Course
Nation Building
Jennifer Brass
NOTE: This class is open to undergraduates only.
What is the state, and how do states form? What functions do states perform for their citizens? How do state development and economic development interact? What impact do development aid, non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and private investment have on the state building in current times? What is a “failed state” and can failed states turn around? These questions form the backbone to this course on nation building.
In the first section of the course, we will cover foundational theory of state-building, as well the difference between a “nation” and a “state” and how the distinction plays out in various regions on the globe with a focus on the developing world. Second, we will talk about the functions or roles that a state plays, examining each of five functions in detail. We will then cover the interplay between economic and state development in section three looking both at the theory behind them, and at the role of natural resources in helping or hindering development. In section four, we will examine the role that external actors – other governments, inter-governmental organizations, NGOs, and private companies – play in supporting or undermining state formation. Finally, we will examine more recent attempts at state building, looking at state failure and reconstruction, the role of ethnic conflict, and globalization.
2012 Nation Building Syllabus
Managing Hazards in Europe and the US
Dean Graham
The purpose of this course is to examine how hazards are managed through a mixture of lectures, case studies, and classroom discussions. The program is offered in an educational context that invites comparison of how the United States and Europe cope with known or potential hazards to human health, safety and the environment. The intellectual style of the course will be interdisciplinary, with significant reliance on disciplinary contributions from environmental science, public health, public management, non-profit management, policy analysis, political science, economics, and law.
This is not a technical course in the methods of risk assessment or risk-benefit analysis. It is a management course. However, some of the lectures and case material will have significant scientific and quantitative content. Pre-course reading requirements include some background on the European Union and some background on risk analysis. There are no course prerequisites.
Objectives:
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Identify the major sources of information about risk, the analytical methods used to quantify risks, the circumstances that motivate use of one method as opposed to another.
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Distinguish risks that are uncertain from risks that are known yet variable in a population.
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Demonstrate an intuitive appreciation of probabilities, particularly in the case of low-probability, high-consequence events.
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Classify the different types of harm or damage that are commonly assessed in formal risk assessments.
2012 Managing Hazards Syllabus
Comparison of Environmental Policy and Management in England and the U.S. – Preventing the Pollution of Air, Waste & Water …..and the “Built Environment”
Marc Lame
Students in this course have an opportunity to examine environmental conditions in England and to consider prospective alternatives for England’s and America’s environmental challenges. Questions we consider include: In comparative terms, which environmental problems in England’s are most serious, measured by risks to human health? Which problems can be addressed through the concept of Pollution Prevention? How can England introduce Pollution Prevention (specifically Integrated Pest Management – IPM) to ensure a healthy a livable built environment? How does environmental management in England compare to environmental management in the US? What contemporary policy measures can be adapted to England’s unique institutional, historical, and cultural circumstances? In this course, the following student learning outcomes are expected:
- Conversancy with the range of environmental problems affecting urban and natural areas in England, and in comparison with the US;
- An appreciation for the effects of environmental, natural resource and public environmental health problems facing England and the US.
- The conceptual framework of Pollution Prevention.
- The conceptual framework for the implementation of Pollution Prevention programs.
- Improved critical thinking skills based on completion of in-class projects, including simulations and debates.
Topics we will be studying and discussing:
- Comparative Evolution of Environmental Management in the US and England
- How are Environmental and Health risks perceived in England Versus the United States?
- How has the concept of colonialism affected environmental policy in England?
- What has been the effect of pandemic diseases on environmental policy in England?
- Environmental Policy – streams, development and drivers
- The Regulation Dilemma: Cooperation and Conflict in Environmental Governance”
- Risky Business – Communicating risk & Environmental Mediation
- Managing the Environmental Cost of Removing Resources from the Environment – Natural Resource Management in the US
- The Globalization of Insect Borne Diseases.
- Diseases & vectors in England and Best Practices used by the WHO.
- Climate Change and England
Urban Environmental Management - Syllabus
Homicide in England and the U.S.: Patterns, Trends, Investigations and Select Cases
Kenna Quinet
NOTE: This class is open to undergraduates only.
A comparative investigation of homicide in England/UK and the United States. Topics include data sources, historical trends in types and rates of homicide, spatial patterns, intimate and family homicides, guns, serial, mass and medical murders, homicide law, guns, media coverage of homicide, the police role in homicide investigation, clearance rates, missing persons and unidentified dead and forensic science developments. Our focus will be on crimes, specifically homicide, in England/UK with comparisons to U.S. trends and cases.
Tower of London and Jack the Ripper Walking Tour cultural excursions! Exciting guest lectures from homicide specialists from the UK.
Comparative Punishment: Making them Pay in Europe and the USA
Crystal Garcia
This class is designed to examine the ways in which the United States and various countries in Europe punish individuals that break the law. In particular, we will investigate an array of punishments (from probation and intermediate sanctions, to incarceration, the death penalty and restorative justice) and compare the philosophical, historical, cultural, religious and economic factors that influence penal practices in the countries we study. Finally, we will assess the efficacy of such punishment strategies.
We are waiting on a final syllabus from the professor. We will post it as soon as it becomes available!
