English

Paris, the most visited city in the world, is both a historical city and a modern global capital that fashionably wears the old and the new on its sleeve. It is also home to Parisians, whose clichéd image has been shaped in cultural imaginaries from around the globe, but whose identities and cultures are increasingly plural. The city and language course poses this two-fold question: just who is this city for, and how does one unlock its levels? More than a picturesque concentration of streets and buildings, Paris's urban landscape provides a tableau upon which people have inscribed meaning, message, and significance to state, nation, and culture. To decipher these messages and gain an understanding of Paris's history and the French culture that has shaped it, this course examines the histories of the conception, construction, and public perception of Parisian sites and it places their stories within the larger context of the development of French identity. The city and language course introduces students to French history, culture, and language through team-taught instruction. In the “Pursuing Paris” sessions, students study French history and culture by visiting sites important to the evolution of the capital city—these sessions are taught in English. In the “Unlocking French” sessions, students practice targeted language skills through situational communication with opportunities to use everything they learn in daily activities.

The course introduces students to major issues in modern glaciology, and to provides them with an understanding of how glaciers behave and why. The first part of the course explores the fundamental elements of glacier systems (accumulation, ablation, meltwater, ice flow processes, etc.), and explains how these interact to produce specific glacier behaviors (advance and retreat cycles, surges, etc). The second part of the course develops an understanding of the Greenland and Antarctic Ice Sheets and Mountain Glaciers, and how they impact other parts of the Earth system, including the oceans. The course develops a holistic understanding of glacier science, emphasizing the links between physical processes at a wide range of spatial and temporal scales.

This course give a general understanding of Swedish political life, and to introduce students to political science research on various aspects of Swedish politics. The course covers the main features of vital political institutions, such as the constitution and the electoral system. This is accompanied by a discussion of political actors, such as parties, interest groups, and the relations between the state and society. In addition, the course addresses the orientation of public policy in certain areas, such as the construction of the welfare state, foreign policy and security policy.

Paris has long been recognized as a center for both revolutionary activism and innovative artistic production. This course explores the coming together of these two domains through diverse visual manifestations of social justice and advocacy produced and/or displayed in Paris from the Revolution to the present, including painting, sculpture, architecture, performance, installations, photography, video, posters, graffiti, and street art. Students explore the ways in which the urban landscape bears the scars of revolutionary destruction and serves as a showcase for politically engaged production, housed in its museums or visible to all on the streets. The instructional format consists of both lectures and group site visits throughout the city, to venues including public and private museums, which are studied both for their content, architecture, and their politics of display; galleries, artist collectives, and Parisian neighborhoods with outdoor art displays.

The course focuses on the nature and purpose of international organizations as supra-national entities created by sovereign states for the management of their relations. It exposes students to the nature of the international organizations, types, features, organs, and their roles and importance and deals with the challenges that confront international organizations which inhibit their ability to achieve their aims. Students understand the nature and types of international organizations as well as their relevance to the management of the international system. Students identify and classify the international organizations according to their geographical spread and functional importance. The primary goal is to encourage students of International Politics to be able to understand why States decide to form organizations to assist them to manage relationships between and among them. Students interrogate the relevance of these organizations that serve as a vehicle of sustenance of global peace as well as obstacles that impede their functioning. They must be able to identify and explain the various types of international organizations and why they exist.

This course provides an introduction to youth studies, with a particular focus on the association between youth and the globalizing world. The course considers a broad body of interdisciplinary scholarships such as history, education, politics, and the environment. Students discuss the increasing use of social media by youth movements in creating changes in society and the notion of young people as the agents of change. This course brings in perspectives from various parts of the world through diverse reading materials. The reading materials provide a fundamental understanding of youth studies (Cieslik and Simpson, 2013), global situation of young people (UN, 2003), and engage critically in the discussion of youth as an agent of change (Sukarieh and Tannock, 2015; Kwon, 2013).