So glad to spend this time together at a time of massive change. Today’s word of the day is isolationism.
WHY ITS IMPORTANT TODAY
Isolationism happens at the country level. Isolationism is when a nation withdraws or is aggressive through the many levers of foreign influence, which include diplomacy and trade. An important part of isolationism, is that it emphasizes domestic economy. This can sound good and includes ideas of national growth and sovereignty. It sounds like “we’re just gonna do what is best for us, we don’t need your cooperation to be strong.”
EXAMPLES
A couple of examples of countries that deployed this approach since the 2010s include Brazil, Hungary and Poland. They refused to comply with the expectations of international communities. These countries experienced change in foreign investment practices, such as the EU who penalized them for failures related to human rights and sustainability. That can mean fewer foreign companies are incentivized to do business there.
HOW I AM USING IT
I am using this word to remember that while the dismantling of US AID today is frightening, and discourages my hopes for the future, there is nothing new under the sun. At least not from these folks. The concept of isolationism helps me to categorize the moment we are in. Remember that these steps are tools used before and by others. This helps to create a sense of predictability. The world was not born yesterday.