Time Zone Politics and Challenges of Globalisation

Abstract

Abstract Time zones are an under researched topic in geography. In this paper, their political construction is examined, and the conflicts that can arise between biological temporalities on one hand and the interests of international business and state politics on the other are discussed. A detailed map of major deviations from theoretical time zones in China and Europe is presented. The geographically complex and uneven adoption of daylight saving time is also shown on a map. An extended case study of time zone politics in Iceland is then presented. Its current time zone allocation has been contested from two very different viewpoints, where business concerns and geographical position are in conflict. Finally, new challenges to the global time zone system, arising from the increased economic globalisation and opportunities for social interaction in the new reality of cyberspace, are discussed. The concept of ‘time elasticity’ is proposed for partially grappling with these conditions.

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