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Area of Study 4: Human Systems and Geopolitics

7 dot points across 7 inquiry questions. Click any dot point for a focused answer with worked past exam questions where available.

What spheres of influence are contested by superpowers, and what are the implications of the shifting balance of power?

Contested spheres of influence such as the Arctic and South China Sea create tensions over borders, resources and alliances, while shifting global power restructures economies and reshapes norms.
An Edexcel A-Level Geography answer to contested spheres of influence and the implications of shifting power, covering disputed borders, military alliances, intellectual property, resource conflicts in the Arctic and South China Sea, and the economic, environmental and ideological consequences of a multipolar world.
13 min answer →

How effective are different forms of geopolitical intervention, and what are their outcomes for health and human rights?

Geopolitical intervention ranges from development aid to military action and sanctions, and its effectiveness is judged against stability, development, health indicators and human rights outcomes.
An Edexcel A-Level Geography answer to the effectiveness of geopolitical intervention and its outcomes for health and human rights, covering aid, military action, sanctions, the role of IGOs and NGOs, and the links between development, health indicators and rights in cases from Afghanistan to Sierra Leone.
13 min answer →

How do development, health and human rights vary, and how effective is international intervention?

How development and human wellbeing are defined and measured, the variations in health and human rights between and within countries, the role of international organisations and intervention, and how the success of aid, development and military intervention can be assessed.
An Edexcel A-Level Geography answer to health, human rights and intervention, covering how development and human wellbeing are defined and measured, the variations in health and human rights between and within countries, the role of international organisations and different forms of intervention, and how the success of aid, development and military intervention can be assessed.
12 min answer →

How do migration and globalisation reshape national identity and sovereignty?

The causes and patterns of international migration, how globalisation and migration affect national identity, the changing meaning of nation states, borders and sovereignty, and the tensions between supranational governance and national independence.
An Edexcel A-Level Geography answer to migration, identity and sovereignty, covering the causes and patterns of international migration, how globalisation and migration reshape national identity and culture, the changing meaning of nation states, borders and sovereignty, and the tensions between supranational governance and national independence.
12 min answer →

How are nation states defined and how do they vary, and what threatens their sovereignty and territorial integrity?

Nation states are defined by sovereignty over territory and shared identity, but globalisation, supranational governance, separatism and annexation threaten their territorial integrity.
An Edexcel A-Level Geography answer to how nation states are defined and threatened, covering the nation, state and nation-state, nationalism, sovereignty and the Westphalian system, borders, and the threats from globalisation, supranational governance, separatism and annexation.
13 min answer →

What impacts do superpowers have on the global economy, global politics and the physical environment?

Superpowers maintain power through the global economic architecture and neo-colonial relationships, and shape global politics, resource demand and the physical environment.
An Edexcel A-Level Geography answer to the role of superpowers in the global economy, politics and environment, covering IGOs and the Bretton Woods system, structural adjustment and neo-colonialism, TNCs and global culture, resource demand and the environmental footprint of superpowers.
13 min answer →

What makes a superpower, how has global power shifted, and what tensions does this create?

The characteristics and sources of superpower status, the changing pattern of global power over time, the role of superpowers in the global economy, governance and the environment, and the geopolitical tensions and spheres of influence this creates.
An Edexcel A-Level Geography answer to superpowers, covering the characteristics and sources of superpower status, the changing geography of global power from unipolar to multipolar, the role of superpowers in the global economy, governance and the environment, and the geopolitical tensions, alliances and spheres of influence that emerging powers create.
12 min answer →