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This book introduces the novel concept of fringe regionalism to the field of international studies. It examines how regions are practiced by peripheral borderlands rather than centrally planned, thus offering new avenues for researching regionalism beyond the conventional focus on formal intergovernmental organisations. Two in depth case studies, the Sahara and the Caucasus, provide the real-life application of the concept and the authors use the tensions between competing demarcations of the region, the regional nature of extra-legal economies and the narratives of cross-border identities to steer their empirical approach. Through thorough analysis, the volume applies the concept of fringe regionalism to regions previously neglected by conventional approaches.
List of contents
1. Introductory remarks - the case for fringe regionalism
2. Producing regional spaces from the margins: Fringe regionalism - a conceptual proposal to recalibrate the study of regions2.1 The obsession with formal institutions and territorial delineations - a critique of the spatial bias in regionalism2.2 The place and practice of region-building2.3 Of buffers and frontiers - informal agency from the margins
3. The practice of fringe regionalism - evidence from the Caucasus and the Sahara3.1 Frames and boundaries - regions as practiced authorities 3.2 Markets and infrastructures - regions as practiced economies 3.3 Narratives of belonging- regions as practiced identities
4. Towards a wider application of fringe regionalism - comparisons and transfers4.1 Conceptual gains and limitations of fringe regionalism4.2 Comparative fringe regionalism4.3 The relevance of fringe regionalism beyond the Caucasus and the Sahara _
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