Part 1-
Following WWII, the U.S. government wielded a technological revolution in agriculture--the Green Revolution--as part of its Cold War policy to "contain" communism.
• What were the significant technological developments that gave rise to the Green Revolution? What role did Norman Borlaug play?
o What were the altruistic intentions for promoting the Green Revolution in Third World countries--i.e., in India, Philippines, Turkey, Iran, Iraq, Brazil, Indonesia, Kenya, and Egypt.
o In what way was it intended to serve the geopolitical interests of NATO in its Cold War standoff with the USSR?
• What financial institutions/instruments were developed in conjunction with the Green Revolution?
• Explain the social/economic and environmental fallout of the Green Revolution in these Third World nations.
Part 2-
Turning to consider the global economic framework that developed since WWII, Steinberg writes: "Firmly centered on the rampant use of fossil fuels, the new economic arrangement underwrote America's rise to superpower dominance" (p. 269).
• Explain how and why fossil fuel consumption played such a key role in America's rise to dominance following WWII.
• What role has multi-national corporations (many that are American) played in shaping our global economy and environment?
o Explain how and why the political philosophy of neo-liberalism has contributed to their economic dominance?
• What has been the global environmental and social fallout of this global economic arrangement?