Sweden´s social geography

This course introduces you to the range of possible topics in social geography. In the course we will use the term "social" to mean virtually all interactions among human beings. Therefore, "social" can refer to political, economic, or cultural issues, as well as those more conventionally thought of as social. Because we are casting such a broad net, the course will range widely across issues such as health, migration, demography, rurality, and globalization, with a particular focus on Sweden and the Swedish welfare system. Social geography takes a spatial approach to understanding society. It starts from the premise that geography and social relationships are inescapably linked. People are not floating randomly in some sort of detached ether, interacting with each other only based on class, or race, or gender. They are rooted in a real geography that has a profound influence on their social relationships. Understanding how society and geography interact is the central goal of this course.