Summer 2023 - POL 448 D100
Selected Topics in International Relations (4)
Class Number: 3328
Delivery Method: In Person
Overview
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Course Times + Location:
May 8 – Aug 4, 2023: Thu, 8:30 a.m.–12:20 p.m.
Burnaby -
Exam Times + Location:
Aug 11, 2023
Fri, 11:59–11:59 p.m.
Burnaby
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Instructor:
James Busumtwi-sam
jbusumtw@sfu.ca
1 778 782-4346
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Prerequisites:
Eight upper division units in political science or permission of the department.
Description
COURSE DETAILS:
Course Description:
This course examines the institutions, processes, laws, and regulations created to promote environmental conservation and achieve sustainable development at the global and regional levels. Governance of the environment and sustainable development internationally encompasses a wide range of policies, laws, institutions, and regulations, governmental and non-governmental, created in the effort to regulate the impact of divers of change on the earth’s complex social-ecological systems. The course focuses on identifying key challenges to effective governance and assessing the prospects for sustainable solutions. In the contemporary period, many of these challenges assume a Global North-South dimension and arise from disagreements over key organizing principles, over substantive values, and goals, and over property rights and the distribution of costs and benefits; issues further complicated by ethical questions pertaining to environmental justice.
The course is divided into two parts. Part one discusses different perspectives on the environment and sustainable development, assesses their implications for governance, and outlines the evolution of international environmental law and other governance mechanisms. We also discuss issues of environmental justice. Part two examines several contemporary issues including governance of ozone depletion, climate change, biodiversity, freshwater, food & agriculture, population/migration, and hazardous waste. We examine the major drivers of change in each of these areas, assess critically the governance mechanisms, and explore specific cases that embody these mechanisms.
Course Organization: One seminar per week.
Grading
- Participation 10%
- Presentation 20%
- Research Essay 35%
- Final Take-Home Exam 35%
Materials
REQUIRED READING:
All required readings are available electronically on canvas.
REQUIRED READING NOTES:
Your personalized Course Material list, including digital and physical textbooks, are available through the SFU Bookstore website by simply entering your Computing ID at: shop.sfu.ca/course-materials/my-personalized-course-materials.
Department Undergraduate Notes:
Registrar Notes:
ACADEMIC INTEGRITY: YOUR WORK, YOUR SUCCESS
SFU’s Academic Integrity website http://www.sfu.ca/students/academicintegrity.html is filled with information on what is meant by academic dishonesty, where you can find resources to help with your studies and the consequences of cheating. Check out the site for more information and videos that help explain the issues in plain English.
Each student is responsible for his or her conduct as it affects the university community. Academic dishonesty, in whatever form, is ultimately destructive of the values of the university. Furthermore, it is unfair and discouraging to the majority of students who pursue their studies honestly. Scholarly integrity is required of all members of the university. http://www.sfu.ca/policies/gazette/student/s10-01.html
RELIGIOUS ACCOMMODATION
Students with a faith background who may need accommodations during the semester are encouraged to assess their needs as soon as possible and review the Multifaith religious accommodations website. The page outlines ways they begin working toward an accommodation and ensure solutions can be reached in a timely fashion.