Keough School - Global Affairs (KSGA)

This course provides an overview of the broad and loosely related field(s) of study and expertise typically clustered under the term "global affairs" and explores Notre Dame's particular approach to global issues, namely "integral human development" (IHD). IHD is a conceptual and normative framework for understanding, practicing, and evaluating efforts to reduce poverty, build peace, protect human rights, and address crises caused by food shortages, natural disasters, environmental degradation, and exploitative government or corporate practices and policies. This course examines the provenance, meanings, and resonances of integral human development and comparable concepts in multiple religious as well as secular traditions.

This course introduces students to the discipline of economics and the principles and methods of micro- and macro-economics. "Principles of Economics" covers topics such as scarcity, demand and supply, elasticity, consumer choice, competition, monopoly, labor markets, poverty and inequality, financial markets, GDP and economic growth, unemployment, money and inflation, monetary policy and exchange rates, and government policy.

A seminar for first-year students devoted to an introductory topic in Global Affairs in which writing skills are stressed.

The Catholicism and the Disciplines USEM course is designed to engage ideas from the Catholic tradition with the perspective of one or more disciplines and to engage issues of faith or normative questions both critically and constructively in light of that tradition. The course explores a topic, poses a question, or investigates a problem by encouraging students to consider relevant sources and scholarship in relationship to the Catholic tradition. The course will be taught in seminar style, encouraging active participation and discussion between faculty and students, with a particular emphasis on the development of a student's skills in writing and research.

This course introduces global affairs students to culture as an analytic tool to interpret social differences within and across communities, from local to global. Building on insights from anthropology, sociology, history, and other disciplines, we will examine key themes in global affairs such as "development," "progress," and "policy," in light of what a culturally-informed perspective offers to our understanding of these topics. Over the semester, students will learn to identify and describe the role of cultural difference in shaping global affairs, and to analyze contemporary debates in global affairs in light of culture, power, and inequality. Finally, through independent research, students will develop their own set of critical questions to prepare for their future cultural immersion experiences and scholarship.

This course introduces students to the field of social-cultural anthropology. Cultural anthropologists are primarily interested in exploring issues of human cultural diversity across cultures and through time. This course will explore key theoretical, topical, and ethical issues of interest to cultural anthropologists. We will examine diverse ways in which people around the globe have constructed social organizations (such as kinship, and political and economic systems) and cultural identities (such as gender, ethnicity, nationality, race, and class) and we will consider the impact of increasing globalization on such processes. Throughout the course we will consider how different anthropologists go about their work as they engage in research and as they represent others through the writing of ethnographies.

This course will be a problem-oriented, interdisciplinary course that will develop critical thinking and communication skills.

When India gained independence from British Rule in 1947, democracy was not expected to last in the heterogeneous and poor sub-continent. Yet, democracy has thrived in India for over 70 years. More recently, other South Asian countries have democratized. What explains this unexpected trend? Is there a connection between colonial legacies, international institutions and South Asian democratization successes (and failures)? After an overview of caste, religion and language in the region, this course explores South Asian politics by examining the historical and institutional development of democracy in India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal and Sri Lanka, including internal and external threats to democratic institutions. In particular, we will examine how the politics of accommodation and good institutional design have affected the persistence of democracy on the sub-continent, while also considering how non-state actors and international organizations have impacted outcomes. The course also takes a deep look at the degree to which findings from South Asia might be used in other parts of the world and relevant policy implications.

This course examines the late 20th and early 21st century "economic miracles" of several East Asian countries. We will explore similarities, differences, and interdependencies in the development trajectories of Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, and mainland China, and will debate how accurate and useful concepts like "the developmental state" and "state capitalism" are in describing the political economy of the region. To what extent has China's economic rise followed the playbooks of its East Asian neighbors? What human costs and developmental distortions have accompanied booming industrial and urban growth? And what lessons does East Asia's experience offer for the contemporary developing world?

This course examines the most important bilateral relationship in the world today. It begins with an overview of the major historic episodes in U.S.-China relations, then, adopting a theme-based approach, it examines the relationship among important topics in the contemporary bilateral relationship across the overlapping political, economic and security spheres. The course will stress the importance of perceptions in policymaking, and use student presentations and a crisis simulation to allow students to understand the problem from various perspectives.

Criminal groups and the state are often seen as antagonists: Politicians and bureaucracies aim to preserve public order and, in doing so, fight criminal groups who undermine it in their search for profit. However, the relationship between crime and politics is more complex. In some instances, states and criminal actors cooperate to provide public goods and enforce strict rules against "deviant" behavior. How does politics affect the criminal world? Why do criminals engage in political activities? Why do politicians delegate to criminal groups the provision of public order? What are the consequences for democracy of criminal-political partnerships? In this course, we want to understand how crime shapes politics and vice-versa. In the first part of the course, we will discuss essential concepts for the analysis of crime and politics. We will then explore different modes of criminal-political interactions, their causes and consequences. Throughout the semester we will look at past and present cases across the world—from 19th and 20th century US cities to the emergence of the mafia in Italy to contemporary Brazilian and Indian cities. We also use different sources (academic texts and popular culture, among others) to unveil the connections between the criminal "underworld" and politics.

What does it mean to be Korean? How are definitions of Korea and “Koreanness” affected by recent waves of globalization and migration? This course investigates the social construction of race and nationhood within the context of South Korea. While many believe South Korea to be ethnically and racially homogeneous, the country has increasingly opened up its borders to foreign migration to offset the adverse impact of its rapidly aging society. More than one in ten marriages in South Korea involves a foreign-born person today, and growing numbers of racially mixed people consider themselves Korean. In addition, members of the Korean diaspora have started to “return” to their country of origin in recent years, only to find that they are marginalized because of their culturally different backgrounds. This course introduces students to sociological theories of race, ethnicity, and nationhood by analyzing how South Koreans define self and Other. We will learn how racial and ethnic identities continue to evolve as the contexts of migration change. We will also learn why it is difficult for individuals of particular backgrounds to find a sense of belonging in the societies in which they live and work.

This course traces the history of Catholicism in the modern era. It is self-consciously global in its approach, examining how Catholic people, ideas, devotional practices and architectural drawings circulate around the world. Topics investigated include: Catholicism during the democratic revolutions of the late eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, religion and nationalism, the "social" question and Catholic ideas about the family and the economy, the crisis of fascism in the 1930s, decolonization and the cold war, liberation theology and the global South, the first (1869-70) and second (1962-65) Vatican councils and the current sexual abuse crisis. Students will read and interpret a variety of sources, including memoirs, short stories, papal encyclicals, art works and accounts by contemporary historians. Assignments will include short essays and quizzes. The final assignment will be a report, using materials from the course and working as an historian, written for Pope Francis.

This course focuses on the challenges policy makers face when designing electoral legislation that seeks to maximize civic rights without compromising certainty. In this course students will embark on a comparative analysis based on different case studies on how electoral processes are shaped and designed by the context in which policy makers operate (i.e. Georgia's Election Integrity Act 2021). Students will analyze the legal, political and cultural conditions that shape policy design in specific relation to the so-called chain of trust of electoral integrity (i.e. registry, polling station officials, ballot design, electoral observation, preliminary results, oversight and auditing). In order to do so, the course will look into regulatory practices in countries where a longstanding distrust in elections has fostered comprehensive federal laws able to standardize electoral public policy. We will embark on informed discussions with specialists in the field who can share first-hand experience in relation to policy design and the challenges resulting from confronting perspectives on electoral integrity.

Understanding religious communities and their values are crucial to understanding human societies and global affairs. One particular group of interpreters of Islam, namely the traditional or orthodox religious scholars called the ulama and their institutions, are often hidden from contemporary accounts of Islam when in fact they are critical players. This course will provide historical contexts in order to explore how traditional Muslims navigate the discourses of modernity and how they resist it. We will read original texts in translation and secondary sources of descriptions of representatives of the orthodox tradition in regions of Asia, the Middle East and in the West. The course will pay particular attention to the institutions of learning known as madrasas, jami` and hawzas. Of course, the orthodox views are challenged by other Muslims and some of those debates will also be channeled in the class while the focus will remain on the Ulama. The course aims to equip students with analytical skills and the resources to understand how religious ideas impact religious communities and global affairs.

How and why do some of the roads taken by migrants (including refugees) lead to Rome and Italy? What are the challenges faced by migrants upon their arrival, and on their path to citizenship? How does civil society intervene to mitigate those challenges, and to facilitate mutual integration and engagement? What are the distinctive features of Roman lay and Catholic approaches to migration? The course addresses such questions, building on contemporary Rome both as a compelling case study and as a gateway to the causes, lived experiences, and consequences of global migrations. Migrants' reception and integration happens at the local level, and in interaction with residents and existing communities. Attention to the realities of the host civil society is therefore fundamental: migration is not an issue that can simply be delegated to experts, bureaucrats, and politicians. Students investigate how the experience of the city is at the same time the experience of globalization, embodied in older and new residents' everyday life in the built environment; and they appreciate situated social engagement and its potentialities.

This course will impart an interdisciplinary foundation in why the rule of law and rights matter for human development around the world, a fluency in the language and controversies of human rights, and a knowledge of different religious perspectives on rights. This course delivers practical benefits as well, with a session on public speaking and interviewing for mission-driven jobs. Guest lecturers include Clemens Sedmak of the Nanovic Institute, Paolo Carozza of the Kellogg Institute, and Mahan Mirza of the Ansari Institute. There are no prerequisites. Grading is based upon attendance, modest reading assignments, and a short final reflection paper.Students in this course will be required to attend three (of five) talks in a conference entitled "Inalienable Rights and the Traditions of Constitutionalism," sponsored by the Kellogg Institute this coming fall (Nov. 14-16). This conference will give students the chance to talk with academics, policymakers, and jurists from around the world, providing a valuable experience of the relationship between academic discourse and policy development. For details about the Inalienable Rights and the Traditions of Constitutionalism conference, visit https://kellogg.nd.edu/inalienable-rights-and-traditions-constitutionalism

LifeDesign: mindsets, skillsets, and habits for a more joyful and purposeful life: The workshop will explore different mindsets (creative confidence, mindfulness, gratitude, and growth mindset) and then work to translate those mindsets through skills and habits into something that might usefully help shape students' unique journeys. The workshop will help each student develop a personal Motivating Question, using design thinking (a human-centered, creative approach that engages inspiration, ideation, and implementation) to make tangible progress on that question. Students' research and work on their MQ can be both a starting point and a pathway for their learning journey. A MQ might range from conceptual ones such as "How do I find more joy in my life?" or "How might I explore my own purpose more creatively and expansively?" to more operational ones such as "How might I develop a mindfulness practice authentic for me?" or "How do I apply my interests and talents to have a greater social impact on X?" In addition to working on their MQ, each student will identify and work to create a new habit or change an old one, with the support of a partner. The larger class will be organized into four facilitated LifeDesign Teams of typically six students each. A facilitator will accompany each LifeDesign Team. These facilitators, many former Inspired Leadership Initiative Fellows or former students, have fascinating and diverse life experiences, and an openness and enthusiasm to support student journeys. Expected Outcomes: LifeDesign will involve 1. Exploring the science and practice of well-being 2. Developing and gaining insights to a personally meaningful Motivating Question 3. Creating/changing a habit that is important to you (working with a peer in the class) 4. Identifying one idea from the workshop that you will teach/share with at least two other people (who are not part of the class) before the final session 5. Synthesizing and sharing insights that have been useful to you with members of your LifeTeam.

This course introduces the interdisciplinary field of science and technology studies. Our concern will be with science and technology (including medicine) as social and historical, i.e., as human, phenomena. We shall examine the divergent roots of contemporary science and technology, and the similarities and (sometimes surprising) differences in their methods and goals. The central theme of the course will be the ways in which science and technology interact with other aspects of society, including the effects of technical and theoretical innovation in bringing about social change, and the social shaping of science and technology themselves by cultural, economic and political forces. Because science/society interactions so frequently lead to public controversy and conflict, we shall also explore what resources are available to mediate such conflicts in an avowedly democratic society.

The Keough Ethical Practice Seminar analyzes the practice of ethical reasoning and analysis in professional and public settings relevant to global affairs. The course focuses on Integral Human Development in practice and applied ethics and employs the IHD framework for making ethical decisions in specific types of global professional settings, such as humanitarian relief delivery, development projects, policy making, human rights advocacy and the like, each with its own professional ethical standards that are both internally and externally contested. The course will ask students to consider real-life ethical dilemmas and to reflect on the relationship of professional ethics, the social-ethical framework, and their own values.

This will be a problem-oriented, interdisciplinary seminar that will develop critical thinking and communication skills.

This 1-credit course is required for all students who are selected to participate in the Global Professional Experience program. The course is designed to provide students with pedagogical framework, knowledge, and tools to maximize their experiential learning within an immersive professional experience within businesses, community-based organizations, foundations, and government offices. More specifically, the course includes three key components: an introduction to the country's culture, history, and society to enhance students' international perspectives and understanding; an intensive on-the-ground, hands-on local orientation to enhance capacity for interactive learning and engagement; a curricular component designed to enhance professional acumen and career discernment through evaluation and assessment of skills critical to the future global workplace. The teaching of the course will be led by Maggie Remstad Hook, Associate Director, Study Abroad. Selected faculty and staff from the Keough School and Notre Dame Global, will contribute regional-specific and local expertise.

This mini-course is the third component of the Keough School Cross-Cultural Experience requirement. It will provide students with a framework and interlocutors for critical reflection on their cross-cultural experience. Students will discuss with the professor and each other what the challenges they faced, foreseen and unforeseen, what they learned about themselves, and about the people, communities, and issues they engaged, what opportunities they missed, and how their experience helped them think about future opportunities, both personal and professional.

Understanding the complex ways economies are interconnected through the flow of goods, services, people and capital is increasingly important in this era of globalization. This course introduces students to basic ideas, concepts, and models in international trade and international finance, building on their knowledge of the principles of economics. Among the topics covered are the sources of gains from trade, the impact of globalization on income inequality, the welfare effects and political economy of trade policy, the determinants of the trade balance, the role of the exchange rate in adjustment to economic shocks, and the effectiveness of monetary and fiscal policy in open economies. Special attention will be given to developing countries as well as the lessons from the Eurozone crisis. Assignments will include problem sets as well as empirical exercises, which provide an opportunity for students to improve their skills in analyzing economic data.

Why do people invest and how do they do it in different national and historical contexts? This course offers students the opportunity to think about the emergence of financial markets as institutions, evolving legal and business practices and the changing role of investors from a historical and global perspective. Starting with trade finance in the 15th century and the emergence of sovereign bond markets under the Habsburg Spain empire, we move on to London's rise as financial center of Europe, stock market bubbles, the nature of new exchanges in Asia and other global settings to Wall Street, war bonds, and the rise of new financial tools and markets in the post-WWII era. Readings will involve primary documents and exciting literature in economic history, social, business and cultural history and allow students to gain a broader understanding of the nature of financial and political risk, institution-building, human behavior, and the role of financial markets in modern history.

The difference between rich and poor nations is not, as Ernest Hemingway once said, that the rich have more money than the poor, but is in part because the rich produce more goods and services. Industrialization, in other words, has often brought wealth (as well as social dislocation and protest) to those who have succeeded. This course examines the process of industrialization from a comparative perspective and integrates the history of industrialization and its social consequences for Western Europe (Britain and Germany), the United States, Latin America (Mexico), and East Asia (Japan and South Korea). We will concentrate on these countries' transition from agriculture-based societies to industrial societies. We will analyze the process of industrialization on two levels from above the role of political authority and from below a view of factory life, industrial relations, and protest from the perspective of workers and the working classes. No specific prerequisites in history or economics are necessary.

Politics, markets, and the environment are all spheres of development that are fundamentally shaped by the action and interaction of many individuals over time. For example, the Arab Spring protests, the shortage of medicines in Caracas, and the rising water temperatures of the Baltic Sea are all system-level outcomes arising from the individual actions of thousands or even billions of people. In these spheres, leadership is often weak or non-existent. Scientists call these "complex systems." Complexity is difficult to study in the real world. Instead, scientists often approach these phenomenon using computer simulations (sometimes called agent-based models, social network models, and computational models). The goal is to build computer models of development that link the actions and interactions of individuals to the system-level outcomes. This class will use the perspective, literature, and tools of complexity science to approach core questions in the field of development. No programming experience is required, but students should be prepared to learn a new language called Netlogo. It is a free program which is described as having a "low threshold" (easy to get started) and "high ceiling" (many capabilities).

This course examines the late 20th and early 21st century "economic miracles" of several East Asian countries. We will explore similarities, differences, and interdependencies in the development trajectories of Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, and mainland China, and will debate how accurate and useful concepts like "the developmental state" and "state capitalism" are in describing the political economy of the region. To what extent has China's economic rise followed the playbooks of its East Asian neighbors? What human costs and developmental distortions have accompanied booming industrial and urban growth? And what lessons does East Asia's experience offer for the contemporary developing world?

The course will explore the current state of reparations for human rights violations, as prescribed by international courts, tribunals, commissions, and other adjudication bodies. We will develop two disciplinary perspectives and integrate them in a collective research project. The first perspective will examine, from a legal standpoint, the sufficiency and adequacy of reparation measures light of international human rights law and the general law of international responsibility, and will inquire into the political and civil society challenges resulting in unmet reparations for complex human rights violations, such as slavery and the trans-Atlantic slave trade, climate change impacts, refugees and displacements from migration, genocide and mass atrocities during conflicts. The second perspective will explore the political conditions under which governmental actors comply with human rights reparations, and what non-governmental actors can do to promote compliance.

Conserving the earth's rich biological heritage while enhancing the well-being of some of the world's poorest people stands as a critical global challenge. This course examines this complex issue using the lens of political science and related fields such as political ecology, gender studies, and sustainability science. It will demonstrate how insights and approaches from these areas of scholarship can help understand and address the twin problems of biodiversity loss and poverty in Africa, Asia, and Latin America. Examples will focus on forest and wildlife conservation and management. This course will be of interest to students from a wide range of natural and social science disciplines.

Are human rights modern inventions or are they as old as humankind? Are they universal or culturally specific? How much progress, if any, has transnational human rights advocacy achieved? How and to what extent should human rights influence foreign policy? What are the advantages and disadvantages of encoding human rights in international law? By examining these and similar questions, this course initiates students in the study of international human rights. In addition to informative readings, intriguing podcasts, and interactive lectures the course features in-class debates on the most pressing human rights problems.

Most current wars are civil wars, and these are longer and more violent than other forms of conflict. This course explores the politics of contemporary civil war. It examines the logic of rebel strategy, key trends in violence, and transnational dynamics including trafficking, terrorism, and international intervention. It takes a multi-scale approach to probe the roles of armed groups, civilians, national militaries, humanitarian organizations, and United Nations peace operations. It examines how the interaction among these actors reshapes the strategies, local economies, and duration of war. Students will compare the voices and experiences of civilians and rebels in warzones with intervention and conflict mitigation at the global level, and will examine implications for post-conflict transitions and conflict mitigation strategies. Students will build skills in conflict analysis, evidence, and assess gaps between public narratives of civil war and clandestine actions.

While there is a wealth of academic work on race, racism, and anti-racism in the domestic realm, there is less attention to them in the international context. This is unfortunate, because they cannot be domestically confined. United Nations resolutions against racism, debates about whether the International Criminal Court is racially biased, and the global wave of anti-racist protests in 2020 are a few examples. This course examines race in the international context, exploring how it affects, is affected by, and is intertwined with central topics in international relations, including human rights, war and peace, foreign policy, international law and international organizations.

International organizations (IOs) are now ubiquitous actors in world politics. Whether in the realm of security, environmental affairs, health, development, or economics, IOs are involved in coordinating state action and in addressing global problems. The purpose of this course is to introduce students to the theory and practice of international organizations. It is focused on three broad questions: First, do international organizations matter? Second, how do they matter, And third, should they matter? The class begins with an overview of how the major perspectives from international relations understand the role, function, and effects of IOs. While considering these questions, students will learn about the inner-workings of major international organizations, including the United Nations, World Bank and IMF, WTO, World Health Organization and others.

Market-oriented reforms known as ‘neoliberalism’ have dominated the reform agenda across the world. These reforms were passed amidst tremendous political contestations and have delivered varying degrees of success. For the developing countries that faced the additional/simultaneous challenges of building ‘good’ institutions and governance systems, these reforms have resulted in questionable outcomes. Given this, today’s emerging economies have been forced to re-assess the benefits of market-oriented reforms, and those with policy space and political will/capacity have embarked on new reform experiments. The module introduces the students to the complexities and challenges of economic reforms in the fast-growing economies by placing politics at the heart of the analysis. The course is comprised of two parts. The first part provides the theoretical and conceptual foundations for examining the processes and outcomes of economic reforms. It discusses the limitations and dangers of designing and implementing reforms without consideration of the broader concept of states and markets or sufficient engagement with politics. This is because policy always produces new winners and losers, and as a result provokes resistance from those who believe they will lose wealth, status, or power. The second part investigates reforms in key areas of the political economy where there have been significant reforms and where distributive tension and conflicts are rampant. These include privatization, trade liberalization, industrial policies, debt and macroeconomic stabilization, tax and fiscal, and social policy reforms, food and nutrition, among others. Given the importance of national and regional contexts when discussing politics, the course draws cases from a wide range of geographical areas including East Asia, Latin American and Sub-Saharan Africa. The module concludes by examining the implications of factoring politics and local contexts into economic reforms for development policy and management and discusses whether new development paradigms and models exist for emerging economies.

What is the relationship between development projects, which often pursue universal goals and scalable approaches, and cultural difference? How does culture shape the impact of development projects? How are development practitioners themselves shaped by culture? In this course, we use materials from anthropology, sociology, and history to explore how development processes shape, and are shaped by, culture. Approaching culture in terms of the meanings, values, practices, and norms that shape social life in both overt and subtle ways, we will focus on how different actors in the development world create and communicate knowledge about social issues and their potential solutions. Along the way, we will draw on different theories about culture, power, and inequality to analyze mainstream development approaches to data, expertise, and social transformation.

In Apocalypse Now (1979), a single phrase marks an iconic enemy and creates a chain of associations that separate Western Selves from Eastern Others. The story behind the phrase, "Charlie don't surf," is one of many complex narratives characterizing the Southeast Asian region that call for further critical understanding. This course is an anthropological journey through Southeast Asia, a region rich in cultural diversity, linguistic complexity and archaeological significance. Including the Philippines, Vietnam, Indonesia, Malaysia, Laos, Cambodia, Thailand, and Myanmar (Burma), students can explore the ecological, historical, and socio-cultural patterns of this ethnographic region through analyses of its societies and institutions. With a holistic approach to the cultural influences that characterize Southeast Asia, we will chart the region's indigenous, social, political, economic, artistic and religious formations over time. The course offers a broad overview of the historical factors affecting the region, including the impact of Indian, Islamic, Chinese, and European exchange, colonization, and violence. These transregional influences provide a window from which to view contemporary issues in the cultural politics and economics of Southeast Asia. The course provides an overview of the major cultural features of the region to enable students to gain a better understanding of the current developments within the region and the lives of Southeast Asians. Overall, we will contribute to the development of anthropological ideas about Asia while also providing a means to organize and analyze Asian ethnographic perspectives.

How do people in immigrant-receiving countries shape their attitudes toward immigrants? What are the differences between refugees and other migrants? How is immigration related to urban "immigrant riots?" And what can anthropological studies of borders and national policies tell us about the transnational world in which we live? We will examine these and related questions, and more generally the causes, lived experiences, and consequences of migration. We will acquire a sound understanding of migration in its social, political, legal, and cultural facets. Fieldwork accounts from countries of origin and from the U.S., Europe, Australia, and Japan will enable us to appreciate both global and U.S. distinctive trends. Rather than merely learning a collection of facts about immigrants, we will address how migration intersects with gender and class, the mass media, border enforcement, racism, the economy, territory and identity formation, and religion.

A major source of conflict - increasingly so - is environmental issues; both climate change-related conflicts about (more and more scarce) resources as well as secondary conflicts (conflicts that arise because of the resource conflict, i.e. climate migrants) pose a major challenge to the planet. Pope Francis' encyclical Laudato Si has offered ways to think about an "integral ecology" that takes the environment, life on the planet, the human condition and culture seriously. The cry of the earth and the cry of the poor cannot be separated. Laudato Si has to be read against the background of the concept of "Integral Human Development." This concept, inspired by the works of Joseph Lebret, OP, was introduced by Pope Paul VI in his encyclical Populorum Progressio (1967). It refers to "the development of the whole person and the development of all persons." The course explores the connection (intersectionality) between peace, (integral) ecology, and (integral human) development. It will do so with in-class room teaching sessions and working with select case studies on integral ecology.

The goal of the course is to compare the processes by which social scientists and filmmakers/photographers engage in social documentation. Students explore how global social problems such as rural and urban poverty, race and gender inequalities, immigration, and violence are analyzed across the social sciences and depicted in a variety of documentary film and photography genres. The course also explores the role that documentary photography and film play in promoting rights and advocating for social change, particularly in the realm of human rights and global inequality. It examines the history of documentary film and photography in relationship to politics and the development of concerns across the social sciences with inequality and social justice. It also looks at how individual documentarians, non-profit organizations, and social movements use film and photography to further their goals and causes as well as issues of representation their choices raise. The course is unique because it requires students to engage in the process of visual documentation themselves by incorporating an activity-based learning component. For their final project, students choose a human rights or social problem that concerns or interests them (and which they can document locally - no travel is required), prepare a documentary exhibit on the chosen topic (10-12 photographs), and write an essay analyzing how social scientists construct and frame the given problem. Students also have the option to produce a short documentary film.

In this course we will examine how different kinds of organizations and institutions (corporations and firms, NGOs and non-profits, economic development organizations, social movement organizations) respond and adapt to cultural differences in a globalizing world. We will begin by analyzing the processes by which the children's educational television program Sesame Street is transformed and spread around the world, and how the organization that creates it builds relationships with its international partners and counterparts. We will then compare Sesame Street to other organizations that translate, locally adapt, and diffuse various kinds of innovations around the world, from products (toys and soap operas) and policies (health care and anti-discrimination laws), to norms and ideas (human rights, peace building, and democracy).

How has the Internet changed the ways people voice their opinions, gather information, and organize social movements? Have marginalized groups become more empowered by mobilizing online? Why does increased social media activity often exacerbate political polarization and populism? How has social media affected national elections? This course will analyze these questions and more within the context of East Asia. In analyzing the impact of the Internet on state-society relations, students will analyze state attempts to control media consumption and surveil Internet-use in Communist regimes like North Korea and China. We will compare these trends with similar efforts made by state actors in advanced industrialized countries such as Japan and South Korea. While the Internet-usage is in many ways, still tightly regulated by the state, the Web has in many ways, also empowered people formerly detached from politics to become politically engaged. This has led to both political polarization (and the influx of political extremist groups), as well as large-scale grassroots movements for democratization. Along these lines, we will examine the growth of far-right "netizen" groups in Japan, South Korea, and China and the subsequent proliferation of hate crimes, populism, and ultra-nationalism. We will also read studies of how teenagers used their presence on social media and the blogosphere to eventually lead large-scaled national protests like the 2016 Candlelight Movement in Seoul and the Umbrella Movement in Hong Kong. Finally, in studying the global diffusion of social protests in the digital age, we will analyze how the #MeToo movement reignited new waves of feminism in South Korea, Japan, and China. What implications does the Internet have for the future democracy?

Many people predict that the 21st century will be the "Asian Century," dominated by China, India, and other nation-states on the continent. What does it mean to imagine an Asian future? In this class, we answer this question by rethinking connections between past, present, and future, both within and between different nations in Asia. How can we better understand the global connections between past and present if we take Asia, rather than Europe and North America, as our starting point? By contextualizing contemporary issues in Asia within global social and historical context, students will learn to move beyond common stereotypes about the region. We will use materials from history, anthropology, religion, and literature to explore the impacts of colonialism, nationalism, and globalization on everyday life across the continent. Through this course, students will learn how to analyze the intersections of personal, local, regional, and global contexts in order to better explain how Asia shapes our world. All majors and backgrounds are welcome. No prior knowledge about Asian languages or topics is required.

The use of media is becoming increasingly important to advocate for social change at local, national, and international levels. Activists and advocates working in movements and formal and informal networks and organizations such as NGOs, use media to document, educate, organize, and lobby. They incorporate video, mobile communications and social media to heighten global awareness of social justice issues and push for social change by seeking to inspire empathy, engagement, and activism. In this new course, you will learn how to create impact-driven video, and develop research and design skills to produce short video projects using accessible forms of media capture such as iPhones and GoPros. You will also develop your visual literacy skills by examining how effective media creates narrative structures to make meaning, and shapes and challenges how social justice issues around the world are represented and interpreted.

Poisoned Kremlin critic Alexey Navalny, currently lying in a Berlin hospital for treatment, provides only the latest image of the nexus of Germany and Russia in matters relating to authoritarian oppression of minorities and opposition groups. Yet their intertwined history of racism, authoritarianism, and persecution of ethnic minorities has been the object of intellectual study for decades: Hannah Arendt, Ernst Nolte, Jurgen Habermas, and more recently, Timothy Snyder are some of the leading scholars who have elucidated the ways in which these cultures intersect in both promoting and confronting mono-ethnic authoritarianism. Part cautionary tale, part success story, this course examines select case studies from the polities of Russia and Germany (with shorter units on Poland, Hungary, and Belarus) in their ongoing struggles with authoritarian, racist, and anti-democratic legacies. Given notorious histories of oppression and persecution of ethnic, religious, and other minorities--haunting images of Soviet gulags, German concentration camps, and of the KGB and the Gestapo spring all too readily to mind--these countries provide potentially valuable lessons in thinking about racism and police brutality in our own time. In the postwar and post-Unification/post-Soviet periods, these countries continue to face these issues in stark and sometimes creative ways--with varying degrees of success. We will be concerned to respect both the historical and cultural particularity of these cultures, and to draw upon this material to enrich our thinking about anti-racist reform in the contemporary world. We draw upon a variety of materials: historical documents, constitutional studies, film and television, literature, political and sociological data, journalistic interventions, including social media.

Migration is a prevailing global phenomenon that affects millions of peoples around the world. According to the UNHCR report, at the end of 2019, there had been 79.5 million forcibly displaced people around the world. At the same time, refugees and migrants experience migration- and displacement-related physical and psychosocial stress and trauma, which may increase their vulnerability and affects their health and well-being. This course will explore, engage, and analyze contemporary migration flows - movements of people across national and international borders - and the ways human mobility shape refugees' and migrants' lived experiences, cultural meanings, social values, and health. How and why particular modes of mobility are permitted, encouraged, and enabled while others are conversely, banned, regulated, policed, and prevented? How do contemporary forms of displacement may challenge conventional understandings of who gets to be defined and accepted as a refugee? Why do we have so many different categories of people who simply seek refuge? Do these different categories indicate different treatments? How is migration associated with higher levels of mental health disorders among refugee/migrant populations? The course will engage with such questions by focusing on events that occurred in the second half of the twenty-first century in Europe, including both the EU and non-EU states. We will rely on the selected readings and documentaries as they reflect an integrative anthropological approach to migration, displacement, and refugeeness. Taking into account lived experiences, identity, social values, cultural meanings, health, and well-being, we will explore migration, borders, and displacement as a subjective experience and sites of ethical, socioeconomic, political, and cultural examinations and critiques. Topics will include transnational migration, terminology, citizenship, borders, asylum policy, health, and well-being. This course will also enrich your understanding of the fluidity of different categories, processes underlying refugees and migrants' cultural and social tuning, as well as their biosocial responses, resilience, and adaptability under conditions of migration and displacement.

This course will offer a systematic introduction into ethics from a global perspective discussing global moral challenges. It will negotiate the local and the global and offer "contextual ethical reasoning." Global ethics has emerged both as a term and as a (sub)discipline over the past few decades. The dynamics of globalization has cultivated a sense of global citizenship; the experience of limits of local contexts in dealing with challenges such as climate change and migration have motivated a sense of global problems, problems that affect the entire planet and the whole of humanity. This course will follow an approach to global ethics in conversation with key principles of the Catholic Social Tradition: human dignity, common good and solidarity, subsidiarity, integral ecology.

Despite important progress in alleviating poverty in low- and middle-income countries, technological change, automation, and rising levels of training required for employment pose a great challenge for reducing economic insecurity and precarity as well as the future of work in these countries. A major challenge in attaining these goals is the tension between the global diffusion of innovation paradigms and national cultural traditions. This course will draw on concrete examples from countries such as India, Peru, The Philippines, Mexico, Indonesia, and Kenya and on conceptual tools from across disciplines (economics, anthropology, sociology, and history) to provide students with the needed intuitions for examining the interplay between global economic transformations and the institutional and cultural characteristics of emerging societies. Throughout the course, we explore some of the ramifications for racial, ethnic and gender inequality resulting from these global economic changes and from the policy strategies adopted to address them.

According to several popular narratives, Artificial Intelligence is either about to be the most transformational influence on human culture since the Industrial Revolution, or an over-hyped set of diffuse technologies and systems with only superficial relation to each other. In this course, students will consider AI from several different disciplinary perspectives in order to make sense of both the narratives and the science surrounding it. These perspectives include computer science, the history of technology, philosophy, AI ethics, and science fiction. By taking up these different perspectives, students will develop vocabularies for talking about AI and, importantly, for thinking about its future.

This class is dedicated to the contemplation and analysis of American (in the hemispheric sense) narratives that trace the trajectory of outbreaks of widespread illness to their subsequent mitigation. A major source of reflection and analysis will be the instructor's experience nursing in an ICU during the first and second COVID-19 surges in New York City. Drawing upon literature, film, philosophy, history, and medical science, the focus will be on medicine and healing as a hinge point between politics and life. The class will analyze medicine as power; specifically, in what Michel Foucault described as biopower or "making live and letting die." In short, we will study theories, practices and stories of healing. However, instead of focusing on European texts such as Bocaccio's The Decameron (1353), Shelley's The Last Man (1826), or Albert Camus's The Plague (1947), this class draws on the tensions between the Eurocentric canon and its deconstruction in the Americas (Machado de Assis, Bellatin, Cuarón, Poe, Cazals, Porter). These tensions manifest at the points where bare life and political life converge, where class, race, geography, and the economics of healing complicate an intervention so simple as quarantine. Nevertheless, and as the COVID-19 pandemic has shown us, some—whose daily circulation provide essential goods and services to society—cannot afford to quarantine, and it is their stories that fall outside the scope of Europe's literary grasp.

Underwriting Action takes students through the creation of the key components of Catholic Social Teaching (CST) as it moves towards Integral Human Development (IHD). The course uses case studies to examine the context behind the creation of key writings and principles in CST, as well as to understand how CST is interpreted, used, and understood by people around the world. The “correct” interpretations of CST are often debated in various circles, emphasizing different elements of the teachings without reference to their context; the case studies will thus enable students to understand CST in its complexity, priming them to make their own informed decisions about CST and Integral Human Development in their own work and practice. By taking students through the contextual developments and applications of CST from its inception in the 1890s to the present day’s understanding of IHD by looking at diverse topics such as Polish positivism, the Northern Irish Civil Rights Movement, the Colombian Civil War and Liberation Theology, and Indigenous Restitution Movements, the course weaves together a truly global story of the influences and impacts of belief on policy and community through the lens of CST and IHD.

This course traces the history of Catholicism in the modern era. It is self-consciously global in its approach, examining how Catholic people, ideas, devotional practices and architectural drawings circulate around the world. Topics investigated include: Catholicism during the democratic revolutions of the late eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, religion and nationalism, the "social" question and Catholic ideas about the family and the economy, the crisis of fascism in the 1930s, decolonization and the cold war, liberation theology and the global South, the first (1869-70) and second (1962-65) Vatican councils and the current sexual abuse crisis. Students will read and interpret a variety of sources, including memoirs, short stories, papal encyclicals, art works and accounts by contemporary historians. Assignments will include short essays and quizzes. The final assignment will be a report, using materials from the course and working as an historian, written for Pope Francis.

Policymaking for a Global Era provides students with the intellectual foundations necessary to understand the dilemmas and opportunities faced by decision-makers during the policymaking process. The course has three modules. The first investigates how policymakers' world views and choices are shaped by experimental, cultural, normative and decision making structures. It also examines how regime type and country size constrain policymakers' options. The second module examines the numerous domestic and international actors and factors that influence the foreign policymaking process in the U.S. - including the presidency, intelligence services, the Congress, media, NGOs, international institutions, and foreign governments. In the third module we study policymaking in three Asian countries - China, India, and Vietnam. This comparative approach illustrates how elements such as culture, country size, and regime type, which were introduced in the first module, affect these countries foreign policymakers' decisions. The course concludes with a policymaking crisis simulation that employs the lessons learned throughout the course. The course assignments are three 5-page policy memoranda and robust class participation.

Under what conditions do governments comply with international norms? How can international courts secure respect for their orders? Because international courts lack effective means of enforcement, governments often defy their rulings. We will analyze why governments adhere to court orders and how international bodies can become more effective. We will also introduce advanced methodological tools to analyze and predict compliance. Students in the seminar will have the opportunity to participate in research projects integrated to the Notre Dame Reparations Design and Compliance Lab (NDRL). Participants will be able to use the tools acquired in the course to analyze compliance with the rulings of the Inter-American Court of Human Rights, the World Bank Inspection Panel, and other international bodies.

This course will provide students with an overview of the current concepts, issues and trends associated with comparative and international education, paying particular attention to issues of education policy. Roughly half the course will focus on education and integral human development and international economic development, concerned with the trends, issues, and opportunities facing lower-income country contexts in terms of education policy and practice. This will cover issues such as funding policy, the role of international actors, global policy priorities, and effective programs and policies. The second half of the course will look more broadly at salient issues from comparative education, drawing from cross national studies and country case studies of notable policies and reforms in education systems globally.

This course is an introduction to the theory and practice of modern diplomacy and statecraft. We will examine the instruments of bilateral and multilateral diplomatic craft, as well as some of the emerging challenges faced by diplomats at home and abroad.

Fracking, Water Wars, Deforestation of the Amazon, Droughts, Global Warming, Climate Change, Unsustainable Agriculture, Hurricanes, Pollution, Species Extinction, Invasive Species, Poaching, Overfishing, Depletion of Fossil Fuels, Overpopulation, Wastes, Ocean Acidification, Wildfires, Oil Spills, Overpopulation, Overconsumption, Land degradation - the list goes on! These complex environmental problems are occurring constantly and rapidly; their consequences are global in scope and transcend national boundaries; and they embody the complex relationship between humans and the natural environment. This course is about developing an interdisciplinary understanding of the relationship between humans (society) and the environment. We will examine the historical and contemporary environmental challenges of global concern, the underlying role of humans, and attempts by society to address, mitigate, and adapt to such complex problems through policies, institutions, and governance. We will pay attention to the roles of different state and non-state actors in environmental policy making. Overall, students will draw from both the social and natural sciences to develop a deeper understanding of how society - through consumption, culture, politics, power, ethics, values, economic growth, location, etc... contribute to, or solve, environmental problems.

This course examines the most important bilateral relationship in the world today. It begins with an overview of the major historic episodes in U.S.-China relations, then, adopting a theme-based approach, it examines the relationship among important topics in the contemporary bilateral relationship across the overlapping political, economic and security spheres. The course will stress the importance of perceptions in policymaking, and use student presentations and a crisis simulation to allow students to understand the problem from various perspectives.

On March 10, 2020, the U.S. "Youth, Peace, & Security" (YPS) Act was introduced into the House of Representatives with broad support from international peacebuilding organizations. The bill is intended "to support the inclusive and meaningful participation of youth in peace building and conflict prevention, management, and resolution, as well as post-conflict relief and recovery efforts." But, is all of this attention on "youth"actually warranted? More importantly, is this attention good for young people both in the United States and globally? In order to answer these questions, this course will consider the historical context of the shifting politics of recognition related to youth/childhood over the course of the Cold War and its aftermath. We will explore which populations got counted as (vulnerable) children or (dangerous) youth in U.S. politics and foreign policy based on age-based, racialized, gendered, imperial, and other dynamics. Through examination of historical documents and tools of critical analysis, students will be prepared to evaluate the international youth, peace, and security agenda as well as monitor the mixed public responses to the U.S. YPS Act as they occur in real-time right now.

The application of artificial intelligence is expanding rapidly and has the potential to reshape many fields, including transportation, finance, health care, marketing, social media, criminal justice, and public policy, just to name a few. AI's ability to predict human preference and behavior or even substitute human judgement in these fields creates opportunities as well as concerns for safety, bias and discrimination, transparency, inequality, and job loss. Designed to serve students from no background in AI to those who have existing technical background, this course surveys current and emerging applications of AI in different fields and the related ethical issues and governance problems. The course targets students from different disciplines. Students from the humanities and social sciences will gain a deeper understanding of the technical aspects underpinning today's ethical and policy debates related to AI. Students with more technical background will better appreciate the ethical issues that arise in programming and engineering and understand how technology interacts with the broader societal contexts. The course's goal is to encourage students to become proactive in thinking of the societal implications of technological change and to incorporate such understanding in their education and careers.

The course will examine U.S. policies and practices to combat human trafficking including how U.S. policies advance the prevention of trafficking in persons, the protection of victims and survivors and the punishment of perpetrators as a foreign policy objective of the U.S. Students will develop a basic understanding of the various aspects of and perspectives in human trafficking including domestic and international law; foreign nationals and United States Citizens; victim services, survivor aftercare and law enforcement and sex and labor trafficking. Students will also analyze international trafficking prohibitions under the various international conventions and identify current trafficking issues in the United States, with a particular focus on commercial sexual exploitation and forced labor and involuntary servitude and the range of remedies available when rights have been violated. Finally, students will identify gaps in existing remedies and formulate policies to address them.

As the quotation above suggests, an underlying assumption of this course is that ordinary people can, under certain circumstances, act in exceptionally violent and abhorrent ways. Indeed, violence deployed for political purposes is as old as humankind itself and its threat remains eerily relevant in our own era. How and to what end is violence practiced? Why are some societies plagued by recurrent violence while others appear to be mostly free of it? What explains who participates in violence and why? What are the consequences of violence for society? In answering these questions, we will visit examples from multiple continents and time periods, seeking to grasp the mechanisms at play and gaining an understanding of ongoing policy debates. Crucially, we will leave the classroom with a deeper appreciation of how difficult these questions are to answer. At the same time, we will lean on empirical evidence in order to evaluate competing theories that offer plausible answers.

Enrolling in school does not guarantee that children acquire the human capital that their schooling should provide. Also, in some countries a large fraction of children still are not finishing primary school, and there are still millions of children who never attend school at all. In this course, we will review the impact of various types of educational interventions on schooling in the Global South. We explore the rationale behind specific policies and the evidence (or lack of) in support of their effectiveness in improving education outcomes. The aim is to engage in broader debates on the challenges facing effective education policy. Students will critically evaluate real-life policy options in different contexts, as well as propose potential innovations. By the end of the course, students will possess an analytical framework that allows them to think clearly about the impacts of alternative education policies, as well as be able to judge the quality of existing evidence.

This course introduces the role of economics in environmental issues and in the formation of environmental policy. Topics covered include choice, externalities, market failure, cost-benefit and environmental valuation analyses, and climate change. The course aims to encourage students to think about pressing environmental issues in economic terms and equip students with the diverse set of economics tools to contribute to the evaluation and implementation of wise policy choices. There is no prior knowledge of economics required, and students will have the opportunity to learn basic economic principles and frameworks that guide decision-making regarding environmental issues.

Enrolling in school does not guarantee that children acquire the human capital that their schooling should provide. Also, in some countries a large fraction of children still are not finishing primary school, and there are still millions of children who never attend school at all. In this lab we will review the impact of various types of educational interventions on schooling in the Global South. We explore the rationale behind specific policies and the evidence (or lack of) in support of their effectiveness in improving education outcomes. The aim is to engage the broader debates on the challenges facing effective education policy. Students will critically evaluate real-life policy options in different contexts, as well as propose potential innovations. By the lab's end, students will possess an analytical framework that allows them to think clearly about the impacts of alternative education policies, as well as be able to judge the quality of existing evidence.

This 1-credit policy lab focuses on the challenges of welcoming and integrating refugees and migrants into new societies. Students will survey broad issues of migrants and refugees in the contemporary world and focus on the policy and practice of integration through an examination of case studies. Students will produce a policy-related product by the end of the course.

The novel coronavirus disease outbreak in 2019 (COVID-19) caused significant social, political, and economic effects around the world. The rapid response to COVID-19 has drawn comparisons to efforts to address climate change. In this class, students will critically examine similarities and differences between the two issues and develop proposals for incorporating lessons learned from the COVID-19 response into international, national, or sub-national efforts to address climate change.

This course will examine the compounding challenges and injustices affecting the most fragile countries in the world, including extreme poverty, forced migration, climate change, violent conflict, economic collapse, and corruption. Students will analyze diplomatic, development and national security policies of the United States to respond. One specific policy students will study is the Global Fragility Act of 2019 now being implemented by the Department of State and other federal agencies. In addition, the curriculum will incorporate the foreign policy priorities of the newly formed 117th Congress and the White House, as either the 2nd term of President Trump or the new Biden Administration roll out its goals for the next four years. Students will navigate the legal, political and media contexts in which policies to address global fragility are shaped; analyze the policymaking process within the U.S.; and employ strategies for communicating about policy. Understanding the role of evidence-based research to influence interagency policy will be a primary focus. In this regard, students will sharpen their ability to analyze primary source policy documents and formulate key questions at the center of global policy development. They will grapple with existing and proposed laws, evaluate current policy debates, and produce policy materials. This course is not a lecture class. It will be interactive, include instruction based on current and historical policy initiatives, and welcome guest speakers who are current or former practitioners in US government agencies, international humanitarian organizations, multilateral organizations, or policy think tanks.

This course explores the myriad of national security policy challenges facing the United States and the policy options to address these challenges. The course will explore security issues with Russia, China, Iran and North Korea as well as climate change, global health/pandemics, cyber threats/security and terrorism/extremism. The course will include lectures by policy experts and student engagement with these experts to explore policy options and their potential for success. Students will conduct research of primary source policy documents to develop a policy memorandum for the US National Security Council that will outline a policy challenge for the United States and recommend policy options for consideration.

Modern civilization requires massive quantities of commodities to flourish. Those commodities must be cut, harvested or mined and require energy, inputs and technology to produce, process and transport. Can our planet sustain the processes of securing these commodities indefinitely to satisfy the demands of growing consumer driven economies. What is the path to sustainability? This course will focus on the ethical questions and challenges that arise in securing those commodities with a particular focus on policy implications that create, or undermine, efforts to create a more equitable and sustainable economy and planet.

In 2020, 45 of the 50 most violent cities in the world were located in the Global South—especially in Latin America and South Africa. The intensity of (lethal) criminal violence in some cities rivals the level of violence observed in many civil wars, leading to demands for "iron fist" policies and, unsurprisingly, to militarized security policies. In this policy lab, we will explore the characteristics of urban violence in the global south, critically appraise existing security policies and their results based on the best available evidence, and discuss other policy alternatives. Throughout the lab, we will also meet with practitioners who have shaped or implemented policies in cities of the Global South, community activists, and academics whose research has a more immediate policy relevance.

This course will explore the role of global business in reducing poverty, inequality and attending to the needs of all stakeholders. Students will be introduced to the rapidly growing fields of impact investing and sustainable finance which support socially conscious and environmentally friendly innovations. Students will gain a broad overview of the financial and economic tools available, beyond government assistance and philanthropy, to support broad based wealth creation, equality of opportunity and natural resource preservation. Students will be invited to participate in policy debates on certain topics and will read mini case studies on subjects such as microfinance, "place based" community investment and the role of CDFIs, and the issuance of green/blue sustainability bonds. Guest speakers/practitioners will be invited to engage the students in real world problem solving. The course will culminate in a small group project or paper to "reexamine business" as a force for good, which will be presented in class. It is open to students of all intended majors with no prerequisites, and should serve as a foray to several future areas of study such as global affairs, social entrepreneurship and sustainability.

In a religiously diverse and vastly troubled world, how do religious traditions motivate believers to work toward the common good? "Engaging World Religions," the course title, refers to three things we will examine. First, it describes how religions are intrinsically engaging: they draw in adherents by fulfilling their material, intellectual, and spiritual needs. Second, it specifies what various secular institutions like governments and development organizations must do in pursuing the common good across our planet -- most of whose inhabitants are religious. Finally, it characterizes our work in this class: exploring how various religious traditions conceptualize and work toward the common good in a global context. We will read historians, social scientists, philosophers, and critical theorists on how to analyze and interpret the role of religion in contemporary life, while examining case studies of how religious practices, beliefs, and identities intersect with issues in global affairs such as inequality, armed conflict, and climate change. In doing so, we will engage how religious traditions from the East and West -- from Asian and Abrahamic "world" religions, to a variety of indigenous "local" religions -- complicate or complement modern Catholicism's emphasis on Integral Human Development.

Since the dawn of history, human beings have been telling stories about their origin and destiny. From the Dreamtime of Aboriginals to the gods of the Hellenes, Norse tales to Abrahamic revelations, our ability to weave imagination and reason, tradition and experience, has underpinned our collective identity and shaped our history. Today, we are increasingly turning to science to tell these stories of origin and destiny. Concepts like entropy and evolution are giving us cosmic and biological arrows of history, one inexorably tending to disorder, the other to ever-increasing complexity. Unfolding across a series of identifiable thresholds, the budding field of Big History combines our nature as storytellers with our skill as scientists to provide a coherent narrative of life and the universe from the big bang to the present, offering what has been called a new creation story for our time. What tale does Big History tell, what sources of knowledge does it draw on, in what ways does it challenge traditional beliefs, and what futures does it imagine? Bridging the chasm between C.P. Snow's Two Cultures of the sciences and humanities, this interdisciplinary course engages big questions about religion, nature, science, culture, and meaning through great books in popular science with the help of theoretical contributions from science and technology studies. The class welcomes non-scientists who are interested in acquiring scientific literacy as well as scientists seeking to acquire religious and social science literacy. We will look for the best descriptions of nature available to us today (the "is") to draw inspiration for unique insights on how to be (the "ought"). The readings and discussions of this class will provide global citizens in the twenty-first century of diverse religious, theological, or philosophical persuasions a common framework of the past, a sense of presence in the Anthropocene, and conceptual tools to imagine a shared future.

Is Islam a religion or political ideology? Where do Muslims live? What do they look like? Do all Muslims want to live according to the Sharia? Is the Clash of Civilizations real? Can Muslims share the planet with non-Muslims in permanent peace? Do Muslims have anything akin to Catholic Social Teaching? If you are interested in these kinds of questions, you need to take this course. A journey through the scripture and scholarly traditions of Islam, the course engages multiple overlapping and intersecting themes of relevance to global affairs, including geography and demographics; governance and political thought; international relations and organizations; civil society and social teachings; knowledge and education; ecology and climate change; migration and identity; human rights and dignity; war and peace; and development and progress. We will also look at contemporary debates surrounding Islam and religious freedom. The course provides a snapshot of the "Muslim world" in the heartlands where Islam originated, where it thrives in Asia, the Middle East, and Africa, and in places where Muslims live as influential minorities in Europe and North America, based on the latest available data and representative case studies. Designed as survey course with ample time for discussion, students with no prior exposure to Islam are welcome alongside more advanced students who wish to bring their knowledge of Islamic thought into conversation with the conditions of the contemporary world. graduate students with an interest in Religion may enroll with instructor permission.

This course examines US engagement in hotspots across the Muslim world before and after 9/11. In particular focus are nations in South Asia and the Middle East: Afghanistan, Pakistan, Iran, and Iraq. We will also look at US relations with important Muslim countries like Saudi Arabia and Egypt, as well as policies toward Israel-Palestine and the Bosnian War in Europe. US engagement abroad takes many forms, including public diplomacy, trade, sanctions, alliances, covert operations, financial and military aid, and direct military intervention. What are the drivers of American decision-making in the region? Why is there so much anti-American sentiment in Muslim societies? Does peace depend on a critical reassessment of US foreign policy or the reform of a radical Islamist theology? Do certain interpretations of religion make conflict inevitable, or is it possible to attain reasonable outcomes even when dealing with extremists? Through a blend of history, investigative journalism, case studies, opinion polls, literature, and film, this course broadens our perspectives on some of America's longest wars in the Muslim world.

To understand religion, we should go to Asia: Asia boasts the majority of the world's religions and religious people. In this class, we look at what Asian religious traditions are up to today, and how they inform everyday social and political life. How might religious traditions as diverse as Zen Buddhism and Zoroastrianism inform conflict, coexistence, and cooperation? What is it to be human within worldviews that seem to depart from our own with respect to gender, sexuality, ethnicity, dis/ability, and the natural world? How might society, culture, or economy develop in Sunni Muslim, humanistic Buddhist, or atheist Maoist terms? How might we learn to "scale up" spiritual practices such as shamanism, ancestor worship, radical nonviolence, and mindfulness meditation to solve global problems? We read historians, anthropologists, and other scholars of religion to explore Asian spiritual routes and roots, from Iraq to Japan and beyond.

Since the end of the Cold War, American Evangelicals' political influence has increased significantly. For example, Christian Zionist have continued to contribute meaningfully to American political support for the state of Israel. Additionally, to improve human dignity, Evangelicals have established schools and promoted literacy, built clinics and dispensaries, promoted agricultural development and distributed food aid, created orphanages, and propagated values about the inherent worth of all persons. Twenty-five to thirty percent of the US population is neo-evangelical and another five to ten percent adheres to some form of evangelical theology. That means that 100 million Americans are in one way or another tied to evangelical theology and they seem to pray, think, vote, and lobby as a coalition. This course will examine the rise of American Evangelicalism and explore matters deemed important to Evangelicals: social and political affairs, global engagement, participation in public affairs, international affairs, support of Israel, political and economic development. More generally, this course offers a compelling account of Evangelicals' influence on America's role in the world. Students will learn how to engage more thoughtfully and productively with this influential religious group - a group that has been called political kingmakers! Students will also learn about the largest protestant denomination in the world - Southern Baptists - from the professor, who was a former Southern Baptist Minister and church planter.

If your religion could run the world, what would it look like? Would we be living in the Kingdom of God if Catholics could remake the world according to Catholic Social Teaching? Would such a world look very different from an ideal Islamic caliphate? What are Jewish, Hindu, Buddhist, Indigenous, and Confucian visions of the good life, and how would they be any different from secularism, if we are all to flourish together in pluralist societies? This course is a tour de force in religious literacy for global affairs, predicated on the need to answer the question: Could it be that in order to make one world, we must first come to know many? We will journey through different worldviews, religions, and philosophies, engaging each on its own terms with narrative empathy. Can these many worlds coexist side-by-side in harmony? Are they destined to vie for dominance? Or, must they coevolve in a new synthesis for our modern technical age? Academics pride themselves in researching "the world as it is." Take a break. Let's have a conversation on "the world as it should be."

The study of religious beliefs and practices in tribal and peasant societies emphasizing myths, ritual, symbolism, and magic as ways of explaining man's place in the universe. Concepts of purity and pollution, the sacred and the profane, and types of ritual specialists and their relation to social structure will also be examined.

Civil Rights in the US is a living tradition that students can both understand and engage with. This course traces the non-linear, contested and ongoing history of Civil Rights in the US from the founding period to the present. It employs the perspectives of a lawyer and historian to illustrate how: the Civil War and the end of slavery made Civil Rights in the US possible, international human rights and Civil Rights in the US have interacted over time; the complicated relationship between the definition of Civil Rights and the realization of these rights played out over time, and the tensions between the federal government and the states continue to shape Civil Rights down to the present. The course is structured around three key historical periods in which Civil Rights in the US developed and the divisive legacy of these periods of possibility: The Founding and Constitutional period 1776-1790, Civil War and Reconstruction, 1863-1883 and the Civil Rights Era 1945-1991. Through an examination of social movements, Supreme Court cases, and congressional action the course illustrates how the meaning of citizenship and civil rights, who constituted a citizen, and what institutions—state and local government, private individuals, and so on—posed the biggest threat to equal treatment under the law changed over time. Finally, the course provides opportunities for students to actively participate in the US Civil Rights tradition.

The course adopts an entrepreneurial perspective in exploring the role of business in helping to address the poverty challenge in developing and developed economies. The multi-faceted nature of poverty and its implications when it comes to business and entrepreneurship are explored. Attention is devoted to venture creation as a pathway out of poverty, and to how the larger business community can be leveraged in poverty alleviation efforts. Students will examine case studies and meet low income entrepreneurs.

Students in the Global Affairs track of the Washington Program will meet with professionals working across a range of politics, policy, and global affairs fields.

Students in the Global Affairs track of the Washington Program must participate in experiential education through an internship. Internships are selected and secured by the students with the assistance of the Associate Director of Professional Development & Alumni Engagement for the Keough School of Global Affairs.

This module provides an introductory overview of the foundations, institutions and some of the main challenges of the contemporary Irish welfare state. It focuses on the main pillars of the system, including social security, health, education and housing. For each area, the module explores: a) the relevant policies; b) the relevant actors and policy implementation; c) the overall effectiveness of the policies; and d) the key challenges in each policy domain.

This course will allow the student to approach the phenomenon of migration and refuge in Chile and in the world. First, the fundamental concepts to understand the phenomenon from an interdisciplinary perspective will be reviewed. Its causes, the behavior of migratory flows and the policies applied in the host countries will be studied from the legal and intercultural perspectives.

This course will combine the theoretical study of foreign policy decision-making and implementation with the discussion of real-world international issues facing the United States. Students will be introduced to the foreign policymaking process, examining the actors, institutions, and culture of American foreign policy. In addition, students will analyze and debate pressing foreign policy issues including environmental policy, global democracy, US-China Relations, and more. Class assignments and discussions will be supplemented with guest speakers from the U.S. government, think tanks, NGOs, and other organizations to facilitate learning from and engaging with foreign policy experts and practitioners.

Students are placed to work as interns in various organizations ranging from commercial businesses to charitable foundations. Specifics of the internship expectations and assignments depends on the international location.

This course is for undergraduate students conducting independent research during a semester abroad.

The purpose of the course is for students to learn about the historical and theoretical bases of human rights; analyze the various generations of rights and the instruments used to guarantee their implementation. In addition, identify different sources of foundation of human rights and problematize the relationship between these and the ethical commitment of social work. Through a course-workshop methodology that stimulates peer learning, the student performs bibliographic analysis, case analysis, audiovisual material, and reflection exercises.

The course consists of an analysis of the international system, in terms of its evolution as well as the current reality. For this analysis, concepts of International Relations theory are introduced, in order to determine the conditions of peace and international conflict, based fundamentally on the conjunctural processes and the main actors of the system. To achieve the objective of the course, students must be informed of international news, for which up-to-date bibliography is included, research on issues that are on the international agenda, and a mastery of relevant issues is required. This class looks at international current events and relationships through an analytical lense, as correspondents or those who prepare reports on international news do. To achieve this we explore international relations theory, democratic politics, global security, world economy and geography. We then apply these topics to different on going cases in the world

Historical and cultural analysis of the relationship between Islam and Europe through the Mediterranean key. Knowledge of the main Italian and European legal and diplomatic instruments and of the main multilateral forums aimed at understanding the current economic, security and integration challenges. Aim to increase knowledge of the history of Italian foreign policy in the Mediterranean, of the main documents and laws relating to emigration and the relationship with Africa. Also includes study of the environmental policies activated by the countries of the southern shores of the Mediterranean to respond to the current crisis. National and supranational legislation to combat terrorism. Students should gain an ability to frame the current challenges and opportunities in relations between Europe and the countries of the southern shore through both a historical and legal-diplomatic perspective.

Race is a social construct. So why have scientists spent centuries trying to quantify, measure, and categorize people by race? From early anthropometry to the Human Genome Project, this course examines the production and embedding of race into scientific knowledge since the 18th century. Designed for students interested in the history of science and the production of scientific knowledge or those curious about the origins of scientific racism and racial inequality, this course is also well-suited for students pursuing careers in the health professions. By focusing on historical discourses on the production and dissemination of scientific knowledge of race, students will be able to: Understand how race, racism, and racial inequality are embedded in scientific knowledge Outline the various methodologies different fields of science have used to group people into races Carefully evaluate scientific technologies for racial biases This is an upper level undergraduate and graduate seminar.

What is the Israeli-Palestinian conflict about? How did it start? How might it be resolved? Some interpretations rely on claims of ancient hatreds. Others invoke sacred and biblical narratives as their authority for claims to a land deemed holy by many different religions. Still others underscore the ills and legacies of settler colonialism and indigenous accounts of historical presence. Some invoke international law and human rights to make their claims. This course will explore these arguments surrounding the Israeli-Palestinian conflict through screening and discussion of cinematic representation, narrative argument, and documentary films. Multiple genres provide powerful tools to introduce students to multiple perspectives, conceptions of history, experiences of injustice and grievances and loss, and imagining peace and justice. Each screening will be paired with relevant and interdisciplinary reading material. The students will emerge from this course with a detailed and complex understanding of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict from the present dating back to the late Ottoman period, the British control of historic Palestine, and the definitional moment of 1948 which is marked both as Israeli independence and the Palestinian catastrophe (the Nakba).

This course aims to provide students with advanced tools and concepts to analyze global education policies. The course builds on the analytical framework used by education economists to explore specific applied topics, such as the impact of different types of educational inputs on student learning, the cumulative process of life skills formation, the distribution of educational opportunities at the primary and secondary level, as well as access to higher education. Part of this course will involve in-class presentations that engage the broader debates on the challenges facing effective public policy. Students will critically evaluate existing policy options in different contexts, as well as propose potential innovations. By the course's end, students should have an analytical framework that allows them to think clearly about the impacts of education policies, as well as be able to judge the quality of existing evidence. The focus will be on developing informed, context-conscious, and evidence-based dialogs on both the desirability and viability of alternative policy options.

The course applies the tools of economic and public policy analysis to the study of poverty. There will be an emphasis throughout on existing research in economics, using theoretical tools and micro-econometric methods, as well as policy examples from a variety of contexts worldwide. The course aims to give students an understanding of the existing epistemological definitions and measurements of poverty; the causes and self-reinforcement mechanisms of deprivation; the prevalence of poverty and severity trends worldwide; existing best practices for poverty reduction, and modern principles of poverty policy design. By the end of the course, students should (i) have an overview of the global trends and characteristics of poverty; (ii) read specialized literature and apply their knowledge of economic theory and econometrics to the design, implementation, and evaluation of poverty policy; and (iii) understand the critical debates in thinking about deprivation at a global scale.

At a moment when global challenges - from climate change to inclusive development to public health threats - loom large, many nation-states seem unable to come together to address them. In what ways are the world's cities and subnational governments working on their own and in concert to meet these challenges? This course examines the distinctive roles and capacities of cities, provinces, and states in managing global policy issues and explores different modes of trans-local cooperation and coordination. We start by considering the global governance shortcomings of nation-states and exploring the multilevel character of key policy challenges. We next use case studies from different issue-areas to assess how action by subnational governments is contributing to but also complicating solutions. We conclude by discussing the limitations of subnational approaches to global challenges and considering the most appropriate policy roles and portfolios for subnational actors in the 21st century.

This course will examine how many people worldwide have been forced from their homes, why they were forced to move and where they are going, and what the international community is doing about this historically large movement of people. It will focus on issues raised by contemporary migration patterns, and the role of nation states and international organizations, like the European Union, the United Nations and the Catholic Church in responding to migration flows and patterns. The course will highlight causes of migration and the policy process in responding to it. It meets twice weekly, evenings, for 3 weeks with additional tutorials.

U.S. and international policymakers continue to face increasingly complex challenges related to peacemaking. In recent years, armed conflicts in many parts of the world have become more violent, more protracted, and more likely to involve extremist and criminal actors. Persistent crises in Afghanistan, Central Africa, Libya, Iraq, the Northern Triangle, the Sahel, Somalia, Syria, and Ukraine illustrate these challenges. In response, what policy options are available to promote lasting peace while addressing national security interests and threats? What opportunities exist for promoting new and innovative policies? Drawing on extensive practitioner experiences, this course will examine the major factors that have shaped U.S. and international policy responses to violent conflict and state fragility over recent decades, how those factors are evolving, and how individual actors and groups can influence policy in the future.

This foundational course presents theories, cases and skills related to international mediation in high intensity conflicts (e.g. South Sudan, Yemen and Colombia). We will review the literature on international mediation and conflict resolution; explore relevant theories and examine their validity in actual cases; and share practitioner experiences of mediation initiatives led by the United Nations, the African Union and other organizations. We will also introduce and practice the skills of peacemaking analysis, planning and facilitating agreements. The course will deepen understanding of international mediation and offer students a foundation for practical engagement.

Climate change is destabilizing economic, political, legal, and social institutions everywhere. In this context, how can rules and norms be used to foster sustainable development and maintain social order? This is a pressing question for international and domestic stakeholders concerned with the causes and consequences of climate change. Global South countries are disproportionately facing the immediate local impacts of global environmental change. In the Global North, historically marginalized groups are unequally vulnerable to climate-related risks. This course aims to provide students with an interdisciplinary understanding of the influence of actors, institutions, and organizations on climate policymaking and its effects on people's lives. While the course will emphasize global political and legal affairs, we will also discuss the role of the law in shaping climate change governance at the national and subnational levels of government. In doing so, we will explore how individuals and interest groups turn to the legal system when climate change and sustainable development policies are ineffective. Ultimately, this course will give students the tools to think critically about laws and policies devised to address social-ecological problems worsened by climate change.

The new wave of technologies, e.g., robotics and AI will have long-lasting impacts on the labor market. Jobs will be displaced, new tasks will be created, different skills will be demanded, and new management practices will emerge. These new technologies may benefit workers unevenly, potentially increasing inequality. At the same time, new demographic challenges driven by aging will have large impacts on labor. How will these forces affect the future of labor and how should we prepare for changes in the labor market? The goal of this course is to provide students with a framework for analyzing how new technologies like robotics and AI will affect the labor market drawing largely from the economics literature. Students will analyze and describe the literature on these topics and understand the different methodologies used in the literature. Ultimately, students will build perspectives on how AI and robotics could affect jobs, occupations, the future of work, income distribution and social institutions. Students will also build perspectives on education, training, and redistribution policies that can help mitigate the labor market disruptions created by technological change. Students will collect and analyze data that can provide insights on the future of labor.

The class will meet in the early spring, the period that for years has marked the start of seasonal migration with Central America and Mexico and to the United States southern border. The class will monitor U.S. government response to that migration and explore alternative and/or additional policy interventions to address this migration. Topics will include but not be limited to asylum policy and practice, migrant detention policies and practices, international cooperation on migration among the United States, Mexico, and Central American countries, and the impact of climate change on migration. Participants in the class will develop a keen understanding of migration patterns in Central and North America, strengthen policy analysis skills as they review actions and proposed actions from the USG related to that migration, and will practice and strengthen policy writing skills.

In this course we will focus on the policy approaches of developing countries to address the interplay of pervasive informal work, limited job growth, the rise of the gig-economy, and of platform-based employment. We will consider why some countries might give up on the idea of having dynamic labor markets, and move to providing universal income. You will deepen your knowledge of policy debates on the future of work in developing countries, and you will acquire the skills necessary to engage with these debates. We will connect with specialists in this emerging field to help us understand the complexities faced by advocates and policy makers confronting these issues.

Modern civilization requires massive quantities of commodities to flourish. Those commodities must be cut, harvested or mined and require energy, inputs and technology to produce, process and transport. Can our planet sustain the processes of securing these commodities indefinitely to satisfy the demands of growing consumer driven economies. What is the path to sustainability? This course will focus on the ethical questions and challenges that arise in securing those commodities with a particular focus on policy implications that create, or undermine, efforts to create a more equitable and sustainable economy and planet.

Economists used to believe that a certain level of inequality was the price of doing business in a market economy. They presumed that the clever entrepreneur should be rewarded for their ingenuity and ability to create value. Today, however, the world is seeing unprecedented levels of inequality and concentrations of wealth that are distorting markets, undermining democratic institutions, polarizing citizens, and driving increasing unemployment, homelessness and deaths of despair. Such concentrations of wealth have not been seen since the eve of the Great Depression. Suddenly, political leaders and economists are worried. Why? This course will try to answer the following questions: 1) what were the factors that have created the accelerating growth of inequality both domestically and globally?; 2) What are its most significant manifestations and impacts?; 3) And what is or must be done to address the challenges inequality poses both at home and abroad?

Together with Nobel Peace Laureate Juan Manuel Santos, in this course we will explore, analyze and reflect on the peace process between the Colombian government and the former guerrillas FARC-EP between 2012 and 2016. Students will tap into the potential for identifying and disseminating best practices for peacemaking to support conflict transformation efforts in other countries. Undergraduates will need approval from the professor to register.

This five-week course will examine forced migration from the perspective of the beliefs, teachings, and programmatic commitments of faith communities. The first week will be devoted to identifying the causes of and global trends in forced migration, as well as the categories of forced migrants. It will also explore the “law of migration”; that is, the diverse legal systems that migrants must negotiate on their journeys and that religious actors use to assess migration policies. The second week will explore the teachings of diverse faith communities on forced migration, their understanding of this immense and growing phenomenon, and their programmatic and policy responses. The third week will segue to state-centered approaches to the governance and management of migration, with a focus on the concepts of sovereignty and the rule of law. It will also consider ideologies such as nativism and exclusionary nationalism that are in tension with the beliefs, policy positions, and programs of religious actors. The fourth week will be devoted to guest speakers and student presentation on situations of protracted displacement throughout the world. Persons in protracted displacement have lived in exile for at least five years and have no viable course out of their “long lasting and intractable status of limbo.” The fifth week will be devoted to US refugee protection trends and policies.

This course is an introductory course on Christian and Islamic theologies that are inspired by the lives of, constructed through the lens of, and informed by the intersectional struggles of Christian and Muslim women. The course is divided into three major units. The first unit will be dedicated to analyzing the connection between secular feminist epistemologies and theories with the rise of Christian and Islamic feminist theologies. The second unit will consist of an exploration of different themes in Christian feminist theologies (Christology(ies), Ecclesiology(ies), and interreligious dialogue). Finally, the third unit of the course will provide an inquiry into core topics in Islamic feminist theologies (Quranic hermeneutics, formation of tradition and authorities, and interreligious dialogue). The questions that the course aims to engage are: What are the major perspectives in Christian and Islamic feminist theologies? What makes a theology "feminist" and what make other theologies are not? How do women's lives inform the formation of a "feminist theology"? How do Christian and Islamic feminist theologies respond to the challenges of gendered, structural violence?The course aims to invite students to critically engage with the work of Christian and Muslim feminist theologians, especially those of colors. Furthermore, though some readings will seek to provide historical insight into the places of women in Early and Medieval Christian and Islamic traditions, this course significantly focuses on the work of contemporary Christian and Muslim feminist theologians with an eye towards intersectional forms of oppression (racial, gender, and class-based) suffered by Christian and Muslim women of colors.

This course is an introduction to the Qur'an with particular attention to scholarship on the origins of the Qur'an and to the Qur'an's relationship with the Bible and early Christian literature. In this course we will examine the Qur'an itself, traditional Islamic teaching on the Qur'an, and academic controversies over the Qur'an. In addition we will examine the connection of the Qur'an to Christian theology. The Qur'an is fundamentally concerned with the great figures of Biblical tradition, including Abraham, Moses, Mary, and Jesus. Moreover, the Qur'an repeatedly refutes Christian doctrine. Thus it is an important text for anyone interested in the relationship between Islam and Christianity, or the relations between Muslims and Christians, in past centuries or in our age. *No background* at all in the Qur'an, Arabic, or Islam is necessary.

Is religion an obstacle or opportunity for women's empowerment? Religion is often seen as institutionalizing and perpetuating patriarchy and thus operating in contradiction to women's agency, rights, and equality. This course will grapple with the tensions and contradictions between the imperative of gender justice foregrounded in the Sustainable Development Goals and religions' competing conceptions of women's roles. The course will overcome some of this dichotomizing of secular and religious paradigms of development by looking at the theoretical and practical work of religious feminists. In responding to the question "is religion an obstacle or opportunity for women's empowerment?" we will debate why feminists and religious actors are hesitant to collaborate on development agenda and what does this indicate about the potential relations between development and religious reform. We will also examine feminist and queer theologies to the degree they contribute to reimagining international development praxis and the intersections of feminist theologies and environmental and decolonial justice.

LifeDesign: mindsets, skillsets, and habits for a more joyful and purposeful life LifeDesign is an opportunity to shape your life's journey by developing mindsets, and putting into practice skillsets and habits, for a more joyful and purposeful life. This experimental workshop does not assume to give you the "right" answer. Rather, together we will go on a journey exploring science (from psychology, behavioral science, and neuroscience) that you can use in your own life. You will also have multiple pathways to try out practical ideas and to reflect on your own life. This model has been built collaboratively with students on questions that they feel are important. These include designing your life, exploring purpose, practicing gratitude, unleashing creativity, becoming more mindful, and embracing a growth mindset. There will also be strategies for identifying and mapping key stakeholders that might inform your professional journey, and specific strategies for reaching out and engaging those stakeholders as part of this process.

Foundations of Negotiation is a skill-building class that explores negotiation theory and practice in a variety of contexts. The course is designed for students interested in addressing a broad range of negotiation challenges, from those in one's own life, to working with teams, and to addressing complex problems in the global context. The course focuses on a broad set of negotiation and relational skills including developing an awareness for the multiple interests of self and others, understanding different processes for value creation and value claiming, building trust, and managing conflict. The class has a strong practical focus, using negotiation case studies, role plays, and negotiation simulations. This class will work to: 1) understand the theory and principles of negotiation in different contexts; 2) develop an awareness of the negotiation process and how an awareness of process can assist in addressing complex challenges; and 3) use simulations and cases to practice and develop one's own negotiations skills.

Students, in a structured format, are involved in assessing, prioritizing and creatively solving problems encountered by low-income and other disadvantaged South Bend entrepreneurs. A process consulting approach is employed and a number of useful tools and frameworks are introduced. Students work with both for-profit and non-profit enterprises, producing tangible deliverables that help clients launch, grow and sustain their ventures. In addition to class time, students will meet with clients on a weekly basis at a Notre Dame facility located downtown. Assistance with transportation will be available for students needing it. Class will meet on Tuesdays. On Thursdays, students will consult with local entrepreneurs in one hour blocks during the hours of 5p to 9p at the Center for Civic Innovation. This consulting time is flexible with students' schedules and based on appointments made by local entrepreneurs.

How are identities important in a world of frictions and connections? How do different societies deal with cultural, linguistic, religious, gendered, embodied, intergenerational, and racialized diversities (and related injustice or inequality)? How are these accommodated within (more or less) democratic regimes? How do democracies change as a result? What are the differences between multiculturalism, relativism, and pluralism? The course addresses such questions by focusing on issues including but not limited to police violence and urban riots; Arab Uprisings; Muslim-Christian-Jewish relationships (conflict and coexistence) in Egypt and Iran; gendered practices and embodied aesthetics; the experience of refugees, and the crafting of identities, in the journey between Somalia and the US. We will also use news/magazine articles, as sources of information and as artifacts to be analyzed.

This course is designed for students who are completing the Supplementary Major in Global Affairs and is primarily intended to achieve three objectives: (1) give students an opportunity to conduct independent research; (2) provide students with guidance and support in completing their capstone research project; and (3) bring student research into dialogue with trends in the field of Global Affairs. Although each student will work on his/her/their own project, we will move, as a group, through the normal stages of a project and contribute in meaningful ways to each other's work.

Course credit toward graduation for up to two internships for Keough School students upon approval by the Dean's Office. Students are required to obtain a letter of offer for the internship and to provide a statement of goals and objectives in advance of beginning the internship. Students are expected to keep a journal over the course of the internship, complete a reflection paper and submit a letter of evaluation from the internship supervisor upon completion of duties.