Incorporating a Transpacific Viewpoint into Latin American Studies Curricula. The Case Study of the "Pacific Rim" Course at La Rochelle University

• In Event: Fostering Knowledge Across the Pacific

Abstract

In the upcoming and current field of Transpacific Studies, centuries of interchange of people, ideas, and resources between Asia, Oceania and Latin America have been overlooked. Indeed, although the burgeoning scientific output bears witness to interdisciplinary and transregional approaches aimed at transcending themes limited to rivalry between nation-states in the Pacific (Sakai and Yoo, 2012; Dürr and Schorch, 2013; Olivieri and Serrano-Muñoz, 2022), there is a lack of adequate teaching materials. This gap becomes especially evident when involving students in discussions about the role of Latin American peoples and societies within this context. Overcoming this shortcoming is the aim of a graduate-level course entitled “Pacific Rim”, taught at La Rochelle University (France) since 2022.

This high-level French institution offers a two-year Master's program in Languages, Cultures, and International Affairs, featuring specialized tracks in Asia/Pacific and the Americas. In response to the shifting geopolitical focus from the Atlantic to the Pacific, the program has instituted a transversal first-year course titled "Pacific Rim", which integrates both areas of study. Imparted in English, this course is designed to furnish students with expansive knowledge, empowering them to discern and connect events and phenomena within a 'Pacific World' framework through a decentered perspective on economic, social, political, historical and cultural dynamics across human societies living around the Pacific Ocean.

Author

• Sebastián S Urioste, La Rochelle Université