The reconfiguration of twenty-first century Latin American regionalism: actors, processes, contradictions, and prospects

Abstract

The introduction to this Special Issue reflects on both the multiplicity of Latin American (LA) regionalism and the theoretically pluralist terrain of contemporary scholarship on LA politics and international relations. The introduction will first outline the complexity of twenty-first century LA regionalism and the challenge this poses for scholars in the field. Secondly, we make the case for an ‘integrative pluralism' approach to unpacking the multiplicity of regionalisation projects, from both above and below. In bringing together diverse perspectives to a common research problem, we hope to contribute to ongoing debates in IR/IPE over the ‘pluralist turn’, and what might be done to push this collective project forward. Thirdly, we briefly explore the multi-scalar nature of region-building, encompassing both various spaces/scales as well as political actors. Finally, we outline the contributions to the Special Issue, that span the terrain of LA regionalism from above (political institutions) and below (transnational movements).