Knowledge, Geography of

The geography of knowledge deals with spatial disparities in the generation, diffusion, and application of various categories of knowledge and skills. Spatial disparities in literacy, educational attainment, professional skills, creativity, and technology can be traced back to early human history. Some of their primary causes are spatial concentrations of power and knowledge created by the spatial division of labor, the hierarchical structure and complexity of organizations, the asymmetry and spatial range of power relations, and the ways in which social systems and networks are coordinated and governed in space. Communication technologies—from the creation of the first scripts to the invention of paper and from the construction of the first printing machine to the introduction of digital information systems—changed spatial disparities pertaining to the production, dissemination, and uses of knowledge but never abolished the disparities between the centers and peripheries of national or global urban systems with regard to the distribution of workplaces for highly and marginally skilled persons.

Knowledge can be defined as the capacity for social action; it influences perceptions and evaluations of information and the decision making and actions of persons. Knowledge and power build multifaceted coalitions that reproduce social and spatial inequalities. A head start in knowledge, expertise, and technology is an important prerequisite for competitiveness. All fields of human geography can be enriched by exploring the consequences of spatial differences in knowledge, expertise, professional skills, technology, or educational achievement and how these disparities can be explained. In addition, most political, economic, and social changes (e.g., colonialism, nation building, globalization, neoliberalization, privatization) have impacts on the educational system. This eminent role of knowledge and education in modern societies leads to numerous possible research topics within geography and entails necessary specialization and a large variety of theoretical concepts.