Sharpening bordering: What counts, where it operates, and what endures

Abstract

We respond to Laine's account of supply chains as bordering infrastructures by asking three linked questions: What counts as bordering, where does it operate, and what forms endure? We argue that bordering: (1) depends on identifiable mechanisms that differentially organize mobility; (2) operates at the intersection of territorial authority and networked infrastructure; and (3) may leave capacities that outlast particular practices. This argument extends to the post-pandemic era, where bordering capacities are strategically hardening under geopolitical, economic, and environmental instability.