University of Geneva

This course explores the main concepts and principles of international environmental law. It looks at how international environmental law has emerged and developed, in particular by emphasizing the role and contribution of international courts and tribunals. The course also deals specifically with the legal regimes that have been shaped in order to preserve the global environment in different fields (climate change, biodiversity, desertification, water, ozone, chemical products, air pollution, genetically modified organisms, nanotechnologies). With the emergence of the concept of sustainable development, international environmental law is now at the crossroads of different regimes. In this context, the course analyzes the relationship between international environmental law and international trade (and/or investment) law as well as the relationship between international environmental law and human rights.

This course provides an introduction to the analysis of income and wealth distribution, its relation to macroeconomic performance and technical change, and how different policies are linked to distributional outcomes. The first part of the course presents statistical tools for measuring inequalities and, based on these tools, examines the historical trajectory of income and wealth distribution in developed and developing economies. It also discusses how income and wealth inequalities intersect with other socioeconomic factors such as gender and race, and how distribution is affected by the globalization of economic activity and migration. The second part of the course surveys the Classical, the Keynesian, and the Neoclassical approaches to distribution, economic growth, and technical change, and how these approaches provide different explanations for the increasing inequalities and the stagnation of output and productivity growth of the last decades.

This course discusses the evolution of terrorism from the 20th century to the present day, through an analysis of international relations that specifies the characteristics of terrorist movements and groups, the nature of their demands, and the threats they pose. The triple dimension - local, regional, and international - is at the heart of the analysis of the motivations and logics behind the operationalization of this radical form of political violence. The gradual development of the fight against terrorism in terms of repression, criminal law and the judiciary enable reflection on the democratic governance of anti-terrorist policies and their impact on our individual freedoms.

This course develops a fundamental understanding of the inherent dynamics of international management. It provides a comprehensive overview of the management decisions in the global environment and challenges students to analyze complex situations and develop recommendations for strategic decisions independently. Through the analysis of case studies, interactions with guest speakers, and an in-depth group project, the course offers a theoretical understanding of international management, but also a more practical application, analyzing best practices in management and frameworks as well as failures and lessons to be learned moving forward.

This course offers basic knowledge of key concepts in human resource management. It covers fundamental topics such as work design, personnel selection, performance management, and compensation. In studying these topics, the course discusses implications of various human resource management actions and policies for individual employees as well as team and organizational culture, for short- and long-term performance, and for financial as well as non-financial goals. In doing so, it analyzes human resource management from multiple points of view, including human resource specialists, supervisors, and the top management team.

This advanced international relations course focuses on the European Union and its role on the international scene. It provides an overview of EU foreign policy in its variety. It addresses in particular the legal and policy framework of the EU external action providing an analysis of the competences and tools available to the EU to conduct its foreign policy, such as the conclusion of international agreements and the participation of the EU to other international organizations. The course also covers specific policies in which the EU plays an important role, such as Common Commercial Policy (CCP) and Common Foreign and Security Policy (CFSP). The interaction between the EU and other international organizations such as the United Nations and the World Trade Organization is also studied.

This course explores the origins and dilemmas of diplomacy pertaining to the protection of humanity's natural environment (resources, habitat). Definitions, collective discussions of crucial texts, brief oral presentations, and interpretation of a few primary sources form the basis of study. In addition to initiating researchers into undertaking historical research, the course enhances an understanding of how environmental diplomacy works, including the issues, main actors, strategies, and outcomes of environmental diplomacy. The course first identifies key terms and seeks to understand how international environmental problems are grasped by researchers in disciplines closer to environmental questions. It then approaches environmental problems in a historical perspective beginning with the age of the “first wave” of globalization just before and after the First World War. It focuses on the “environmental age” which started arguably in the 1960s and 1970s. The course examines how environmental problems were raised, conceptualized, put upon the agenda of governments and international organizations, and negotiated at the international level. Topics include pollution of the high seas, the regulation of whaling, the control of resources on land and under water, acid rain, the protection of (rain) forests, climate change, the protection of the Antarctic, and other issues. The course also provides an opportunity to develop methodological and interpretative skills, critical abilities, and presentation and writing skills.

This thematic course provides an opportunity to explore Geneva's iconic sites, historical and contemporary, urban and countryside. It enriches cultural knowledge of the city of Geneva as well as the linguistic knowledge of the urban landscape and expressing impressions and feelings. The course includes six walks, each alternating with an in-class session. It provides an opportunity to photograph and create a Geneva photo album containing 30 photos, each with a small commentary, as well as an introductory text.