Borders as Resources: Towards a Centering of the Concept

The redefinition of the concept of borders as resources is undertaken with the help of the notion of ‘opportunity structures’, which points to the structural aspects that affect the development and success of border practices. The resulting theoretical framework highlights two main border opportunity structures and their underlying rationales. The aim is to suggest a framework that encompasses all theoretically-valid configurations while avoiding packing too much content into its definition and leaving as much of that content as possible to be decided by context-sensitive inquiry. An examination of the practices and strategies used to mobilize the previously identified opportunity structures makes it then feasible to highlight fundamental changes in the creation of border-related resources and to critically examine the issues at stake. The control over formal border-making processes by private interests – in particular multinational companies – and their exploitation as resources is inducing major changes: it is no longer simply a matter of taking advantage of particular border-related opportunities, but of purposely transforming borders into a sprawling and lucrative business through various processes of neo-liberalization. Such a ‘businessification’ of borders represents a significant modification of how bordering operates and in whose interests, and hence, undoubtedly constitutes a serious societal challenge for (post-)democratic societies. Ultimately, the scope of these transformations underlines the critical potential of the concept of borders as resources and calls for reconsidering its positioning within border studies.