This course is being offered at a critical juncture in history. The Trump administration has embarked on nothing less than changing the world order that has governed humanity since the end of WWII. Do global actors cooperate for the common good or is it like the Trump administration recently put it: “ The world is not a “global community” but an arena where nations, nongovernmental actors, and businesses engage and compete for advantage….Rather than deny this elemental nature of international affairs, we embrace it.” In this course you will have the opportunity to get very engaged in this debate.

To professionally engage this course gives you the tools, concepts and approaches needed to do so beyond the tweet, op-ed level. How are global issues such as climate change managed at the global level? Do States ever give up any sovereignty for the larger global good? Development sectors/issue areas addressed include public health, rule of law, access to justice, refugees, violence and conflict, corruption, poverty, climate change, gender equality, global finance, human rights, and others (there are 17 SDGs https://sustainabledevelopment.un.org/sdgs).

Key questions addressed in the course are: Who are the actors at the global level? What are the norms that influence national behavior? Which governments do/do not comply with these norms and why? Which development sectors are more “globally governed” than others? How do development issues get on the global agenda? The course also addresses the role of international governmental organizations (IGOs)- their structure, influence, level of autonomy, etc.(e.g., World Bank, UN Development Program, etc.)

Course requirements include a midterm exam and a final project which explores a global social condition using the concepts introduced in the course (e.g. global actors, norms, policymaking).