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The free zone features frequently in research on contemporary globalization; the visible exploitation in zones reveals the inequality produced by global economic entanglement. Yet, there is very little historical research on how these practices may be related to elite and state-based globalization projects. Using oicial reports and correspondence from government ministries, this article examines two free-port and free-zone plans from the 830s and the 960s in Bombay, and follows them forward, concluding with the present port situation. These plans were never realized, but they may both serve as a lens through which we can identify the actors who pursue globalization projects, through which they seek to channel connectivity in particular places. Moreover, the concept portals of globalization draws attention to the variety of entangled spaces of what we call the global economy and how these have shifted over time., Comparativ, Vol 27 No 3-4 (2017): Portals of Globalization in Africa, Asia, and Latin America

Portals of globalization is an analytical category introduced in globalization research to investigate how global lows are anchored and articulated in particular places. It has been used to analyse the way lows and controls come together on multiple scales, and how actors in these places actively manage global entanglements. Consequently, the changing positionality of these places in global networks can reveal the scope, function, and transformation of global connections and shifting spatial orders. Stemming from research debates on the historicity, regional diference, and spatial complexity of globalization processes, this issue seeks to strengthen empirical insights from diferent disciplinary and regional perspectives. It brings together research on past and present portals of globalization to facilitate the dialogue across disciplines in the social sciences and humanities. A special focus on a variety of local and regional contexts in Africa, Asia, and Latin America allows us to re-evaluate assumptions about the centres and peripheries of globalization processes, the mechanisms and directionality of circulations, and the asymmetries in global connectedness., Comparativ, Vol 27 No 3-4 (2017): Portals of Globalization in Africa, Asia, and Latin America