This month’s issue is coming out a few days early as we have a lot of deadlines in the first part of the month that I want to feature. As the semester winds down it is time to start thinking about deadlines for various opportunities such as Co-op Education, EU study abroad and various conferences. Check out the newsletter for more information on all these events and opportunities.

In this issue, we have an interview with Dr. Jamey Essex who specializes in Political Geography; comparative public policy; political behavior and democratic politics.

Back by popular demand, Tulip will be coming to campus on December 12th. If you need a happy break from studying or exam writing, drop by the office for a cuddle. For those who were wondering, Tulip ha her first birthday on November 25th.

I hope everyone had a successful semester and wishing you a stress free exam period.

Q: What inspired you to become a professor?

A: I am the first person in my large extended family to graduate from university and I had some professors encourage me to go to graduate school while an undergrad at the University of Kentucky. Then in grad school at Syracuse, I was a teaching assistant and really enjoyed it. Originally, I had thought I was going to work in local government. But I realized that I liked talking in front of people and interacting with classes, and that I was not so bad at it. And being a professor has allowed me to have a lot of autonomy in my work and create classes around the topics that I enjoy learning and teaching about.

Q: What is your area of research?

A: My background is in human geography, so I do a lot of research surrounding that. This is specifically a good fit for the International Relations program. I also research development and food issues, foreign aid, the restructuring of Global Affairs Canada, things about the state and geopolitics, and as of late some research on diplomacy and gender.

Q: What projects are you currently working on?

A: Right now, I have a few going. I am working on something that is from an older project about development and diplomacy in Global Affairs Canada, looking at gender, diplomacy, and diplomatic spouses. I am really interested in that – what it is like to work and live abroad in a foreign capital, an extension of the state beyond its own borders. There is a lot that goes on behind the scenes in these cases, and a lot of background processes. There is another piece on diplomacy I am working on, about Havana Syndrome and the reshaping of geopolitical ideas, the world order, what constitutes a threat, and how states (especially the US) react to that. I also have done some stuff on the far right lately, working with some people in the US, the UK, and Europe.

Q: What courses are you teaching this semester? What are you excited about teaching this semester?

A: This semester I am teaching POLS-2300: Space, Place, and Scale, which is basically an introduction to human geography. I am also teaching the first semester course for the thesis stream (POLS4970: Thesis 1 Research Design). I am excited about teaching this class in particular because the students are motivated and I get to help them generate their own research project. I like teaching the geography class because there is nothing else like it in the department, I find that it fills a specific niche in our programs.

I don’t think my classes are hard, but they are a little bit off-centre from what you may expect in other political science classes. I mean, any class is hard if you don’t show up and do the reading. I also expect that students do the reading, even though I know the readings can be a little difficult sometimes since it’s the first time students are encountering some of these ideas and that style of writing.

Q: Do you have any tips on how to succeed in university?

A: Well, you have to be there and you have to do the work that is asked of you, whether that is reading or practicing your writing or whatever it is. I have found that the hardest thing for students is learning time management, actually setting aside time for class outside of class. I feel like most students don’t learn that until they hit a bump in the road.

Q: If President-elect Trump implements the tariffs he has proposed, which are undoubtedly aimed at pursuing protectionism within the US, what effects might this have on the global food economy?

A: If this happens, there will be two main effects. For one, we will probably see more trade wars, as other countries will respond in kind. The US exports a lot of food so it would likely impact some American exporters. I mean, there are already tariffs that he tried before and some farmers lost important Chinese export markets. The US government had to bail the farmers out because they had lost those markets. This could happen again but on a larger scale. Second, the tariffs will probably be accompanied by changes to immigration policies, which would impact the agricultural labour force in the US, as there are a lot of undocumented workers in American agriculture, working in the fields, in packing houses). They deserve better work conditions and some kind of stable path to documented status in any case. But with Trump’s proposed tariffs and immigration policies, food prices will definitely increase and become more unpredictable in the US and probably globally.

Q: The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) has reported that 2024 is on track to become the warmest year on record, surpassing 2023. The top ten hottest years have all occurred within the past decade as well. In light of this trend, how do you envision the concept and practice of 'security' evolving in the Anthropocene?

The concept of the Anthropocene is highly debated in the first place, but security is most definitely linked to how people think about climate. The way militaries understand climate change is as a threat multiplier, a process that exacerbates current threats to security. Think of how climate change and extreme weather impact mass migration, resource conflicts, and the inability of states to come to reasonable agreements on a range of other issues. Most people also envision a tradeoff between economic growth and environmental protection. Climate underscores all of these things. It also heightens risks for those who are already on the margins.

The idea of security has to shift in this context, it needs to consider who matters and how to achieve security for the largest number of people. People who are in charge need to think of things beyond the narrow scope that is national security, they must consider a new, broader perspective in terms of greater concern for environmental security and human security. My POLS2300 class delves deeper into this topic.

A: Anyone who has taken one of your classes knows that you love memes. Do you have a favourite one?

A: Old Economy Steve is my go-to. He is very useful when I teach the international political economy class, but I often use him in other classes. I also use this one whale meme (“I came out of the ocean to tell you _____), usually to encourage students to improve their writing. I’ve found that more students are unaware of memes these days. I think that the social media platforms that students are using currently are not as meme-oriented as they were maybe five to ten years ago. They either don’t know what I am talking about or they are just too embarrassed to admit they know the meme. But then there are also lots of great and often unflattering pictures of politicians that are not memes exactly, and they can be put to use because it shows them as normal people and I think that helps bring politics down to ground level in ways that are useful in class and for students’ understanding and attention.

Our Instagram page is now the place to be. Our Ignite students have been posting daily with some great content featuring our activities, and insights into daily lives of our students. Follow us to join in the fun and get insider information on all things Political Science.

For Winter 2025 we will read The Conservative Environmentalist: Common Sense Solutions for a Sustainable Future, by Benji Backer. 

Benji Backer is a young, conservative environmentalist who provides an intrepid vision for both solving our climate crisis and prioritizing the American national interest.

Politicians, pseudo-experts, and other partisans have led us to believe that there are only two approaches to climate change: doomerism or denial. Benji Backer, Founder and Executive Chairman of the American Conservation Coalition, argues that both are dead ends. In The Conservative Environmentalist, he delivers an entirely new strategy to take care of the planet while putting put the economic interest of the American people first.

Backer makes the compelling case that conservative principles are the key to climate solutions that actually work. In this book, you’ll visit the country’s most diverse ecosystems and consequential manufacturing hubs—from Utah coal mines and Texas oil fields to Louisiana wetlands and Rhode Island offshore wind farms—witnessing the power of individual entrepreneurship and local problem-solving. You’ll be inspired by groundbreaking efforts to strengthen earth’s ecosystems (that Green New Dealers and other Big Government advocates would prefer to keep hidden), like partnerships between oil and gas companies and environmental nonprofits to preserve thousands of acres of wetlands.

To sign up, please visit the Political Science Department main office, or click here.