Netherlands

This course offers an introduction to the study of urban geography. The course discusses the identification of socio-spatial developments in urban areas, in particular those that are related to ongoing economic restructuring, as well as the concept of “urban landscape” which reflects the historical evolution and current developments of a wide range of social-cultural phenomena. The course examines topics including socio-spatial developments in urban areas; the interpretation of these developments by placing them in a relevant economic, political, and socio-cultural context; potential explanations for varying spatial developments; spatial behavior of individuals and households; and the identification and analysis of characteristics of areas and the effects of these characteristics on the behavior of the residents and other users. The course consists of lectures, student presentations, and discussions. Students participate in two field trips, group research, and the creation of a walking tour in Utrecht. The course requires the completion of the equivalent of an Introduction to Human Geography course as a prerequisite.

This course focuses on our environment(s), which function as public goods in providing benefits but can, as common pool goods, be affected by the positive or negative externalities resulting from private behavior. Although `‘the environment'' is often defined as nature (e.g., land, water, air), it is more broadly defined to include the shared spaces (e.g., markets, classrooms, websites, electromagnetic spectrum) that nobody owns but everyone gains from. The course explores the value of environments, discusses how actions produce positive and negative impacts on environments, evaluates the magnitude of those impacts, and discusses different theories for managing and methods of protecting environments in the traditions of Pigou, Coase, and Ostrom. A knowledge of microeconomics is useful but not essential to this class (basic concepts will be reviewed and taught). Among other ideas, the course discusses assessing the incentives for behaviors and distribution of costs and benefits from policies (e.g., polluter pays, discounting, and mis-matched political-economic jurisdictions) as well as how aggregated environmental impacts and policies alter the market landscape within and among countries (e.g., pollution havens, and intergenerational equity, and environmental Kuznets curve). Students apply these ideas to a course paper on the topic of their choice that uses a cost-benefit analysis of market and non-market values to explore the existing distribution of costs and benefits as well as policy proposals that might move the distribution (and overall impact) of those polices closer to sustainability.

This is an introductory course to the management of innovation. Core topics covered in this course include market failures faced by innovating firms, knowledge about the various definitions of innovation and innovative activities, how to search for novel ideas (inside as well as outside of the firms’ boundaries), what tools to use inside and outside of the firm to evaluate promising ideas efficiently and accurately, ways to acquire external financing in case of cash flow constraints, tools to use to increase appropriability of innovations as well as various forms to develop innovations inside and outside of the firm. In examples, cases, and an assignment students work out in practice how to assess the feasibility and desirability of innovation opportunities and how to manage innovation from the first idea to implementing an innovation plan. PREREQUISITES: Basic knowledge of management/business economics, organization, and strategy.

This course focuses on the major groups within the animal kingdom, what defines them, how they are organized and how they are related to each other. Students examine the specific adaptations of certain animals in more depth. The question "What is an animal?" is considered as is the issue of how animals are grouped and related to each other. This is done in the context of the major phyla, their defining morphological, anatomical and physiological features and the sorts of adaptations and behaviors that they exhibit. Students examine certain adaptations such as bright coloration, feeding or parental care in greater depth, using particular animal groups as a source of examples.

This course covers the theoretical approaches and methodological components within cultural memory studies concerned with minoritarian groups and affect/emotion: e.g. Nora, Stoler, Rigney, Trouillot, Said, Azoulay, Sharpe, Hartman, Muñoz, Mbembe, Campt, Arondekar. It provides an introduction into archives (theory) and memory, especially in relation to power by introducing the political and academic assessment of the post-colonial dimension of cultural memory, and the queer dimension of historical scholarship.