Academic Reflective Blogs on Geopolitics Module
Budget: £20 – £250 GBP
One of my biggest assignments for my Geography / Geopolitics honours level university module are 5 Reflective Blogs that needed to be written over the course of the semester every other week.
I must submit, 5 reflective blogs, about 400 words each, as one single file at the end. Each blog is tied to a specific week’s approach to geopolitics, and each uses that week’s lens to interpret one concrete, real‑world example (news article, speech, podcast, image, tweet, graphic novel, etc.). The goal is to show how your understanding of geopolitics develops over the semester, not to summarise the lectures. Think of it as: “I learned this new way of doing geopolitics this week. Here’s one example from the real world that looks different to me now – and here is how and why.”
I am expected to write one blog for each of these weeks/lenses:
Blog 1 – Week 3: Critical geopolitics
Blog 2 – Week 5: Feminist geopolitics
Blog 3 – Week 6: Post‑Cold‑War geopolitics & populism
Blog 4 – Week 8: Virulent / COVID geopolitics
Blog 5 – Week 9: Anthropocene Geopolitics
Across all five, your overall strategy should show a trajectory and learning curve from the module each blog must be written at the time, therefore the real world example and reference must be a current affair or situation, theory can build on past topics but should never link or reference topics in weeks we have not covered yet.
I have attached detailed documents of what exactly the Blogs must entail and how they should ideally be structured along with a Blog guidance from our professor who lays out exactly what is expected from us and your blogs.
The BLOGS MUST SHOW:
Focus and clarity:
- You choose one main event/text, not several.
- You clearly name the week’s lens in the opening sentence.
- The blog follows one thread (concept → case → reflection = all supported by EVIDENCE), not a list of everything from the week.
Theory use (precision, not summary):
- You use 1–2 core concepts from that week, clearly and correctly.
- You give a brief explanation in your own words, including the key thinker.
-You show you understand what this lens adds or changes compared to earlier weeks (e.g. feminist geopolitics adds bodies and care beyond discourse).
- You don’t retell the whole lecture; you only bring in theory you then apply.
Evidence from the real world:
- You have one concrete artefact per blog: specific article, podcast, speech, map, image, thread, tweet, novel, etc.
- You mention it in a way the lecturer can trace: outlet + date + author/title.
- You include at least one short quote or specific detail.
- You analyse that quote/detail (how it otheres, securitises, centres bodies, frames “ordinary people”, constructs borders), not just paste it.
Application (doing geopolitics, not describing it):
- You explicitly link concept to evidence (using phrases like “This is a good example of…”, “Critical geopolitics would ask…”, “This weeks lens suggests that…”).
You either:
- reveal something you had previously missed,
- challenge a media/common‑sense narrative, or
- show where the lens struggles to explain the case (and say why).
- You say something about power/inequality/scale: who speaks, who moves, who is vulnerable, how intimate and global scales are connected.
Reflexivity (your learning curve):
- You state your prior assumption or default way of seeing the issue.
- You show what has changed or what new questions emerged because of that week.
- If you remain unconvinced, you explain why (this is allowed and can score well if argued).
Referencing and sources (light but visible):
- You include 1–2 references per blog:
- one module reading,
- one external artefact (article/podcast/etc.).
- You reference informally:
“Dalby’s discussion of the Cold War made me rethink…” , “In a March 2026 Guardian article on X, Patrick Wintour argues…”
- You don’t waste words on full formal citation style.
Style and blog format:
- You write in first person at least some of the time (“I used to read… I now see…”).
- Tone is reflective but analytical, not diary‑like.
- You use short paragraphs and signpost shifts (“At first I thought…”, “This week’s lens showed me…”, “What still troubles me is…”).
- Quotes are short and always interpreted.
Progression across all 5 blogs: Markers want to see an arc across blogs, not five isolated pieces:
Blog 1 – you move from geopolitics as maps and big leaders to geopolitics as discourse and representation (critical geopolitics).
Blog 2 – you deepen that by bringing in bodies, emotions, care, building on critical geopolitics (feminist geopolitics).
Blog 3 – you connect 9/11, War on Terror, borders and populism, showing how civilisational and demographic stories structure current politics.
Blog 4 – you use disease and health infrastructures (COVID and or current meningitis outbreak and response) to show how geopolitics is material and unevenly embodied.
Blog 5 – Geopolitics Anthropocene - lecture recommended podcast was Beyond the Map podcast discussion with Simon Dalby on the Geopolitics of the Fire Age. therefore find an example on something you can see this with !
What the professor emphasised in feedback:
- Show your workings: if you claim an article is othering or securitising, include a quote and unpick exactly how the wording does that.
-Explain images: if you use an image or cover, describe what you see and what you think it does; don’t assume the reader sees it the same way.
- You are allowed to disagree with ideas – what matters is that you argue clearly, using evidence and concepts.
- Always consider who is producing the narrative (journalist, politician, activist, influencer, ministry, etc.) and what effect they likely intend.
- It’s better to comment on something not on the reading list, but you must still engage with the readings as your theoretical base
My attached documents explicitly outline what I would like the blogs to be like, I have attached the weekly lectures along with the seminar focus that we focused non each week relevant to the topic. the overall Reflective blogs should not exceed the word count of 2000 and should therefore all be 400 words. They should show a growing understanding of how I view the world with the taught geopolitical lens I did not have before as I never really studied politics before this and should show how I view the world now. please write the first 3 blog and then show them to me, I am always available for questions and guidance and am happy to hop on a call to do it together. could you show me a structure for them and the examples you have chosen to do it on thank you !
referencing should be Harvard style.
I must submit, 5 reflective blogs, about 400 words each, as one single file at the end. Each blog is tied to a specific week’s approach to geopolitics, and each uses that week’s lens to interpret one concrete, real‑world example (news article, speech, podcast, image, tweet, graphic novel, etc.). The goal is to show how your understanding of geopolitics develops over the semester, not to summarise the lectures. Think of it as: “I learned this new way of doing geopolitics this week. Here’s one example from the real world that looks different to me now – and here is how and why.”
I am expected to write one blog for each of these weeks/lenses:
Blog 1 – Week 3: Critical geopolitics
Blog 2 – Week 5: Feminist geopolitics
Blog 3 – Week 6: Post‑Cold‑War geopolitics & populism
Blog 4 – Week 8: Virulent / COVID geopolitics
Blog 5 – Week 9: Anthropocene Geopolitics
Across all five, your overall strategy should show a trajectory and learning curve from the module each blog must be written at the time, therefore the real world example and reference must be a current affair or situation, theory can build on past topics but should never link or reference topics in weeks we have not covered yet.
I have attached detailed documents of what exactly the Blogs must entail and how they should ideally be structured along with a Blog guidance from our professor who lays out exactly what is expected from us and your blogs.
The BLOGS MUST SHOW:
Focus and clarity:
- You choose one main event/text, not several.
- You clearly name the week’s lens in the opening sentence.
- The blog follows one thread (concept → case → reflection = all supported by EVIDENCE), not a list of everything from the week.
Theory use (precision, not summary):
- You use 1–2 core concepts from that week, clearly and correctly.
- You give a brief explanation in your own words, including the key thinker.
-You show you understand what this lens adds or changes compared to earlier weeks (e.g. feminist geopolitics adds bodies and care beyond discourse).
- You don’t retell the whole lecture; you only bring in theory you then apply.
Evidence from the real world:
- You have one concrete artefact per blog: specific article, podcast, speech, map, image, thread, tweet, novel, etc.
- You mention it in a way the lecturer can trace: outlet + date + author/title.
- You include at least one short quote or specific detail.
- You analyse that quote/detail (how it otheres, securitises, centres bodies, frames “ordinary people”, constructs borders), not just paste it.
Application (doing geopolitics, not describing it):
- You explicitly link concept to evidence (using phrases like “This is a good example of…”, “Critical geopolitics would ask…”, “This weeks lens suggests that…”).
You either:
- reveal something you had previously missed,
- challenge a media/common‑sense narrative, or
- show where the lens struggles to explain the case (and say why).
- You say something about power/inequality/scale: who speaks, who moves, who is vulnerable, how intimate and global scales are connected.
Reflexivity (your learning curve):
- You state your prior assumption or default way of seeing the issue.
- You show what has changed or what new questions emerged because of that week.
- If you remain unconvinced, you explain why (this is allowed and can score well if argued).
Referencing and sources (light but visible):
- You include 1–2 references per blog:
- one module reading,
- one external artefact (article/podcast/etc.).
- You reference informally:
“Dalby’s discussion of the Cold War made me rethink…” , “In a March 2026 Guardian article on X, Patrick Wintour argues…”
- You don’t waste words on full formal citation style.
Style and blog format:
- You write in first person at least some of the time (“I used to read… I now see…”).
- Tone is reflective but analytical, not diary‑like.
- You use short paragraphs and signpost shifts (“At first I thought…”, “This week’s lens showed me…”, “What still troubles me is…”).
- Quotes are short and always interpreted.
Progression across all 5 blogs: Markers want to see an arc across blogs, not five isolated pieces:
Blog 1 – you move from geopolitics as maps and big leaders to geopolitics as discourse and representation (critical geopolitics).
Blog 2 – you deepen that by bringing in bodies, emotions, care, building on critical geopolitics (feminist geopolitics).
Blog 3 – you connect 9/11, War on Terror, borders and populism, showing how civilisational and demographic stories structure current politics.
Blog 4 – you use disease and health infrastructures (COVID and or current meningitis outbreak and response) to show how geopolitics is material and unevenly embodied.
Blog 5 – Geopolitics Anthropocene - lecture recommended podcast was Beyond the Map podcast discussion with Simon Dalby on the Geopolitics of the Fire Age. therefore find an example on something you can see this with !
What the professor emphasised in feedback:
- Show your workings: if you claim an article is othering or securitising, include a quote and unpick exactly how the wording does that.
-Explain images: if you use an image or cover, describe what you see and what you think it does; don’t assume the reader sees it the same way.
- You are allowed to disagree with ideas – what matters is that you argue clearly, using evidence and concepts.
- Always consider who is producing the narrative (journalist, politician, activist, influencer, ministry, etc.) and what effect they likely intend.
- It’s better to comment on something not on the reading list, but you must still engage with the readings as your theoretical base
My attached documents explicitly outline what I would like the blogs to be like, I have attached the weekly lectures along with the seminar focus that we focused non each week relevant to the topic. the overall Reflective blogs should not exceed the word count of 2000 and should therefore all be 400 words. They should show a growing understanding of how I view the world with the taught geopolitical lens I did not have before as I never really studied politics before this and should show how I view the world now. please write the first 3 blog and then show them to me, I am always available for questions and guidance and am happy to hop on a call to do it together. could you show me a structure for them and the examples you have chosen to do it on thank you !
referencing should be Harvard style.