantic thus serves as both a historical case study and a contemporary laboratory for examining how local maritime dynamics intersect with planetary-scale transformations in security, governance, and environmental sustainability.

1/ Participation and short written reflections (20%) : Active engagement in seminar discussions and submission of 3-4 brief analytical reflections (500 words) on assigned readings throughout the semester.

2/ Group presentation and mapping project (35%) : Working in teams of 3-4 students, you will produce a geopolitical mapping project analyzing a specific Atlantic challenge (e.g., submarine cable infrastructure, port networks, migration corridors, or climate vulnerabilities). The project consists of: A 20-minute oral presentation with visual support ; An analytical map or data visualization (using tools such as ArcGIS, QGIS, Tableau, or Flourish) ; A 2,000-word written report contextualizing your mapping choices and geopolitical analysis.

Detailed methodological guidelines and examples will be provided in Session 2.

3/ Final research paper or policy memo (45%) :

Choose one format: Research paper (4,000-5,000 words): An analytical essay on a course-related topic with scholarly research ; Policy memo (2,500-3,000 words): A strategic brief addressing a contemporary Atlantic challenge, written for a governmental or international organization audience

Late work policy : Late submissions will be penalized by 2 points per day unless prior arrangement has been made with the instructor due to documented exceptional circumstances.

Late arrival policy : Students arriving more than 10 minutes after the session begins may not be admitted, and their absence will be recorded.