Sustainable Development - 4 credits

Economic development, ecology and democracy are three dynamic, powerful and volatile forces in the world today. Players in the tension between them include nations, large corporations, and a groundswell of farmers, workers, and ordinary people. This course looks at the model of sustainable development as a way for countries to make long-term and ethical decisions about how to use resources: earth, water, air, energy, as well as the most important resource, people. Contrasts are drawn between Western economies and the emerging world attempting the leap from an agricultural paradigm to industrialization, while trying to avoid falling into the Malthus trap of overpopulation. Students in this core course for the Global Affairs certificate develop an understanding of the complex, intertwined relationship between economic growth, environment and humanity.