Geopolitics of the 2020s: Power, Technology, Energy, and Order
by GeoPoli__tico · Geopolitics of the 2020s — great-power competition (US-China, Russia-West), the technology and energy dimensions (semiconductors, oil, rare earths), and how the international order is being reshaped in real time
A 20-hour working-knowledge course for interpreting the structural forces behind 2020s geopolitics: great-power competition, technology chokepoints, energy security, non-alignment, AI, and the dollar system.
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modules
15
lessons
21.5h
estimated work · target 20h
What's inside
60 tasks · 87 flashcards · 53 concepts · 45 recall prompts
Sample recall prompts — this is what studying it feels like
- Explain what analysts mean by the end of the unipolar moment, and give one concrete indicator of the change.
- Compare realist, liberal-institutionalist, and constructivist explanations for why the international order became more contested.
- Use NATO enlargement as a case study to show how one event can look different through different theoretical lenses.
Syllabus
From Unipolarity to Competitive Order
Core frameworks for understanding why the post-Cold War settlement became more contested and how analysts from different traditions explain the shift.
- The End of the Unipolar Moment teach_back · reading · flashcard · quiz · 6 cards
- Chinese Rise and Systemic Power reading · flashcard · quiz · essay · 6 cards
- Middle Powers in a Fragmented Order reading · quiz · flashcard · teach_back · 5 cards
US-China Rivalry: Trade, Technology, Taiwan, and Military Balance
The core bilateral competition of the 2020s, with emphasis on economic security, technology decoupling, Taiwan, and the Indo-Pacific military balance.
- Trade, Industrial Policy, and Selective Decoupling reading · flashcard · quiz · teach_back · 6 cards
- Taiwan and the Indo-Pacific Military Balance reading · quiz · flashcard · essay · 6 cards
- Semiconductor Chokepoints: TSMC, ASML, and Export Controls reading · flashcard · quiz · teach_back · 6 cards
Russia-West, Europe, and Strategic Autonomy
Russia’s war after 2022, Western sanctions and alliance adaptation, and Europe’s search for strategic autonomy under hard constraints.
- Russia-West After 2022 reading · flashcard · quiz · teach_back · 6 cards
- EU Strategic Autonomy and Its Limits reading · quiz · flashcard · essay · 5 cards
- India’s Rise and Multi-Alignment reading · flashcard · quiz · teach_back · 6 cards
Energy, Minerals, AI, and the Global South
Resource and technology dimensions of competition: oil and LNG, critical minerals, non-alignment 2.0, and AI’s military implications.
- Energy Geopolitics: Oil, LNG, and the Transition reading · flashcard · quiz · teach_back · 6 cards
- The Global South and Non-Alignment 2.0 reading · quiz · flashcard · essay · 6 cards
- AI and Military Power reading · flashcard · quiz · teach_back · 6 cards
Money, Scenarios, and Applied Geopolitical Analysis
The dollar system, weaponized finance, realistic alternatives, and a capstone framework for interpreting future geopolitical events.
- The Dollar System and Weaponized Finance reading · flashcard · quiz · teach_back · 6 cards
- Scenario Analysis and Warning Indicators reading · quiz · flashcard · teach_back · 6 cards
- Capstone: Build a 2020s Geopolitical Briefing reading · flashcard · quiz · project · 5 cards