In Geopolitics Today: Thursday, January 19th
Major Breakthrough In Sustainable Hydrogen Production, Economies in Latin America and the Caribbean Prove Resilient, and other stories.
Major Breakthrough In Sustainable Hydrogen Production
A new kind of solar panel has been developed by a research team at the University of Michigan, achieving 9% efficiency in converting water into hydrogen and oxygen, mimicking a crucial step in natural photosynthesis.
The technology is said to be nearly 10 times more efficient than previous solar water-splitting experiments of its kind, and is expected to drive down the cost of sustainable hydrogen. This is enabled by shrinking the semiconductor, typically the most expensive part of the device. The research team's self-healing semiconductor withstands concentrated light equivalent to 160 suns, and is able to thrive in high temperatures that are punishing to computer semiconductors. Intellectual property related to this work has been licensed to NS Nanotech Inc. and NX Fuels Inc.
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The Response of the Caribbean Community to the War in Ukraine
The act of Russia's invasion of Ukraine was unequivocally condemned by the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) bloc on February 24, 2022, with the emphasis on the principles of respect for sovereignty, territorial integrity, non-interference in the internal affairs of another sovereign state, the prohibition on the threat or use of force, and the peaceful resolution of all disputes being adhered to by all nations.
This foreign policy posture of CARICOM was motivated to a great extent by security-related foreign policy thinking and mirrored the fears of small states of becoming the victims of hard power conflict. However, foreign policies of the region are also inclined towards economic development considerations, focusing on “strengthening regional and global market integration” of Caribbean economies. This is a core foreign policy priority in CARICOM’s engagements with third countries and is emblematic of an economic development-related foreign policy logic.
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Georgia’s Foreign Policy Returns to Ambiguity
Georgia, a small country in the Southern Caucasus, is once again in a difficult position due to the return of great power competition. The current political leadership in Tbilisi has been criticized for deviating from Georgia's pro-Western foreign policy of recent years.
Tbilisi's strategic partnership and European neighbourhood policy remain key mechanisms for Georgia's eventual membership in transatlantic institutions, but recent tensions have started to erode the ethos that these programs were meant to inspire. The change in Tbilisi's foreign policy can be attributed to the fact that Georgian society has started to awaken from Tbilisi's strategic slumber from the previous decades and the overall anti-Russian hysteria that defined the presidency of Mikhail Saakashvili has subsided.
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Australia’s Population as a Foreign Policy Matter
The Australian government’s Center for Population has released its forecast for the next decade, which shows the country's population is expected to reach 30 million by 2032, which is 1.2 million lower than was forecast prior to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The country relies heavily on migration to grow its population and has strong partnerships with other countries, but its relatively small population and isolated geography is disadvantageous for the country’s manufacturing capabilities and access to foreign markets. Australia's population policy thus forms a part of the country’s foreign policy and its leadership must consider seriously migration flows to address the country's needs in the future.
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Economies in Latin America and the Caribbean Prove Resilient
Economies in Latin America and the Caribbean demonstrated resilience in 2022 amid a challenging year for the global economy. According to IMF forecasts from October, global GDP growth slowed from 6% in 2021 to 3.2% in 2022, while the two regions achieved growth of 3.5% despite the expansion of only 2.8% and 2.1% by its two leading economies, Brazil and Mexico, respectively.
The growth of some of the region's top performers was powered in part by high oil prices, including the oil-producing country of Guyana, which recorded 57.8% GDP growth after reaching record production of 391,000 barrels per day in September. The expansion of global and regional trade agreements, a push to address climate change, rising demand for minerals used in clean energy generation and the adoption of emerging digital technologies were among the key factors that drove development across Latin America and the Caribbean.