The Journal of World-Systems Research has released a special issue on “Coloniality of Power and Hegemonic Shifts in the World-System,” guest edited by Manuela Boatca, Andrea Komlosy, and Hans-Heinrich Nolte.
This issue features a collection of articles that grew from the 39th annual Political Economy of the World-System conference, which took place in Berlin in the spring of 2015. Along with regular articles, these papers highlight the fluidity and arbitrariness of boundaries, exploring how the boundaries and categories that inform our thinking and practice are shaped by world-historical power relations.
World-systems approaches encourage readers to consider the political moment that defines the context of both writers and readers, and thus it is instructive to consider the papers in this issue in light of the unfolding U.S. presidential election—arguably one of the most bizarre, at least in recent history. This spectacle clearly reflects the larger world-systemic processes of hegemonic competition and change, as we witness the ungraceful decline of U.S. power and attempted efforts in Europe to maintain sufficient unity to compete in a changing geopolitical context. Such times may create unique opportunities for contestation over basic meanings and identities, and the editors think the papers in this volume resonate with this notion.
See the read the full issue (and previous issues), visit http://jwsr.pitt.edu.
The Journal of World-Systems Research is the official journal of the Political Economy of the World-System Section of the ASA.
