An interdepartmental program in International and Global Studies

Last updated: August 22, 2011 at 1:01 p.m.

Objectives

International and global studies (IGS) is an interdisciplinary program that provides students with an opportunity to understand the complex processes of globalization that have so profoundly affected politics, economics, culture, society, the environment, and many other facets of our lives. After a set of four foundational courses (a gateway introductory survey and three core courses), students select elective courses that broaden their knowledge of the physical, institutional, and expressive dimensions of our global world. To gain a deeper understanding of other cultures, IGS majors take one additional language course (beyond the university requirement) and complete either study abroad or an internship abroad (or some combination of the two). The IGS program thus combines a set of rigorous foundational courses, an opportunity to understand the multiple dimensions of globalization, and a combination of superior language skills and international residency (study or work) for meaningful, firsthand experiential learning.

How to Become a Major or a Minor

Students who wish to major or minor in international and global studies should meet with the undergraduate advising head to select an adviser from the list of faculty members teaching or otherwise affiliated with the IGS program. Although IGS fulfills the university requirements as a major, students will often find it highly advantageous to combine it with another major or minor in a specific discipline or area studies curriculum.

Students should take IGS 10a (Introduction to International and Global Studies) during their first or second year; this course provides a systematic introduction to the key issues of contemporary global change, provides an overview of three distributional categories (from which the student will select their elective courses), and gives an orientation to the options for international internships and study abroad. In addition, students must take three core courses in the disciplines of anthropology (ANTH 1a, Introduction to the Comparative Study of Human Societies), economics (ECON 8b, Global Economy, or IGS 8a, Economic Principles and Globalization), and politics (POL 15a, Introduction to International Relations). Ideally students should complete these four foundational courses by the end of the sophomore year.

Faculty Committee

Chandler Rosenberger, Chair; Undergraduate Advising Head; Honors Advisor; Study Abroad Liaison
(Sociology)

Laura Goldin, Internship Coordinator
(American Studies)

Paul Jankowski
(History)

Richard J. Parmentier
(Anthropology)

Affiliated Faculty (contributing to the curriculum, advising and administration of the department or program)
Kerry Chase (Politics)
Richard Gaskins (American Studies)
Gary Jefferson (Economics)
Richard Parmentier (Anthropology)
Fernando Rosenberg (Romance Studies)
Ellen Schattschneider (Anthropology)
Harleen Singh (German, Russian, and Asian Languages and Literature)

Requirements for the Minor

Successful completion of six courses are required for the minor:

A. Gateway course: IGS 10a (Introduction to International and Global Studies)

B. Core courses: ANTH 1a (Introduction to the Comparative Study of Human Societies), ECON 8b (Global Economy) or IGS 8a (Economic Principles and Globalization), and POL 15a (Introduction to International Relations).

C.Electives: Two courses from any of the three distributional categories:

Media, Culture, and the Arts

Governance, Conflict, and Responsibility

Economy, Health, and Environment

D. No more than three of these courses may count toward another minor.

E. Minimum grade: All Brandeis courses used to fulfill the requirements of the IGS minor must be taken for a letter grade (not pass/fail) and must be C or above.

Requirements for the Major

Successful completion of ten courses are required for the major:

A. Gateway course: IGS 10a (Introduction to International and Global Studies).

B. Core courses: ANTH 1a (Introduction to the Comparative Study of Human Societies); ECON 8b (Global Economy) or IGS 8a (Economic Principles and Globalization); and POL 15a (Introduction to International Relations).

C. Electives: Six additional courses, two from each of the following three distributional categories:

Media, Culture, and the Arts

Governance, Conflict, and Responsibility

Economy, Health, and Environment

For specific courses in each category refer to the course lists below.

D. Global Issues: at least two of the six elective courses need to deal specifically with global issues--AAAS 117a, AAAS 158a, AMST 102a, ANTH 55a, ANTH 121a, ANTH 127a, ANTH 129b, ANTH 142a, ANTH 144a, ANTH 163b, ANTH 184b, BIOL 17b, BIOL 23a, BIOL 134b, BISC 2a, BISC 3b, CHEM 33a, CHSC 3b, COML 120b, COML 122b, ECON 141b, ECON 172b, ENG 77b, ENG 111b, ENG 141a, ENG 155a, ENVS 15a, ENVS 17b, ENVS 18b, ENVS 19a, GECS 160a, HIST 56b, HIST 61a, HIST 100a, HS 110a, HSSP 102a, LGLS 124b, LGLS 125b, PHIL 19a, POL 127a, POL 127b, POL 158b, POL 161b, POL 163b, POL 165a, POL 172b, POL 175b, POL 180b, SOC 119a, SOC 120b, SOC 127a, SOC 128a, SOC 162a, WMGS 5a.

E. Auxiliary language: Completion of a fourth-semester course in a modern foreign language. The requirement may be fulfilled by enrolling in language courses at Brandeis or elsewhere, or by providing other evidence of proficiency, such as course work offered in that language.

F. International experience: Normally, students satisfy this requirement for a semester-long study abroad program (during the academic year) approved by Brandeis’s Study Abroad Office. Students may substitute an international internship for study abroad; the internship must include at least one hundred hours over at least six weeks (presumably during the summer) and must be at an organization concerned with the central issues of the IGS major. If extended international residence would be a hardship, IGS students may petition the IGS internship coordinator to undertake a U.S.-based internship directly involved in international and global issues.Students meeting this requirement with an international or domestic internship must receive permission of the IGS internship coordinator prior to starting the internship, and must enroll in IGS 89b (usually offered in the fall semester) either during or immediately after their internship.

G. Senior Thesis (optional): Exceptional students interested in completing an honors thesis as seniors should apply to the honors coordinator, preferably in the spring of their junior year.  Thesis students must have a minimum GPA of 3.3 in the courses counted toward the IGS major, and be engaged on a thesis project closely tied to IGS themes (as determined by the IGS honors coordinator). The student's primary thesis adviser should be an IGS faculty member -- any faculty member who teaches an IGS or IGS cross-listed course. The examining committee for the thesis must include at least two other faculty members, at least one of whom teaches an IGS or IGS cross-listed course. Thesis students will register for IGS 99d (a full-year course) with the thesis adviser. The first semester of IGS 99d may be used toward the requirement of two IGS electives (see requirement D, above). IGS departmental honors are based on the examining committee's evaluation of the completed thesis and the record in courses for the IGS major.

H. No more than five courses from any one department will be counted toward the major.

I. Minimum Grade: All Brandeis courses used to fulfill the requirements of the IGS major must be taken for a letter grade (not pass/fail) and must be C or above.

Courses of Instruction

(1-99) Primarily for Undergraduate Students

IGS 8a Economic Principles and Globalization
[ ss ]
Students who have previously taken ECON 2a and ECON 8b may not receive credit for IGS 8a.
An introduction to basic economic principles needed to understand the causes and economic effects of increased international flows of goods, people, firms, and money. Attention paid to international economic institutions (World Trade Organization, International Monetary Fund, World Bank), strategies for economic development, and globalization controversies (global warming, sweatshops). Usually offered every year.
Mr. Coiner

IGS 10a Introduction to International and Global Studies
[ ss ]
"Globalization" touches us more every day. Introduces the challenges of globalization to national and international governance, economic success, individual and group identities, cultural diversity, the environment, and inequalities within and between nations, regions of the globe, gender, and race. Usually offered every year.
Mr. Chase or Mr. Rosenberger

IGS 89b Internship Seminar in International and Global Studies
This is an experiential learning course. Prerequisite: IGS 10a.
A weekly seminar combined with an internship placement at an organization focusing on global matters. Academic components include readings on globalization, oral presentation on research, and a paper reflecting on the internship experience. Students are responsible for arranging their own internship placement and for contacting the instructor before the start of their internship. This course may count toward the IGS major requirement as an elective outside the student's specialization. Usually offered every year.
Staff

IGS 92a Global Studies Internship
This course is offered only for non-IGS majors, or for IGS majors engaged in approved credit-bearing internships who have been exempted from IGS 89b. Signature of the IGS internship coordinator is required. Usually offered every year.
Staff

IGS 97a Senior Essay
Usually offered every year.
Staff

IGS 97b Senior Essay
Prerequisite: IGS 97a.
Usually offered every year.
Staff

IGS 98a Independent Study
Usually offered every year.
Staff

IGS 98b Independent Study
Usually offered every year.
Staff

IGS 99d Senior Research
Seniors who are candidates for degrees with honors in IGS must register for this course and, under the direction of a faculty member, prepare an honors thesis on a suitable topic. Usually offered every year.
Staff

(100-199) For Both Undergraduate and Graduate Students

IGS 110a Behind the Veil: Religion, Race and Ethnicity in France
[ ss ]
Examines questions of religion, race and ethnicity that, with restrictions on the burqa and a debate on "national identity," are now at the center of French life. This course will examine these debates in light of post-colonialism, state-sponsored secularism and globalization. Special one-time offering fall 2011.
Ms. Gasquet

IGS/LGLS 128b Networks of Global Justice
[ ss ]
Course to be taught at Brandeis program in The Hague.
Compares constitutional practices in the United States; the reformed communist nations of Eastern Europe; and the modernizing nations in Asia, Africa, and Latin America. Focuses on the creation and evolution of constitutional structures, problems of federation and ethnicity, and protection of fundamental rights. Usually offered every second year.
Staff

IGS/LGLS 180a The Spirit of International Law
[ ss ]
Course to be taught at Brandeis program in The Hague.
This course provides a broad survey of international law--how it aspires to peace, justice, and human rights; and how it meets the hard realities of a complex world. Building on direct contact with international tribunals, the course considers social, cultural, political, and economic factors shaping global justice, along with the impact of legal values on nations, regions, and communities. Usually offered every year.
Mr. Gaskins

IGS/LGLS 185b Advocacy in the International Criminal Court
[ ss ]
Course to be taught at Brandeis program in The Hague.
After setting the historical and critical framework for international criminal law, this course features intensive workshops with advocates and officials of the International Criminal Court in The Hague, in cooperation with the University of Leiden. Sessions will include moot court exercises and discussions with judges from the major international tribunals. Usually offered every year.
Mr. Gaskins

International and Global Studies: Core Courses

ANTH 1a Introduction to the Comparative Study of Human Societies
[ nw ss ]
Examines the ways human beings construct their lives in a variety of societies. Includes the study of the concept of culture, kinship and social organization, political economy, gender and sexuality, religion and ritual, symbols and language, social inequalities and social change, and globalization. Consideration of anthropological research methods and approaches to cross-cultural analysis. Usually offered every semester.
Ms. Lamb, Ms. McIntosh, or Mr. Urcid

ECON 8b The Global Economy
[ ss ]
Prerequisite: ECON 2a.
Applies the basic tools and models of economic analysis to a wide range of topics in micro-, macro-, and international economics. Usually offered every semester in multiple sections.
Staff

IGS 8a Economic Principles and Globalization
[ ss ]
Students who have previously taken ECON 2a and ECON 8b may not receive credit for IGS 8a.
An introduction to basic economic principles needed to understand the causes and economic effects of increased international flows of goods, people, firms, and money. Attention paid to international economic institutions (World Trade Organization, International Monetary Fund, World Bank), strategies for economic development, and globalization controversies (global warming, sweatshops). Usually offered every year.
Mr. Coiner

IGS 10a Introduction to International and Global Studies
[ ss ]
"Globalization" touches us more every day. Introduces the challenges of globalization to national and international governance, economic success, individual and group identities, cultural diversity, the environment, and inequalities within and between nations, regions of the globe, gender, and race. Usually offered every year.
Mr. Chase or Mr. Rosenberger

POL 15a Introduction to International Relations
[ ss ]
General introduction to international politics, emphasizing the essential characteristics of the international system as a basis for understanding the foreign policy of individual countries. Analysis of causes of war, conditions of peace, patterns of influence, the nature of the world's political economy, global environmental issues, human rights, and prospects for international organizations. Open to first-year students. Usually offered every semester.
Mr. Art or Mr. Chase

IGS: Governance, Conflict and Responsibility

AAAS 18b Africa and the West
[ nw ss ]
Focuses on the relationship between Africa and the "West" from the time of the ancient Egyptians to the postcolonial period. It also assesses the dilemma neocolonialism poses for the West. Usually offered every second year.
Mr. Sundiata

AAAS 125b Caribbean Women and Globalization: Sexuality, Citizenship, Work
[ ss wi ]
Utilizing perspectives from sociology, anthropology, fiction, and music to examine the relationship between women's sexuality and conceptions of labor, citizenship, and sovereignty. The course considers these alongside conceptions of masculinity, contending feminisms, and the global perspective. Usually offered every second year.
Ms. Smith

AAAS 163b Africa in World Politics
[ nw ss ]
Explores the impact of African states in world affairs; the African and Afro-Asian groups in the United Nations; relations with Eastern Europe, Western Europe, and the Americas; the Afro-Asian movement; nonalignment; the Organization of African Unity; and Pan-Africanism. Usually offered every second year.
Mr. Nyangoni

ANTH 140a Human Rights in Global Perspective
[ ss ]
Explores a range of debates about human rights as a concept as well as the practice of human rights work. The human rights movement seeks the recognition of universal norms that transcend political and cultural difference while anthropology seeks to explore and analyze the great diversity of human life. To what extent can these two goals--advocating for universal norms and respecting cultural difference--be reconciled? The course examines cases from various parts of the world concerning: indigenous peoples, environment, health, gender, genocide/violence/nation-states and globalization. Usually offered every third year.
Ms. Ferry or Ms. McCullough

FREN 111a The Republic
[ fl hum wi ]
Prerequisite: FREN 106b or the equivalent, or permission of the instructor.
The "Republic" analyzes how the republican ideal of the citizen devoid of religious, ethnic, or gender identity has fared in different Francophone political milieux. Course involves understanding how political institutions such as constitutions, parliaments, and court systems interact with reality of modern societies in which religious, ethnic, and gender identities play important roles. Usually offered every year.
Mr. Randall

HIST 56b World History to 1960
[ nw ss ]
An introductory survey of world history, from the dawn of "civilization" to c.1960. Topics include the establishment and rivalry of political communities, the development of material life, and the historical formation of cultural identities. Usually offered every second year.
Mr. Sreenivasan

HIST 61a Cultures in Conflict since 1300
[ ss wi ]
Explores the ways in which cultures and civilizations have collided since 1300, and the ways in which cultural differences account for major wars and conflicts in world history since then. Usually offered every year.
Mr. Freeze and Mr. Jankowski

HIST 71b Latin American History, 1870 to the Present
[ hum nw ss ]
Modern Latin America, with stress on the interactions of economics, politics, and external dependency in the region. Usually offered every year.
Staff

HIST 80b East Asia: Nineteenth Century to the Present (China and Japan)
[ hum nw ss ]
The civilization of East Asia at the beginning of the nineteenth century, the impact of the West, the contrasting responses of China and Japan to the confrontation, and the development and nature of their present societies. Usually offered every year.
Staff

HIST 112a Nationalism in the Middle East
[ nw ss ]
Seminar examining the history of nationalism in the modern Middle East. Covers divergent theories and practices of nationalism in the region, and explores the roles of gender, memory, historiography, and art in the formation and articulation of Middle East nationalisms. Usually offered every second year.
Ms. Sohrabi

HIST 115a History of Comparative Race and Ethnic Relations
[ ss ]
Explores and understands the origin and nature of racial and ethnic differences in the United States, South Africa, and Brazil. Explores how theoreticians explain and account for differences, and how race and ethnicity relate to economic class and social institutions. Usually offered every second year.
Mr. Sundiata

HIST 148b Central Asia in Modern Times
[ nw ss ]
Surveys the modern history of Central Asia, emphasizing the twentieth century and contemporary history; it gives particular attention to the processes of colonialization and modernization and their impact on the traditional social order and Islamic religious life. Usually offered every year.
Mr. Freeze

HIST 164b The American Century: The U.S. and the World, 1945 to the Present
[ ss wi ]
America's global role expanded dramatically in the aftermath of World War II. Explores key aspects of that new role, from the militarization of conflict with the Soviets to activities in the Third World. Usually offered every third year.
Mr. Engerman

HIST 174a The Legacy of 1898: U.S.-Caribbean Relations since the Spanish-American War
[ nw ss wi ]
This seminar explores relations between the Greater Antilles (Cuba, Puerto Rico, Haiti, and the Dominican Republic) and the United States during the twentieth century. Topics include interventions, cultural misunderstandings, migration, transnationalism, and Puerto Rican status. Usually offered every third year.
Ms. Arrom

HIST 182a Sino-American Relations from the Eighteenth Century to the Present
[ ss ]
A seminar providing a historical overview of two centuries of Sino-American relations. Diplomacy and war, mutual perceptions, Americans in China, Chinese emigration and communities in the United States, and relations between the United States and the People's Republic. Usually offered every third year.
Staff

HIST 186a Europe in World War II
[ ss wi ]
Examines the military and diplomatic, social and economic history of the war. Topics include war origins; allied diplomacy; the neutrals; war propaganda; occupation, resistance, and collaboration; the mass murder of the Jews; "peace feelers"; the war economies; scientific warfare and the development of nuclear weapons; and the origins of the Cold War. Usually offered every third year.
Mr. Jankowski

HIST 186b A Global History of the Vietnam Wars
[ ss wi ]
A reading and research seminar on the American involvement in Vietnam. Focuses on teaching the history of America's longest war, as well as improving the student's ability to write a research paper using source materials. Usually offered every second year.
Mr. Engerman

IGS 110a Behind the Veil: Religion, Race and Ethnicity in France
[ ss ]
Examines questions of religion, race and ethnicity that, with restrictions on the burqa and a debate on "national identity," are now at the center of French life. This course will examine these debates in light of post-colonialism, state-sponsored secularism and globalization. Special one-time offering fall 2011.
Ms. Gasquet

IGS/LGLS 128b Networks of Global Justice
[ ss ]
Course to be taught at Brandeis program in The Hague.
Compares constitutional practices in the United States; the reformed communist nations of Eastern Europe; and the modernizing nations in Asia, Africa, and Latin America. Focuses on the creation and evolution of constitutional structures, problems of federation and ethnicity, and protection of fundamental rights. Usually offered every second year.
Staff

IGS/LGLS 180a The Spirit of International Law
[ ss ]
Course to be taught at Brandeis program in The Hague.
This course provides a broad survey of international law--how it aspires to peace, justice, and human rights; and how it meets the hard realities of a complex world. Building on direct contact with international tribunals, the course considers social, cultural, political, and economic factors shaping global justice, along with the impact of legal values on nations, regions, and communities. Usually offered every year.
Mr. Gaskins

IGS/LGLS 185b Advocacy in the International Criminal Court
[ ss ]
Course to be taught at Brandeis program in The Hague.
After setting the historical and critical framework for international criminal law, this course features intensive workshops with advocates and officials of the International Criminal Court in The Hague, in cooperation with the University of Leiden. Sessions will include moot court exercises and discussions with judges from the major international tribunals. Usually offered every year.
Mr. Gaskins

IMES 104a Islam: Civilization and Institutions
[ hum nw ]
Provides a disciplined study of Islamic civilization from its origins to the current state of affairs. Approaches the study from a humanities perspective. Topics covered will include the Qur'an, tradition, law, theology, politics, Islam and other religions, modern developments, women in Islam, and Islam and Middle Eastern politics. Usually offered every second year.
Staff

LGLS 124b International Law and Development
[ nw ss ]
Surveys public and private forms of international law with special application to developing countries, and to political and social development in the global economy. Examines basic legal concepts of property, contract, and rule of law in the context of national and cultural transformations. Usually offered every second year.
Staff

LGLS 125b International Law and Organizations
[ ss ]
Introduction to international law, its nature, sources, and application, for example, its role in the management of international conflicts. Topics may include international agreements, international organizations including the United Nations and the International Court of Justice, states and recognition, nationality and alien rights, territorial and maritime jurisdiction, international claims, and the laws of war and human rights. Usually offered every second year.
Staff

NEJS 189a The Arab-Israeli Conflict
[ hum ss ]
Consideration of Arab-Jewish relations, attitudes, and interactions from 1880 to the present. Emphasis on social factors and intellectual currents and their impact on politics. Examines the conflict within its international setting. Usually offered every third year.
Staff

PHIL 19a Human Rights
[ hum wi ]
Examines international human rights policies and the moral and political issues to which they give rise. Includes civilians' wartime rights, the role of human rights in foreign policy, and the responsibility of individuals and states to alleviate world hunger and famine. Usually offered every second year.
Mr. Teuber

POL 127a Ending Deadly Conflict
[ ss wi ]
Prerequisite: POL 127b or permission of the instructor.
Examines strategies for ending violent internal (primarily ethnic) conflicts, with emphasis on identifying conditions conducive to negotiated settlements. Case studies are examined in light of analytical literature. Usually offered every second year.
Mr. Burg

POL 127b Seminar: Managing Ethnic Conflict
[ ss wi ]
Prerequisite: Sophomore standing or higher.
Comparative study of the sources and character of interethnic conflict, with emphasis on the processes by which groups become politicized, and the strategies and techniques for managing conflict in a democratic system. Usually offered every year.
Mr. Burg

POL 128a The Politics of Revolution: State Violence and Popular Insurgency in the Third World
[ nw ss ]
Introduction to twentieth-century revolutionary movements in the Third World, focusing on the emergence of peasant-based resistance and revolution in the world beyond the West, and on the role of state violence in provoking popular involvement in protest, rebellion, and insurgency. Usually offered every year.
Mr. Thaxton

POL 131b Social Movements in Latin America
[ ss ]
Origins, dynamics, and social and cultural impact of movements among indigenous groups, women, peasants, and blacks in Latin America since the 1980s. Comparative study of other social movements in Latin America and elsewhere in the world. Usually offered every year.
Staff

POL 134a Strategies of Islamic Political Activism in the Arab Middle East
[ ss ]
Islamic oriented, social and political movements in the Middle East politics, both violent and on-violent, ranging from the populist Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt to salafi-jihadist organizations such as Al-Qaeda. Particular attention to understanding developments since 9/11 and the war in Iraq. Usually offered every year.
Staff

POL 134b Immigration, State, and Nation
[ ss ]
Looks at immigration from the perspectives of policy-makers, migrants, and the groups affected by immigration in sender nations as well as destination countries. Introduces students to the history of migration policy, core concepts and facts about migration in the West, and to the theories and disagreements among immigrant scholars. Usually offered every second year.
Ms. Klausen

POL 144a Latin American Politics I
[ nw ss ]
Revolution, order, and regime transition in northern Latin America. Specific examination of the Mexican and Cuban revolutions and their outcomes. POL 144a is independent of POL 144b. Usually offered every year.
Mr. Hindley

POL 144b Latin American Politics II
[ nw ss ]
Emphasis on elite control, the military, the political role of populist politics, and the uncertain process of democratization. Brazil and Argentina are examined specifically. POL 144b is independent of POL 144a. Usually offered every year.
Mr. Hindley

POL 145b The Islamic Challenge: Politics and Religion in Western Europe and the United States
[ ss ]
Few issues have caused more public furor than the accommodation of Islam in Europe and the United States. It is often overlooked that Muslims are developing the institutions of their faith in societies that offer everyone the freedom of choice and expression. This seminar looks at religious discrimination as a barrier to the civic and political inclusion of Muslim immigrants, the responses of governments, courts, and the general public, and what we know about the balance among "fundamentalist, " "moderate," and "progressive" Muslim viewpoints. Usually offered every year.
Ms. Klausen

POL 146b Seminar: Topics in Revolutions in the Third World
[ nw ss ]
May be repeated for credit with permission of the instructor.
Explores revolutionary situations, revolutionary movements (successful and unsuccessful), and revolutionary regimes in the Third World since World War II. Specific topics may vary from year to year. Usually offered every year.
Mr. Hindley

POL 147a The Government and Politics of China
[ nw ss ]
Introduction to major themes of Chinese politics, emphasizing the rise of the Chinese Communists and the post-1949 trends in domestic politics, while also surveying historical, sociological, and cultural influences in Chinese politics. Attention to the nature of the traditional state, impact of colonialism, national revolution, and the course of contemporary state development. Usually offered every second year.
Mr. Thaxton

POL 150a Politics of Southeast Asia
[ nw ss ]
Introduction to the politics of modern Southeast Asia, with the focus on the indigenous peoples and their cultures, societies, and histories. The greatly changed and changing political systems of Indonesia and Thailand are examined individually in some depth. Usually offered every year.
Mr. Hindley

POL 153a The New Europe: European Economic and Political Integration
[ ss ]
The institutions and policymaking processes of the European Union (EU). Western European political and economic integration since 1945 and the resurgence of European integration since the mid-1980s. Social policy issues, policy harmonization and economic integration, European citizenship, and the reorientation of national politics in response to community expansion. The future of European unity and national cultures. Usually offered every second year.
Staff

POL 158b Comparative Perspectives on the Law and Politics of Group Rights
[ ss ]
Prerequisite: POL 11b or POL 14b.
The creation of new group rights for disadvantaged populations in democratic states through constitutional reform and affirmative action, and the legal and political dilemmas raised by efforts to implement these rights. Usually offered every second year.
Ms. Klausen

POL 160a The War on Global Terrorism
[ ss ]
Intended for juniors and seniors, but open to all students.
Explores how 9/11 changed our lives. The course surveys the build-up of Al Queda leading up to the 9/11 attacks and ten years of counter terrorism. Students are given an introduction to Jihadist doctrines and Al Queda's structure, as well as theories about the cause of terrorism. Usually offered every year.
Ms. Klausen

POL 163a Seminar: Human Rights and International Relations
[ ss ]
Prerequisite: POL 15a or equivalent.
How human rights issues are affecting and being handled by the nation-state system. Traditional vs. reformist views. Universalism vs. cultural relativism. Contemporary case studies. Usually offered every year.
Staff

POL 164a Conflict and Peacemaking in the Middle East
[ ss ]
Evolution of the Arab-Israeli conflict and the efforts to resolve it. Focuses on key documents and developments with particular emphasis on the Palestinian-Israeli dimension, and the different narratives adopted by the parties on the conflict. Usually offered every third year.
Mr. Feldman

POL 165a Seminar: Globalization and Governance in the Trading System
[ ss ]
Examines three tiers of governance in the trading system: the rules and authority of international agencies such as the World Trade Organization; the policymaking functions of national political institutions; and the role and influence of corporations, labor unions, citizen groups, and other private actors. Usually offered every second year.
Mr. Chase

POL 169b U.S. Policy in the Middle East
[ ss ]
Provides students with an understanding of the evolution of U.S. policy in the Middle East and the manner in which the local parties have perceived it. Usually offered every year.
Mr. Feldman

POL 172b International Political Economy
[ ss ]
Prerequisite: POL 15a.
The politics and modern evolution of international economic relations, comprising trade, money, multinational productions, and development. Also the role of states and transnational actors in international markets and the global differentiation of power, and distribution of wealth. Usually offered every year.
Mr. Chase

POL 174b Seminar: Problems of National Security
[ ss ]
Analysis of the role and utility of military power in international politics. Selected case studies from the last fifty years. Selected topics on post-Cold War military issues, including the spread of weapons of mass destruction, collective approaches to coercion, and the role of U.S. military power in world stability. Usually offered every year.
Mr. Art

POL 175b Global Civil Society
[ ss ]
The role of international organizations in the contemporary global political and economic system, the ways in which they influence or contribute to major international policy issues, and the interactions between international organizations and global civil society. Usually offered every year.
Staff

POL 176a Seminar: International Intervention
[ ss ]
The evolution of international law and practice in use of force for the resolution of conflicts. Case study of major post-cold war cases of international intervention, including humanitarian intervention. Usually offered every second year.
Mr. Burg

SAS 110b South Asian Postcolonial Writers
[ hum nw ]
Examines the postcolonial novel written in English within the shared history of colonialism, specifically British imperialism, for South Asia. Writers include R.K. Narayan, Salman Rushdie, Anita Desai, Arundhati Roy, Mohsin Hamid, Romesh Gunesekera and Daniyal Mueenudin. Usually offered every year.
Ms. Singh

SAS 140a We Who Are at Home Everywhere: Narratives from the South Asian Diaspora
[ hum ]
Looks at narratives from various locations of the South Asian Diaspora, while paying close attention to the emergence of an immigrant South Asian public culture. Examines novels, poetry, short stories, film, and music in order to further an understanding of South Asian immigrant culture. Usually offered every second year.
Ms. Singh

SAS 170b South Asia in the Colonial Archive
[ hum ]
Looks at colonial constructions of gender and race through a historical and literary investigation of British colonialism in South Asia. Examines intersections and constructions of gender, race, class, and sexuality in literature, public culture, and film within the parameters of British colonialism. Usually offered every second year.
Ms. Singh

SOC 119a War and Possibilities of Peace
[ ss ]
Ponders the possibility of a major "paradigm shift" under way from adversarialism and war to mutuality and peace. Examines war culture and peace culture and points in between, with emphases on the role of imagination in social change, growing global interdependence, and political, economic, gender, social class, and social psychological aspects of war and peace. Usually offered every year.
Mr. Fellman

SOC 122a The Sociology of American Immigration
[ ss ]
Most of us descend from immigrants. Focusing on the United States but in a global perspective, we address the following questions: Why do people migrate? How does this affect immigrants' occupations, gendered households, rights, identities, youth, and race relations with other groups? Usually offered every second year.
Staff

SOC 127a Gods and Nations: Identity in Global Relations
[ nw ss ]
Examines three sources of identity that are influential in global affairs: religion, ethnicity and nationalism. Considers theories of the relationship among these identities, especially "secularization theory," then reviews historical examples such as Poland, Iran, Iraq, and Pakistan. Usually offered every year.
Mr. Rosenberger

SOC 128a Religion and Globalization
[ ss ]
Examines the experience of religion as a global, social and individual marker of identity. Looks into the social-psychology of religious resurgence and new movements (Islamic, Evangelical, occult and others) with special attention paid to the role and character of globalization and its impact on religious activism and consciousness in the world today. Readings cover key comparative models in ongoing contemporary thought and research. Usually offered every third year.
Ms. Hayim

SOC 162a Intellectuals and Revolutionary Politics
[ ss ]
Examines the role of intellectuals in modern politics, especially their relationship to nationalism and revolutionary movements. In reading across a range of political revolutions(e.g. in Central Europe, Colonial Africa and Iran), students will have the chance to compare the relative significance of appeals to solidarity based on class, religion, ethnicity, and national identity. Usually offered every year.
Mr. Rosenberger

WMGS 105b Feminist Theories in Historical and Cross-Cultural Perspective
[ ss ]
Prerequisite: Students are encouraged, though not required, to take WMGS 5a prior to enrolling in this course.
Examines diverse theories of sex and gender within a multicultural framework, considering historical changes in feminist thought, the theoretical underpinnings of various feminist practices, and the implications of diverse and often conflicting theories for both academic inquiry and social change. Usually offered every spring.
Ms. Smith

IGS: Media, Culture, and The Arts

AAAS 117a Communications and Social Change in Developing Nations
[ ss ]
Examines the role of communications and information systems within and between developed and underdeveloped nations. Addresses the larger perspective of global communications. Usually offered every third year.
Mr. Nyangoni

AAAS 123a Third World Ideologies
[ nw ss wi ]
Analyzes ideological concepts developed by seminal Third World political thinkers and their application to modern political analysis. Usually offered every second year.
Mr. Nyangoni

AAAS 134b Novel and Film of the African Diaspora
[ hum nw ]
Writers and filmmakers, who are usually examined separately under national or regional canonical categories such as "(North) American," "Latin American," "African," "British," or "Caribbean," are brought together here to examine transnational identities and investments in "authentic," "African," or "black" identities. Usually offered every third year.
Ms. Smith

AMST 132b International Affairs and the American Media
[ ss ]
This is an experiential learning course.
Examines and assesses American media coverage of major international events and perspectives, with special emphasis on the Middle East. In addition to analyzing the political, economic, cultural, and tactical factors that influence coverage, students will be challenged to consider the extent to which the American media have influenced their own understanding of the crisis in the Middle East and the relationship the United States has with that part of the world. Students will engage in online chats with students in the Middle East, and they will write and edit their own television news pieces about developments in the region. Usually offered every second year.
Ms. Farrelly

AMST 134b The New Media in America
[ ss ]
Analyzes the adaptation of new media in American society and culture. Examines the ways Americans have thought about and utilized new methods of mass communication in the twentieth century. Usually offered every year.
Staff

AMST 140b The Asian American Experience
[ oc ss ]
This is an experiential learning course.
Examines the political, economic, social, and contemporary issues related to Asians in the United States from the mid-nineteenth century to the present. Topics include patterns of immigration and settlement, and individual, family, and community formation explored through history, literature, personal essays, films, and other popular media sources. Usually offered every second year.
Ms. Davé

AMST 142b Love, Law, and Labor: Asian American Women and Literature
[ ss ]
Explores the intersection of ethnicity, race, class, gender, and sexualities in the lives and literatures of diverse Asian American women. Discusses the historical, social, political, and economic forces shaping those lives and how they are reflected in literature. Usually offered every second year.
Ms. Davé

ANTH 26a Communication and Media
[ ss ]
An exploration of human communication and mass media from a cross-cultural perspective. Examines communication codes based on language and visual signs. The global impact of revolutions in media technology, including theories of cultural imperialism and indigenous uses of media is discussed. Usually offered every second year.
Ms. McIntosh

ANTH 80a Anthropology of Religion
[ nw ss ]
An introduction to the anthropological study of human religious experience, with particular emphasis on religious and ritual practice in comparative perspective. Examines the relationship between religion and society in small-scale, non-Western contexts as well as in complex societies, global cultures, and world historical religions. Usually offered every second year.
Ms. Lamb or Ms. Schattschneider

ANTH 112a African Art and Aesthetics
[ ca nw ss ]
This is an experiential learning course.
Studies the visual arts and aesthetics of sub-Saharan Africa and the African Diaspora, with attention to the spiritual, social, and cultural dimensions of art and performance. Special emphasis on the historical dynamism and cultural creativity of "tradition-based" and contemporary African artists. Usually offered every third year.
Staff

ANTH 114b Verbal Art and Cultural Performance
[ ss ]
Cross-cultural and interdisciplinary study of genres of verbal art and oral performance. Complex social uses of verbal arts in festival, drama, ritual, dance, carnival, and spectacle. Difficulty of reconstructing original context of narrative, oratory, poetry, and epic. Usually offered every third year.
Mr. Parmentier

ANTH 121a Crossing Cultural Boundaries
[ ss ]
May not be taken for credit by students who have taken ANTH 33b in prior years.
An examination of situations where individuals, either actually or imaginatively, willingly or unwillingly, cross over the boundaries separating their own culture and other cultural traditions. The understandings and misunderstandings that result from these encounters are examined in primary texts and images and in scholarly reconstructions. Transient experiences are compared with sites that develop over a long period of time (colonial settlements, plantations, frontiers). Potentials for reflexive self-understanding and meaningful dialogue are sought in fictional and nonfictional representations of boundary crossings. Usually offered every second year.
Mr. Parmentier

ANTH 129b Global, Transnational, and Diasporic Communities
[ ss ]
Examines social and cultural dimensions of globalization from an anthropological perspective. Topics include the impact of global capitalism upon indigenous communities, global forms of popular culture and consumerism, transnational migration and diasporas, changing inequalities and gender systems, global sexual cultures, and the AIDS pandemic. Includes a focus on the South Asian diaspora when taught by Ms. Lamb. Usually offered every second year.
Ms. Ferry or Ms. Lamb

ANTH 130b Visuality and Culture
[ ss ]
Explores the nature of the visual image in sociocultural theory and in ethnographic representation. Topics include the history of ethnographic film, development of indigenous arts, visuality in popular culture and mass consumption, and film in postcolonial representation. Usually offered every second year.
Ms. Schattschneider

ANTH 139b Language, Ethnicity, and Nationalism
[ ss ]
It is often assumed that language differences divide people, while a common language unites them. To what extent is this true? Taking cross-cultural and historical approaches, we examine the role of language in creating concepts of tribe, ethnicity, and nation. Explores what kinds of social groupings these terms might label, some ideologies connected with their use, and their relationship with communication systems. Usually offered every second year.
Ms. McIntosh

ANTH 144a The Anthropology of Gender
[ nw ss wi ]
Anthropology majors have priority for enrollment.
An examination of gender constructs, sexuality, and cultural systems from a comparative perspective. Topics include the division of labor, rituals of masculinity and femininity, the vexing question of the universality of women's subordination, cross-cultural perspectives on same-sex sexualities and transsexuality, the impact of globalization on systems, and the history of feminist anthropology. Usually offered every year.
Ms. Lamb or Ms. Schattschneider

ANTH 153a Writing Systems and Scribal Traditions
[ nw ss ]
Compares graphic forms of communication, ranging from semasiographic to alphabetic systems, from archaeological and ethnographic perspectives. Explores the social functions of early writing systems, the linkage of literacy and political power, and the production of historical memory. Usually offered every second year.
Mr. Urcid

ANTH 184b Cross-Cultural Art and Aesthetics
[ nw ss ]
A cross-cultural and diachronic exploration of art, focusing on the communicative aspects of visual aesthetics. The survey takes a broad view of how human societies deploy images to foster identities, lure into consumption, generate political propaganda, engage in ritual, render sacred propositions tangible, and chart the character of the cosmos. Usually offered every second year.
Mr. Urcid

ANTH/NEJ 169b Digging for National Roots: The Politics of Israeli Archaeology
[ hum ss ]
Examines the uneasy encounter between archaeology and nationalism, with a focus on Israel. Archaeology, beyond being an established academic discipline, has been used and abused in the service of political power structures, among them religious, ethnic and national movements. Looking for "tangible proof" of the nation's ancient glories and past achievements, national movements have made use of archaeological findings and theories in the process of forging a national identity. The rich Israeli case enables discussion of many theoretical motifs and offers a unique gaze on Israeli society and the changes it is undergoing. A one-time special offering, fall 2011.
Mr. Feige

COML 120b Dangerous Writers and Writers in Danger
[ hum ]
Examines the works of modern, twentieth-century writers from different areas of the world who have suffered exile, imprisonment, or death for their free thinking. Writers include: Alexandr Solzhenitsyn, Wole Soyinka, Gao Xinjan, Breyten Breytenbach, Reynoldo Arenas, and Salman Rushdie. Usually offered every second year.
Ms. Ratner

COML 122b Writing Home and Abroad: Literature by Women of Color
[ hum nw ]
Examines literature (prose, poetry, and memoirs) written by women of color across a wide spectrum of geographical and cultural sites. Literature written within the confines of the "home country" in the vernacular, as well as in English in immigrant locales, is read. The intersections of race, ethnicity, sexuality, gender, and class as contained by the larger institutions of government, religion, nationalism, and sectarian politics are examined. Usually offered every third year.
Ms. Singh

COML 160a Contemporary East European Literature
[ hum ]
Open to all students. Conducted in English.
Examines works of major East European (Polish, Czech, Russian, and other) authors in the historical context of late Communist and post-Communist experience. Special attention to reading for artistic qualities and engagement of historical and political problems. Usually offered every second year.
Mr. Powelstock

ENG 22a Filmi Fictions: From Page to Screen in India
[ hum nw ]
An introduction to filmic adaptations of Indian novels from Bollywood, Indian art cinema, and Hollywood. Readings include novels as well as theoretical approaches to adaptation. Films include Slumdog Millionaire, Pather Panchali, Devdas, Guide, Umrao Jaan, and others. Usually offered every third year.
Ms. Anjaria

ENG 77a Screening the Tropics
[ hum ]
How territories and modes of life are designated as "tropical," and how this is celebrated or "screened out" in film, photography, national policy, travelogues, and fiction. Films by Cozier, Cuaron, Duigan, Denis, Fung, Henzell, Ousmane, and Sissako. Usually offered every fourth year.
Ms. Smith

ENG 77b Literatures of Global English
[ hum nw ]
Survey of world Anglophone literatures with attention to writers' literary responses to aspects of English as a global language with a colonial history. Focus on Indian subcontinent, Africa, the Caribbean, North America. Writers may include Rushdie, Coetzee, Kincaid, Atwood, Anzaldua. Usually offered every third year.
Staff

ENG 111b Postcolonial Theory
[ hum ]
Seminar in postcolonial theory with relevant background texts, with an emphasis on the specificity of its theoretical claims. Readings from Spivak, Said, Bhabha, Appiah, Mudimbe, Marx, Lenin, Freud, Derrida, Césaire, and Fanon, among others. Usually offered every third year.
Ms. Anjaria

ENG 127a The Novel in India
[ hum nw wi ]
Survey of the novel and short story of the Indian subcontinent, their formal experiments in context of nationalism and postcolonial history. Authors may include Tagore, Anand, Manto, Desani, Narayan, Desai, Devi, Rushdie, Roy, Mistry, and Chaudhuri. Usually offered every second year.
Ms. Anjaria

ENG 127b Migrating Bodies, Migrating Texts
[ hum ]
Beginning with the region's representation as a tabula rasa, examines the textual and visual constructions of the Caribbean as colony, homeland, backyard, paradise, and Babylon, and how the region's migrations have prompted ideas about evolution, hedonism, imperialism, nationalism, and diaspora. Usually offered every second year.
Ms. Smith

ENG 137a Postimperial Fictions
[ hum ]
May not be taken for credit by students who took ENG 37a in prior years.
In what ways, and for what purposes, has postcolonial Britain sought imaginatively to recreate its imperial past? Discusses recent literary and cinematic representations of empire, in which critique, fascination, and nostalgia are, often problematically, blended. Authors include Paul Scott, Rushdie, Ishiguro, and Zadie Smith. Usually offered every fourth year.
Staff

ENG 141a Literature and Geography
[ hum oc ]
This is an experiential learning course.
What does where mean? This course studies the arguments of geographers, philosophers, and literary theorists who test spatial categories such as the city, the nation, and the globe. Usually offered every third year.
Ms. Irr

ENG 167a Decolonizing Fictions
[ hum nw ]
An introduction to basic concepts in postcolonial studies using selected literary works from South Asia, Africa, and the Caribbean. Specific themes covered include the colonial encounter; colonial education and the use of English; nationalism; gender, violence, and the body; and postcolonial diasporas. Usually offered every third year.
Ms. Anjaria

ENG 187b American Writers and World Affairs
[ hum wi ]
An exploration of early twentieth century American prose (mainly novels). Examines bold innovations in literary form made by authors such as Hemingway, Faulkner, and James. Considers how American works responded to and participated in world affairs. Usually offered every second year.
Ms. Irr

ENG 197b Within the Veil: African-American and Muslim Women's Writing
[ hum ]
In twentieth-century United States culture, the veil has become a powerful metaphor, signifying initially the interior of African-American community and the lives of Muslims globally. This course investigates issues of identity, imperialism, cultural loyalty, and spirituality by looking at and linking contemporary writing by African-American and Muslim women. Usually offered every third year.
Ms. Abdur-Rahman

FA 79a Modernism Elsewhere
[ ca nw ]
Explores major architectural developments from the late 19th to the 21st century outside the West. While focused on the territories between the India Subcontinent and North Africa, it examines Western colonial politics of center-periphery in creating architectural forms, discourses, and practices in the postcolonial world. Usually offered every third year.
Ms. Grigor

FA 182b Politics of Public Space
[ ca ]
An exploration of the politics of public space primarily in the Middle East and North Africa in the 20th and 21st centuries. Examines architectural monuments, urban landscapes, urban fabrics and square, and the use of historical landmarks as contentions of modern identity politics and power. Usually offered every third year.
Ms. Grigor

FA 192a Studies in Modern Art
[ ca ]
Topics may vary from year to year; the course may be repeated for credit.
Usually offered every second year.
Ms. Ankori, Mr. Kalb, or Ms. Scott

FREN 110a Cultural Representations
[ fl hum wi ]
Prerequisite: FREN 106b or the equivalent, or permission of the instructor.
Examines how alienation, which is often understood as exemplifying western modernity, manifests itself in literary works and films from throughout the Francophone world and French history. We will look at authors such as Assia Djebar, Cheikh Hamidou Kane, Mohammed Dib, Albert Camus, Joachim Du Bellay, Pierre Corneille, and Molière. Usually offered every year.
Mr. Randall

FREN 131a Orientalism and Literature
[ fl hum ]
Prerequisite: FREN 106b or the equivalent, or permission of the instructor.
An examination of how French literature has often represented the "Orient" or "the East," in particular North Africa, parts of the Middle East and Southeast Asia, as its opposite, its imaginary "other." Will also look at how some twentieth-century writers of North-African backgrounds have reacted to these misrepresentations. The course includes paintings, film, and readings in many different genres (novels, travel literature, etc.). Usually offered every fourth year.
Ms. Voiret

FREN 137a Literary Responses to Mass Violence
[ fl hum ]
Prerequisite: FREN 106b or the equivalent, or permission of the instructor.
Studies writers’ responses to humanitarian and political crises of the past hundred years, e.g., Camus’ La peste, Duras’ Hiroshima mon amour, Beckett’s Catastrophe, Diop’s Murambi, Sijie’s Balzac et la petite tailleuse chinoise, and Laferrière’s Tout bouge autour de moi. Usually offered every third year.
Ms. Hale

FREN 165b Subsaharan Africa and the French Language
[ fl hum nw ]
Prerequisite: FREN 106b or the equivalent, or permission of the instructor.
Studies writing in French in Subsaharan Africa, with particular emphasis upon its cultural and historical contexts. Topics include Negritude, African languages, defining "tradition," oral and written literature, Islam, film, and gender. Usually offered every second year.
Ms. Hale

GECS 160a In the Shadow of the Holocaust: Global Encounters
[ hum ]
Traces the experience of German exiles in different parts of the world. Addresses issues of identity, linguistic displacement, problems of integration, (post) colonial encounters, anti-Semitism and xenophobia, nostalgia, and the experience of those who eventually returned to Germany. Usually offered every third year.
Ms. von Mering

HECS 169a Travel Writing and the Americas: Columbus's Legacy
[ hum ]
Open to all students. Conducted in English with readings in English translation.
Following the arrival of Columbus, the continent later known as America engaged with other continents in a mutual process of cultural, historical, geographical, and economic representation. The development of some of those representations is explored, beginning with travel writing and ending with recent images of the encounter. Usually offered every second year.
Staff

HISP 192b Latin American Global Film
[ fl hum ]
Prerequisites: HISP 109b, or HISP 110a, or HISP 111b, or permission of the instructor. May not be repeated by students who took SPAN 193b in fall 2007.
An examination of films from Latin America or about Latin American topics. Considering film production and circulation, the class focuses on how images travel, how local stories and images are projected globally, and how Latin America and its "local" cultures are processed outside of their borders. Close analysis of visual representation complemented by a historically and culturally informed background. Usually offered every second year.
Mr. Rosenberg

IGS 110a Behind the Veil: Religion, Race and Ethnicity in France
[ ss ]
Examines questions of religion, race and ethnicity that, with restrictions on the burqa and a debate on "national identity," are now at the center of French life. This course will examine these debates in light of post-colonialism, state-sponsored secularism and globalization. Special one-time offering fall 2011.
Ms. Gasquet

NEJS 144a Jews in the World of Islam
[ hum nw ]
Examines social and cultural history of Jewish communities in the Islamic world. Special emphasis is placed on the pre-modern Jewish communities. Usually offered every second year.
Mr. Decter

SAS 150b Indian Film: The Three-Hour Dream
[ hum nw ]
A study of Hindi films made in India since 1947 with a few notable exceptions from regional film, as well as some recent films made in English. Students will read Hindi films as texts/narratives of the nation to probe the occurrence of cultural, religious, historical, political, and social themes. Usually offered every second year.
Ms. Singh

SOC 120b Globalization and the Media
[ ss ]
Investigates the phenomenon of globalization as it relates to mass media. Topics addressed include the growth of transnational media organizations, the creation of audiences that transcend territorial groupings, the hybridization of cultural styles, and the consequences for local identities. Usually offered every second year.
Ms. Miller

SOC 146a Mass Communication Theory
[ ss ]
An examination of key theories in mass communication, including mass culture, hegemony, the production of culture, and resistance. Themes discussed include the nature of media effects, the role of the audience, and the extent of diversity in the mass media. Usually offered every year.
Ms. Miller

SOC 162a Intellectuals and Revolutionary Politics
[ ss ]
Examines the role of intellectuals in modern politics, especially their relationship to nationalism and revolutionary movements. In reading across a range of political revolutions(e.g. in Central Europe, Colonial Africa and Iran), students will have the chance to compare the relative significance of appeals to solidarity based on class, religion, ethnicity, and national identity. Usually offered every year.
Mr. Rosenberger

THA 115b The Avant-Gardes in Performance
[ ca hum ]
Explores the avant-garde movements including symbolism, decadence, futurism, constructivism, Dada, surrealism, expressionism, existentialism, pop art and happenings, performance art, minimalism, and postmodernism as alternative forms of expression that challenge mainstream art. Attention is paid to the interactions among theater, painting, dance, music, and film. Usually offered every second year.
Mr. Holmberg

WMGS 5a Women and Gender in Culture and Society
[ ss ]
This interdisciplinary course introduces central concepts and topics in the field of women's and gender studies. Explores the position of women in diverse settings and the impact of gender as a social, cultural, and intellectual category in the United States and around the globe. Asks how gendered institutions, behaviors, and representations have been configured in the past and function in the present, and also examines the ways in which gender intersects with many other vectors of identity and circumstance in forming human affairs. Usually offered every fall and spring.
Ms. Fox, Ms. Freeze, Ms. Lanser, or Ms. Singh

IGS: Economy, Health, and Environment

AAAS 60a Economics of Third World Hunger
[ nw ss ]
Employs the tools of social science, particularly economics, to study causes and potential solutions to problems in production, trade, and consumption of food in the underdeveloped world. Usually offered every second year.
Mr. Nyangoni

AAAS 80a Economy and Society in Africa
[ nw ss wi ]
Perspectives on the interaction of economic and other variables in African societies. Topics include the ethical and economic bases of distributive justice; models of social theory, efficiency, and equality in law; the role of economic variables in the theory of history; and world systems analysis. Usually offered every third year.
Mr. Nyangoni

AAAS 122a Politics of Southern Africa
[ nw ss ]
Study of clashing nationalisms, alternative patterns of development, and internationalization of conflict in southern Africa. The political economy of South Africa in regional context and its effect on the politics of its neighbors, particularly Angola, Mozambique, Namibia, and Zimbabwe. Usually offered every third year.
Mr. Nyangoni

AAAS 126b Political Economy of the Third World
[ nw ss wi ]
Development of capitalism and different roles and functions assigned to all "Third Worlds," in the periphery as well as the center. Special attention will be paid to African and Afro-American peripheries. Usually offered every year.
Mr. Nyangoni

AAAS 158a Theories of Development and Underdevelopment
[ nw ss wi ]
Humankind has for some time now possessed the scientific and technological means to combat the scourge of poverty. The purpose of this seminar is to acquaint students with contending theories of development and underdevelopment, emphasizing the open and contested nature of the process involved and of the field of study itself. Among the topics to be studied are modernization theory, the challenge to modernization posed by dependency and world systems theories, and more recent approaches centered on the concepts of basic needs and of sustainable development. Usually offered every second year.
Mr. Nyangoni

AMST 30b American Environmental History
[ ss ]
May not be taken for credit by students who took AMST 101a in prior years.
Provides an overview of the relationship between nature and culture in North America. Covers Native Americans, the European invasion, the development of a market system of resource extraction and consumption, the impact of industrialization, and environmentalist responses. Current environmental issues are placed in historical context. Usually offered every second year.
Mr. Donahue

AMST 102a Environment, Social Justice, and the Role of Women
[ oc ss wi ]
This is an experiential learning course. Yields six semester-hour credits towards rate of work and graduation.
This community-engaged course involves students first-hand in the legal, policy, science, history and social impacts of current environmental health issues challenging individuals and families and communities today, with a particular focus on low-income, immigrant communities and the profound and unique roles played by women. Students will engage directly in the topics through field trips, visiting speakers and discussions with stakeholders themselves. They also will address the issues by collaborating in projects with local organizations, and assisting low income residents in Waltham at the Tenant Advocacy Clinic.Usually offered every semester.
Ms. Goldin

AMST 102aj Environment, Social Justice, and Empowerment
[ oc ss wi ]
Yields six semester-hour credits towards rate of work and graduation.
This community-engaged course involves students first-hand in the legal, policy, science, history and social impacts of current environmental health issues challenging individuals and families and communities today, with a particular focus on low-income, immigrant communities and the profound and unique roles played by women. Students will engage directly in the topics through field trips, visiting speakers and discussions with stakeholders themselves. They also will address the issues by assisting low income residents in Waltham at the Tenant Advocacy Clinic, and collaborating in projects with EPA, DEP and local organizations such as Healthy Waltham, the Waltham Family School, Waltham Family YMCA, Jewish Family and Children's Service, Joseph Smith Community Health Center and others. Offered ast part of JBS program.
Ms. Goldin

AMST 106b Food and Farming in America
[ ss wi ]
This is an experiential learning course.
American food is abundant and cheap. Yet many eat poorly, and some argue that our agriculture may be unhealthy and unsustainable. Explores the history of American farming and diet and the prospects for a healthy food system. Includes extensive fieldwork. Usually offered every second year.
Mr. Donahue

ANTH 55a Anthropology of Development
[ nw ss ]
This course combines an examination of the historical development of "development" concepts and institutions with case studies of particular developmental projects in the United States and abroad. Throughout the course, we will sustain a dynamic interplay between development theory and practice. Usually offered every second year.
Ms. Ferry

ANTH 127a Medicine, Body, and Culture
[ nw ss ]
Examines main areas of inquiry in medical anthropology, including medicine as a sociocultural construct, political and economic dimensions of suffering and health, patients and healers in comparative medical systems, and the medical construction of men's and women's bodies. Usually offered every year.
Ms. Lamb, Ms. Kammerer or Ms. McCullough

ANTH 142a AIDS: Science, Society, and Policy
[ ss ]
An examination of the AIDS pandemic from cross-cultural and anthropological perspectives. Topics include biosocial approaches to disease, epidemiology of transmission, national and international institutions, prevention and treatment, and ethical issues; case studies from the Americas, Asia, and Africa. Usually offered every third year.
Ms. Kammerer

ANTH 163b Production, Consumption, and Exchange
[ nw ss ]
Prerequisite: ANTH 1a or ECON 2a or permission of the instructor.
We read in newspapers and books and hear in everyday discussion about "the economy," an identifiably separate sphere of human life with its own rules and principles and its own scholarly discipline (economics). The class starts with the premise that this "commonsense" idea of the economy is only one among a number of possible perspectives on the ways people use resources to meet their basic and not-so-basic human needs. Using extensive cross-cultural case studies, looks at the satisfaction of these needs (which we might call economic activity) as they interact with other aspects of life: gender, kinship, ideas of morality and taste, spirit possession, politics, and so on. Usually offered every second year.
Ms. Ferry

BIOL 17b Conservation Biology
[ sn wi ]
First- and second-year students should contact the instructor before enrolling in this writing-intensive course.
Considers the current worldwide loss of biological diversity, causes of this loss, and methods for protecting and conserving biodiversity. Explores biological and social aspects of the problems and their solutions. Usually offered every year.
Mr. D.L. Perlman

BIOL 23a Ecology
[ sn ]
Prerequisites: BIOL 22a or 15b, or a score of 5 on the AP Biology Exam, or permission of the instructor. This is an experiential learning course.
Studies organisms and the environments in which they live. Focuses on the physical factors and intra- and interspecies interactions that explain the distribution and abundance of individual species from an evolutionary perspective. Usually offered every year.
Mr. D.L. Perlman

BIOL 134b Topics in Ecology
[ oc sn ]
Prerequisites: BIOL 23a or permission of the instructor. Topics may vary from year to year. Please consult the Course Schedule for topic and description. Course may be repeated once for credit with permission of the instructor.
Annually, a different aspect of the global biosphere is selected for analysis. In any year the focus may be on specific ecosystems (e.g., terrestrial, aquatic, tropical, arctic), populations, system modeling, restoration ecology, or other aspects of ecology. Usually offered every year.
Staff

BISC 3b Humans and the Environment
[ sn ]
Does NOT meet requirements for the major in biology.
Explores a range of interactions between organisms and their environments. Focuses on human interactions with and impacts on the natural world. Usually offered every third year.
Mr. D.L. Perlman

BISC 6bj Environmental Health
[ sn ]
Does NOT meet requirements for the major in biology. Yields six semester-hour credits towards rate of work and graduation.
An introduction to the science and tools of environmental health, giving students hands-on skills to explore directly current issues experienced by local communities. Students will become familiar with the environmental health paradigm, the conceptual model of the field, including underlying principles of hazard identification, exposure assessment, toxicology, risk assessment, and characterization and interpretation of epidemiological studies. Offered as part of JBS program.
Ms. Goldin and Mr. Stewart

BUS 70a Business in the Global Economy
[ ss ]
Prerequisite: BUS 10a
Modern firms frequently cross national borders to find new markets and resources. Their strategies are then shaped by the international economy and by the policies of national governments. Using case discussion, students explore why and how U.S., Japanese, and European firms operate outside their home countries. Usually offered every year.
Mr. Lopez

CHEM 33a Environmental Chemistry
[ sn ]
Prerequisite: A satisfactory grade (C- or higher) in CHEM 11b or 15b or the equivalent.
The course surveys the important chemical principles and reactions that determine the balance of the molecular species in the environment and how human activity affects this balance. The class evaluates current issues of environmental concern such as depletion, global warming, sustainable energy,toxic chemicals, water pollution, and green chemistry. Usually offered every year.
Mr. Rose

CHSC 3b Solving Environmental Challenges: The Role of Chemistry
[ sn ]
Does not meet the requirements for the major in chemistry.
Provides a basic understanding of the chemistry of natural environmental cycles, and how these cycles are adversely affected by society. Student teams develop case studies on "hot topics" such as mercury, brominated flame retardants, MBTE, perchlorate, dioxin, and others. Usually offered every second year.
Mr. Peavey

CHSC 4b Understanding the Chemistry of Sustainability
[ sn ]
Prerequisites: High school-level chemistry or environmental science/studies is required. Students missing this background may petition the instructor for permission to enroll. Does NOT meet requirements for the major in chemistry.
An exploration of the role of green chemistry, nanotechnology, bioengineering, innovative design, and greater reliance on renewable resources in achieving environmental sustainability. Topics include sustainable energy, recognized green sector industries, green chemicals, environmentally preferable products, and sustainable manufacturing. Usually offered every second year.
Mr. Peavey

ECON 26a Latin America's Economy
[ nw ss ]
Prerequisite: ECON 2a.
Introductory survey of economic, financial, and institutional problems, distortions, and reforms in Latin America. Topics include the role of government, privatization, liberalization of trade and capital flows, pension fund reforms, inflation, stabilization, and international debt crises. Current and future trends will be discussed. Usually offered every second year.
Ms. Tovar

ECON 30a The Economy of China
[ nw ss ]
Prerequisite: ECON 2a.
Analysis of China's economic transformation with particular emphasis on China's economic reforms since 1978, including the restructuring of its enterprise, fiscal, financial, and political systems and the roles of trade, foreign investment, and technology in driving China's economic advance. Usually offered every year.
Mr. Jefferson

ECON 122b The Economics of the Middle East
[ nw ss ]
Prerequisite: ECON 2a or the equivalent. Does not count toward the upper-level elective requirement for the major in economics.
Examines the Middle East economies – past experiences, present situation, and future challenges – drawing on theories, policy formulations and empirical studies of economic growth, trade, poverty, income distribution, labor markets, finance and banking, government reforms, globalization, and Arab-Israeli political economy. Usually offered every year.
Mr. Habibi

ECON 141b Economics of Innovation
[ ss ]
Prerequisites: ECON 80a and ECON 83a or permission of the instructor.
Studies the innovation and technological change as the central focus of modern economies. Topics include the sources of growth, economics of research and development, innovation, diffusion and technology transfer, appropriability, patents, information markets, productivity, institutional innovation, and global competitiveness. Usually offered every year.
Mr. Jefferson

ECON 172b Money and Banking
[ ss ]
Prerequisites: ECON 82b and ECON 83a or permission of the instructor.
Examines the relationship of the financial system to real economic activity, focusing especially on banks and central banks. Topics include the monetary and payments systems; financial instruments and their pricing; the structure, management, and regulation of bank and nonbank financial intermediaries and the design and operations of central banks in a modern economy. Usually offered every year.
Mr. Redenius

ECON 175a Introduction to the Economics of Development
[ ss ]
Prerequisite: ECON 2a or permission of the instructor. Does not count toward the upper-level elective requirement for the major in economics.
An introduction to various models of economic growth and development and evaluation of these perspectives from the experience of developing and industrial countries. Usually offered every year.
Staff

ECON 176a The Household, Health, and Hunger in Developing Countries
[ nw ss ]
Prerequisites: ECON 80a and ECON 184b, or permission of the instructor. ECON 175a is recommended. Primarily recommended for juniors and seniors.
Examines aspects of poverty and nutrition that are confronted by households in low-income countries. Examines these issues primarily from a microeconomic perspective, although some macroeconomic angles are explored as well. Usually offered every second year.
Ms. Menon

ENVS 15a Reason to Hope: Managing the Global Commons for Peace
[ sn ]
Explores global security arrangements that would tend toward peace within the objective constraints that delimit our options; the laws of physics, energy and food availability, human population, global wealth, geography, weather, and the presence of nuclear weapons. Usually offered every year.
Mr. Tsipis

ENVS 17b Global Warming and Nuclear Winter
[ sn ]
Prerequisite: high school-level math and science course work.
Global climate change is the biggest challenge now facing the planet, equal to the nuclear war threat of the past half-century. This course examines the characteristics of these two major threats and looks for possible responses to climate change. Usually offered every year.
Mr. Tsipis

ENVS 18b International Environmental Conflict and Collaboration
[ ss ]
Studies the development of international environmental law and policy through a historical lens. Examines how early diplomatic initiatives have--and importantly, have not--shaped the contemporary structure of international environmental relations. Usually offered every second year.
Mr. Chester

ENVS 19a Climate Change and Conservation
[ sn ]
Examines the nexus between climate change and conservation. Through both conceptual and practical approaches, students focus on devising answers to the key question: What effects will climate change have on human capacity to conserve resources? Usually offered every fourth year.
Mr. Chester

ENVS 102aj Field Research and Study Methods: Environmental Health
[ ss ]
Comprises the skills and methods component of the four-course Environmental Health and Justice JBS. Students will be trained in environmental health study design, sampling methodology, field research and equipment techniques, data interpretation, statistical analysis, risk communication and presentation. The course will equip students to design and carry out a semester-long environmental health research study integral to the themes of Environmental Health and Justice JBS. Offered as part of JBS program.
Ms. Goldin and Mr. Stewart

HIST 100a Ice and Fire: An Ecological Approach to World History
[ ss ]
A survey of world history through the past 10,000 years, with particular attention to the choices that people have made in relation to their changing environment. Usually offered every second year.
Mr. Fischer

HS 110a Wealth and Poverty
[ ss ]
Examines why the gap between richer and poorer citizens appears to be widening in the United States and elsewhere, what could be done to reverse this trend, and how the widening disparity affects major issues of public policy. Usually offered every year.
Mr. Shapiro

HSSP 102a Global Perspectives on Health
[ ss ]
A primer on major issues in health care in developing nations. Topics include the natural history of disease and levels of prevention; epidemiological transitions; health disparities; and determinants of health including culture, social context, and behavior. Also covers: infectious and chronic disease incidence and prevalence; the role of nutrition, education, reproductive trends, and poverty; demographic transition including aging and urbanization; the structure and financing of health systems; and the globalization of health. Usually offered every year.
Ms. Bhalotra

POL 178a The Rise of East Asia and the Pacific in the Global Political Economy
[ ss ]
An introduction to East Asia and the Pacific in the global political economy. The focus is on the major players in East Asia--China, Japan, the two Koreas, and Vietnam--and their relations with India, Oceania, and the United States. Topics include the challenges posed to key global economic actors, including the United States, Japan, Australia, and India, by the rise of authoritarian China--as a global actor. Usually offered every year.
Mr. Thaxton

POL 180b Sustaining Development
[ nw ss ]
Prerequisite: Some familiarity with development issues.
Explores different institutionalized approaches to development. Examines how institutions affect development in selected geographic areas, at levels ranging from local to national and international. Considers why similar policies when implemented in different ways may lead to quite distinct outcomes. Usually offered every third year.
Staff

SOC 136b Historical and Comparative Sociology
[ ss ]
Prerequisite: SOC 1a or SOC 3b. Registration priority given to juniors and seniors.
Explores the relationship between sociology and history through examples of scholarship from both disciplines. Using historical studies, the course pays close attention to each author's research strategy. Examines basic research questions, theoretical underpinnings and assumptions, and uses of evidence. Usually offered every third year.
Mr. Rosenberger or Ms. Hansen