1. What conditions within a country lead groups to demand devolution or separation?

2. How do unitary and federal systems differ in their approach to dividing government power?

1. How does physical geography such as mountains, deserts, and water bodies contribute to devolution?

2. What is the relationship between geographic isolation and identification with the central government?

1. What is ethnic separatism and how does it lead to demands for devolution?

2. How has Spain used devolution to address the demands of the Basques and Catalans?

1. What is ethnic cleansing and what coercive tactics are used to carry it out?

2. What is the underlying goal of ethnic cleansing and what historical examples demonstrate this practice?

1. What is terrorism and how have ethnic separatist groups used it to advance their goals?

2. How did Al Qaeda expand from a regional organization to a global terrorist threat?

1. How can control of natural resources motivate regions to seek devolution or independence?

2. What is the conflict between local and central governments regarding resource wealth?

1. How do religious and linguistic divisions contribute to devolution within countries?

2. What challenges does Belgium face as a result of its linguistic and cultural divisions?

1. What is irredentism and how does it differ from ethnic separatism?

2. How did the conflict over Nagorno-Karabakh illustrate irredentism in the Caucasus region?

1. How can devolved powers lead to fragmentation and the breakup of a state?

1. What are autonomous regions and what populations do they typically represent?

2. How do autonomous regions differ from fully independent states?

1. What is subnationalism and how does it differ from loyalty to the national state?

2. What are the different goals that subnational groups pursue, and what examples illustrate each?

1. What is balkanization and what geographic and historical factors contributed to it in the Balkans?

2. How did the collapse of Yugoslavia and the Soviet Union lead to balkanization in Eastern Europe?

3. What examples of balkanization have occurred in Africa and what were the causes?

1. What is globalization and how has it challenged state sovereignty?

2. How did the Arab Spring and Black Lives Matter demonstrate the rapid spread of ideas through globalization?

1. What is supranationalism and why do countries sacrifice sovereignty to join supranational organizations?

2. What are the primary missions of major supranational organizations such as the UN and NATO?

1. What is the primary goal of the World Trade Organization and how does it promote international trade?

2. How did the European Union reduce barriers to trade and what benefits resulted from these changes?

3. What is the role of transnational corporations in weakening state sovereignty?

1. What was NATO created to address and how has its role changed since the Cold War?

2. How did the expansion of NATO into Eastern Europe affect relations between NATO and Russia?

1. Why do transnational corporations often locate production in developing countries and what environmental consequences result?

2. What role has the United Nations played in addressing environmental challenges through supranational agreements?

1. How has the Internet and social media both promoted and weakened globalization?

2. What is time-space compression and how has technology created a digital divide between countries?

1. What is regionalism and how can it create centrifugal forces within a state?

2. How does uneven economic development contribute to centrifugal forces and state fragmentation?

3. What is ethnonationalism and how has globalization empowered ethnonational groups to demand autonomy?

1. How does infrastructure development serve as a centripetal force to promote state unity?

2. What role do unifying institutions, nationalism, and political equality play in promoting centripetal forces?

3. How do cultural practices and religious observances function as centripetal forces in homogeneous societies?