Contemporary globalization has transformed international society with unprecedented pace, intensity and scope. International relations are no more an inter-state field, but a political domain shaped by activities and challenges of a truly global nature, both in substance and in geographical reach. The needs and forms of dealing with public interests in this emerging political domain have given rise to global governance. The course aims at the systematic study of the agents, institutions, functions, and implications of global governance. First, the course analyzes some basic concepts and the various theoretical approaches to this phenomenon, and enters the debate about its normative dimension. Second, the course deals with the profound transformations affecting international institutions, regimes, and multilateralism, in particular within the United Nations, the international financial institutions, and the international trade system. Third, the course explores a number of challenges facing global governance: poverty and inequality in the socioeconomic field, climate change and environmental degradation in the environmental field, new wars and arms proliferation in the military area, and authoritarianism, extremisms, and human rights violations in the political domain.

Assessment

The assessment of the course will combine several elements: class activities, seminar tasks, and a final essay. First, participation and class activities during the course will account for 15% of the final grade. Second, a series of seminars will require oral and written tasks, the results of which will account for 50 % of the final grade. Out of the six seminars of the course, the four best seminar grades will shape this share of the final grade. Third, a final essay and a presentation of the main findings will account for 35 % of the final grade. The topic of the paper will be chosen with the assistance of the professor, and it will range between 2,000-2,500 words.

Competences, learning outcomes and teaching activities (PDF)