Netherlands

This is an introduction to the field of Environmental Science, with a focus on ecosystems and biodiversity. The course focuses on how human disturbances affect individuals, populations, and communities. The course also discusses which mechanisms organisms have developed to deal with these stressors. In addition, the course examines the key methods which are available to study environmental impacts (e.g. field, modelling and lab studies), to better understand the advantages and disadvantages of these tools when assessing environmental impacts. Students develop a population model, and use the model to assess impacts of anthropogenic stressors in the population of animals. Students also conduct a group research project, which includes basic study design and data collection. Students gain theoretical insights in the classroom, and apply this knowledge during the research project.

The course is about Dutch art – with an emphasis on painting. Ever since the Middle Ages the Netherlands has played a pivotal role in the history of European art and culture. Dutch and Flemish artists were the first to use oil paints, the first to visually document the lives and cultures of ordinary people, and the first to produce art for a free market. Painters such as Van Eyck, Brueghel, Bosch, Rubens, Vermeer, Rembrandt, Van Gogh, and Mondriaan are counted among the great masters of history. Their art embodies qualities that are believed to be typical for the country, such as a devotion to truthfulness, attention to detail, and love of textures. But there were many more artists whose works are still considered among the most important in history – if only because they were the first to notice the mundane things nobody else had paid attention to, such as the beauty of a still-life or the wonders of a cloudy sky. From the late Middle Ages through the Renaissance and the Baroque to the modern era, Dutch artists have tried to come to terms with ever-changing principles and conceptions regarding the world around them and have been constantly improving techniques to visualize it. The results of their efforts are the subject of this course. The course mostly follows a chronological order. In the first lecture the (religious) significance of art in the Middle Ages, the Renaissance, and the Baroque are introduced. In the following lectures students are given an overview of the development of Dutch art from the Middle Ages to the modern era. The course includes field trips to various museums in Amsterdam, the Hague, or Arnhem to view the original works.

Do you think science and technology are neutral tools for gaining economic and social prosperity? Do you think innovation is always a good thing? This course questions such assumptions by studying the relationship between science, technology, and society. This relationship is both complex and ambiguous. For example, from a societal perspective, self-driving cars may bring profits to car companies and gains in car safety, but they also raise questions on individual autonomy and responsibility of drivers; genetically modified crops may increase yields but may also increase the power of multinational corporations over smallholder farmers; and contraceptive pills may enable family planning but also put the responsibility for contraceptive measures with women instead of men. In short: science and technology can be highly political, and innovation can have consequences whose desirability can be contested. This course provides students with the tools and perspectives to explore and reflect on such politics and controversies. Theoretical frameworks for understanding the relationship between science, technology, and society, such as large technological systems, actor-network theory, and the social construction of technology are reviewed. 

In our globalizing world, Trans National Corporations (TNC’s) are a well-known reality. All larger corporations have built a global presence to benefit as much as possible from the most efficient conditions for production and consumption. Governments have built their multilateral agencies on global (UN) and regional (EU, AU, Mercosur, Asean) level to better respond to the new reality of an interconnected world in order to be able to better serve the interests of their citizens. In the last few decades we have seen an emerging trend of global civil society organizations (GCSO’s) striving to take their role at the global stage. This works out differently for different types of civil society organizations (CSO’s). CSO’s which are into political advocacy (Greenpeace, Amnesty International, and Oxfam) are building global networks to hold governments and companies accountable about their policies on ecology, human rights, and poverty reduction. With their global brand they are trying to influence global policies in order to make this world safer and more sustainable. In order to be able to act on the global level, different types of CSO’s not only need to deal with organizational issues like building these global networks but they also need to face new issues of legitimacy and accountability. In this course students face these fascinating issues by focusing on crucial cases with Amnesty International, religious organizations, Neighborhood Watch, trade unions, or the GLTB movement. This course helps students understand the shifting role of civil society in the globalization process and the roles of legitimacy and accountability as key issues for civil society’s influence. Knowledge of Introduction to Public Administration and Organizational Science is recommended.