The (U.S.-Mexico) Hyperborder in the Global Context
The hyperborder is a distinct international boundary for the extensive array of influences that shape its current reality. Although examples of contentious issues or cooperative accords abound at other borders around the world, the us-Mexico border has been set apart as a site within one localized geographic region that is exposed to daily political tensions, economic disparity, hyper flows, interdependence, and more. However, through examining other border relations around the world, questions arise about the direction the hyperborder will take in the future. Could security issues make it the next North-South Korean border? Or will binational accords shape it into an integrated, fluid region like that of the borders between France, Switzerland, and Germany? Could the drug trade be demolished and replaced by alternative crop development, as the governments of Laos, Thailand, and Myanmar have achieved? Or will racism and a fear of migrants result in the erection of high-tech border fences, like those between Israel and Palestine?
The border dividing the us from Mexico is subject to a wide variety of future possibilities. Increasing the unique nature of its circumstances are the varying studies that assert the region's potential for prosperity, development, and environmental entrepreneurship -- proof that the us-Mexico border could serve as a global model for positive change in the future.
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