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Simulating the Free Trade Area of the Americas

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  26 April 2007

Bob Switky  and
William Avilés
Bob Switky
Affiliation:
University of Nebraska at Kearney
William Avilés
Affiliation:
University of Nebraska at Kearney
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Extract

Since the early 1990s, North Americans have participated in a large political-economic experiment in a regional trade bloc called the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). With NAFTA now over 10 years old, the non-NAFTA countries have been debating the merits and shortcomings of creating an expanded version of the trade agreement that would encompass virtually every state in the Americas. The Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA) would encompass 34 western hemisphere countries, over 800 million consumers, and a total economy of over $12 trillion. The debate over the FTAA raises a long list of important practical questions for each of the potential member states and their citizens. The debate also raises a host of pedagogical questions for students of the entire region and beyond. This paper describes a student-based simulation that taps into those practical and pedagogical questions. As in other simulations, such as the Model United Nations, students role-play while vicariously experiencing the opportunities and constraints facing each country as they negotiate for policy preferences.

Type
THE TEACHER
Information
PS: Political Science & Politics , Volume 40 , Issue 2 , April 2007 , pp. 399 - 405
Copyright
© 2007 The American Political Science Association

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