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Jessica DiCarlo

@jessicadicarlo.bsky.social

360 followers 400 following 31 posts

Geographer | University of Utah Co-Founder @scwobservatory.bsky.social Editor @globalchinamap.bsky.social PIP Fellow @ncuscr.bsky.social *political ecology, Global China, development, geopolitics* www.jessicadicarlo.phd Opinions here are my own.

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Jessica DiCarlo @jessicadicarlo.bsky.social · Jun 16

🧵1/What is Global China? @meredeboom.bsky.social & I argue it’s not one thing, but a plural, evolving imaginary. We trace 6 paths—Other, Integration, Bridge, Status, Threat, Alternative—showing how China’s global role is imagined, claimed & contested as meanings collide & open possibilities.

Six paths of Global China: A genealogy of a contested geographical imaginary - Jessica DiCarlo, Meredith DeBoom, 2025

‘Global China’ has emerged as a shorthand for China's relationship to the global, but its axiomatic uses disguise considerable complexity. This article tro...

journals.sagepub.com

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Reposted by Jessica DiCarlo

Progress in Human Geography @proghumgeog.bsky.social · Aug 27

🚲 New paper published in Progress in Human Geography 🚲

'The world from a bicycle: Cycling as kinesthetic methodology' by Mia Bennett, Jessica DiCarlo, and Sarah Elwood

journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/... @jessicadicarlo.bsky.social

The world from a bicycle: Cycling as kinesthetic methodology - Mia Bennett, Jessica DiCarlo, Sarah Elwood, 2025

We theorize the epistemological orientations and methodological possibilities of cycling as a sociotechnical, kinesthetic, and emplaced practice relevant across...

journals.sagepub.com

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Reposted by Jessica DiCarlo

Made in China Journal @madeinchinajournal.com · Sep 9

Neither fully accepted nor entirely apart, the descendants of foreigners in China embody the tensions of identity in a globalised yet nationalistic age. Chengzhi Zhang traces their struggles for belonging and what this reveals about the boundaries of Chineseness.

Flowing without Roots: The Identity Crisis of Foreigners’ Descendants in Mainland China | Made in China Journal

In 2009, a woman named Lou Jing, born to a Chinese mother and an African American father, went on a TV show in China and declared herself a proud and patriotic Chinese person (Leung 2015). Her remarks...

madeinchinajournal.com

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Reposted by Jessica DiCarlo

SCWObservatory @scwobservatory.bsky.social · Sep 1

Check out our latest podcast episode with @jacktaggart.bsky.social on "The end of aid? US, China, and the future of development" 🌍

newbooksnetwork.com/the-end-of-a...

The end of aid? US, China, and the future of development - New Books Network

newbooksnetwork.com

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Jessica DiCarlo @jessicadicarlo.bsky.social · Aug 23

Tune into this *important* discussion on the first survey of Chinese public opinion on foreign policy and what these findings mean for US-China relations and China's role in the world.

September 3rd online and in person.

globalaffairs.org/events/china...

China and the World: How Citizens View Their Country's Global Future

Join us as we discuss the results of the first-ever survey of Chinese public opinion on foreign policy and what these findings mean for US-China relations and China's role in the world.

globalaffairs.org

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Jessica DiCarlo @jessicadicarlo.bsky.social · Aug 21

Trivium is hiring a Beijing-based junior analyst to focus on industrial policy, supply chains, and decarbonization. I could not recommend this brilliant team of people more highly. Apply!

www.linkedin.com/posts/cory-c...

Trivium China | JD and Application Instructions | Cory Combs

Trivium China is hiring! My team is looking for an analyst or junior analyst keen to dive into the rapidly evolving nexus of industrial policy, supply chains, and decarbonization. The role will be #C...

www.linkedin.com

Jessica DiCarlo @jessicadicarlo.bsky.social · Aug 5

Over the past 2 decades, China has become Laos’s top investor, main creditor, and 2nd-largest trade partner. In a new report, @profjulietlu.bsky.social and I unpack Chinese investment across four land-intensive sectors: agriculture & plantations, mining, infrastructure & SEZs. tinyurl.com/kw5vteem

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Reposted by Jessica DiCarlo

Stuart Elden @stuartelden.bsky.social · Jun 21

Shaina Potts, Judicial Territory: Law, Capital, and the Expansion of American Empire - @dukepress.bsky.social, September 2024
www.dukeupress.edu/judicial-ter...
@newbooksnetwork.bsky.social discussion with Second Cold War Observatory. newbooksnetwork.com/judicial-ter...

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Reposted by Jessica DiCarlo

Ilias Alami @iliasalami.bsky.social · Jul 2

Wrote a new piece for @the-breakdown.bsky.social on how the Second Cold War is shaping the future climate and energy transition, including in developing countries
www.break-down.org/post/a-green...
@campolis.bsky.social @scwobservatory.bsky.social
a few quotes in the thread below: 1/6

A Green Cold War

In our era of global economic interdependence, the face of geopolitics has changed

www.break-down.org

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Jessica DiCarlo @jessicadicarlo.bsky.social · Jun 19

The next Global China Pulse CfP is out!
A Gendered Lens on Global China
@globalchinamap.bsky.social

globalchinapulse.net/calls-for-pa...

Calls for Papers - Global China Pulse

Calls for Papers Here you can find the call for papers for the journal issues we are currently working on. The initial pitches should be no longer than 300 words and explain the key argument of your p...

globalchinapulse.net

Reposted by Jessica DiCarlo

Jean-Paul Addie @jpaddie.bsky.social · Jun 18

Pleased to see Infrastructural Times on the bookshelf, especially w/chapters by @jessicadicarlo.bsky.social @xazaaradjame.bsky.social, and Schindler & Kanai exploring temporalities connected to the BRI and Chinese-led global infrastructure development.

bristoluniversitypress.co.uk/infrastructu...

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Jessica DiCarlo @jessicadicarlo.bsky.social · Jun 16

11/ Instead of asking what Global China is, we should ask:
👀Who is using the term?
🌏In what context?
⚖️For what purpose?
“Global China” isn’t self-evident, it’s a story told. And those stories have real-world stakes.

Read in @dialogueshg.bsky.social: journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10....

Six paths of Global China: A genealogy of a contested geographical imaginary - Jessica DiCarlo, Meredith DeBoom, 2025

‘Global China’ has emerged as a shorthand for China's relationship to the global, but its axiomatic uses disguise considerable complexity. This article tro...

journals.sagepub.com

Jessica DiCarlo @jessicadicarlo.bsky.social · Jun 16

10/ So, why does Global China and its tensions and contradictions matter?
Because “Global China” isn’t just descriptive—it’s political. It’s used to justify:
🪖Militarization
🤝Diplomacy
🎭Cultural exchange
And it shapes how we interpret China’s role in global change.

Jessica DiCarlo @jessicadicarlo.bsky.social · Jun 16

9/ Path VI: Alternative
A common position of Global China is as a model for the Global South, think:
🛤️Belt and Road
🌍South–South Cooperation and Solidarity
🏛️BRICS, Global Development Initiative
But it’s not one-sided: some see China as a partner, others as a new hegemon.

Jessica DiCarlo @jessicadicarlo.bsky.social · Jun 16

8/ Path V: Threat
This path centers “Global China” as threatening, for instance:
⚠️To democracy
📦To supply chains
🌐To the world order
This narrative fuels military spending, decoupling, espionage fears. China, in turn, invokes external threats to justify domestic control.

Jessica DiCarlo @jessicadicarlo.bsky.social · Jun 16

7/ Path IV: Status
Is China a superpower? A “great power”? Still a developing nation?
This path highlights the debate over China’s position in the global hierarchy—and how both Chinese and Western institutions narrate this positionality.

Jessica DiCarlo @jessicadicarlo.bsky.social · Jun 16

6/ Path III: Bridge
Focuses on people-to-people ties like:
🌏Diaspora connections
🎓International students
🎨Cultural exchanges
This path of Global China is plural, grassroots, and collaborative, often centering civil society rather than the state.

Jessica DiCarlo @jessicadicarlo.bsky.social · Jun 16

5/ Path II: Integration
China is seen as entering or reshaping global systems—like capitalism, trade, and finance.
🔁The West frames China as joining the rules-based order
🔄China frames itself as redefining global norms
So, is China a follower or a rule-maker?

Jessica DiCarlo @jessicadicarlo.bsky.social · Jun 16

4/ Path I: Other
China is portrayed as deviant, dangerous, or fundamentally different.
👤 “Debt trap diplomacy”
👤 “Yellow Peril”
👤 Authoritarian threat
China’s state media also leans on this frame—claiming Chinese exceptionalism in contrast to the West.

Jessica DiCarlo @jessicadicarlo.bsky.social · Jun 16

3/ We found that “Global China” works like a mirror—it reflects the priorities and politics of whoever uses it. We traced how different actors use the term and identified six dominant paths that shape its meaning.

Jessica DiCarlo @jessicadicarlo.bsky.social · Jun 16

2/ “Global China” is everywhere, from headlines about TikTok to debates on Chinese investment. It appears in millions of sources:
🔹Media coverage
🔹Think tank reports
🔹Academic studies
🔹Cultural references
to describe everything from infrastructure to education exchanges.

Jessica DiCarlo @jessicadicarlo.bsky.social · Jun 16

Six paths of Global China: A genealogy of a contested geographical imaginary - Jessica DiCarlo, Meredith DeBoom, 2025

‘Global China’ has emerged as a shorthand for China's relationship to the global, but its axiomatic uses disguise considerable complexity. This article tro...

journals.sagepub.com

1 1 9

Jessica DiCarlo @jessicadicarlo.bsky.social · Jun 12

www.nytimes.com/2025/06/11/u...

www.nytimes.com

Reposted by Jessica DiCarlo

Dialogues in Human Geography @dialogueshg.bsky.social · Jun 2

New Online 1st Article “Six paths of Global China: A genealogy of a contested geographical imaginary” by Jessica DiCarlo and Meredith DeBoom

doi.org/10.1177/2043...

Sage Journals: Discover world-class research

Subscription and open access journals from Sage, the world's leading independent academic publisher.

doi.org

1 2

Reposted by Jessica DiCarlo

Meredith DeBoom @meredeboom.bsky.social · Jun 11

'Global China' is suddenly everywhere, from think tank reports to political speeches to academic texts. But what political work does the term 'Global China' itself do? @jessicadicarlo.bsky.social and I identify six 'paths' of Global China: Other, Integration, Status, Bridge, Threat, & Alternative.

Dialogues in Human Geography @dialogueshg.bsky.social · Jun 2

New Online 1st Article “Six paths of Global China: A genealogy of a contested geographical imaginary” by Jessica DiCarlo and Meredith DeBoom

doi.org/10.1177/2043...

Sage Journals: Discover world-class research

Subscription and open access journals from Sage, the world's leading independent academic publisher.

doi.org

1 1 4

Jessica DiCarlo @jessicadicarlo.bsky.social · Jun 10