International Studies

This course is about nations and nationalism since the eighteenth century. It provides basic concepts and historical examples. Nation and nationalism are presented in a rather neutral way, which means neither nationalist nor curative. This approach reflects today's global understanding of national realities, nationality, and nation-states. As the scope of the course is more international than French, nationalism is not presented as “nationalisme,” which is often understood as a social disease in current French debate. Examples are taken from world history and issues are addressed on a world scale. The course also compares the different paths of state-building: the city, the empire, and the nation. Topics include founding fathers of the modern nation; founding fathers of nationalism; relevance of the nation in the 19th and 20th centuries; the dominant feature: equality or liberty; modern nationalism; wars, nations, and empires; history vs sociology; ethnocultural reality vs political myth; from resistance to unity; and new types of nationalism.

This course is part of the Laurea Magistrale program. The course is intended for advanced level students only. Enrollment is by consent of the instructor. The course focuses on: the consequences of international trade and the effects of trade policies; the main approaches to international factor movements, organization of firms, and debates regarding globalization; exchange rates and international capital markets; complex issues raised by the economic interdependence of nations The course covers the following: why do countries trade; what are the consequences of introducing a tariff on imports; why did the EU adopt a single currency; how to make sense of Brexit and Trump's protectionism. This course aims at addressing these issues and many other relevant topics in both international trade and open economy macroeconomics. At the end of the course, students have a sound foundation in international economics and they are able to critically evaluate both micro and macro trade patterns, as well as policy issues. The first module introduces the most important theories of international trade and their predictions for consumers, firms, and governments. In particular, it addresses issues such as determinants of trade flows, gains from trade, and motivation and consequences of protectionist policies. It also covers real-world areas of international trade, such as the EU, the Americas, and Asia. The second module is organized in topics, including, among others, open macroeconomics, optimum currency areas, the European Union and the Euro experience, and the historical and recent migration waves.

This course is part of the Laurea Magistrale program and is intended for advanced level students. Enrollment is by consent of the instructor. This course introduces the critical study of the main tenets, the sources, and some specific fields of contemporary international law. The three fundamental legal functions on which the legal dynamics of the international community is founded – lawmaking, law determination, and law enforcement – are analyzed within the contemporary social context. International law is presented in its different dimensions: as a tool in the hand of international actors able to handle change in the international society and safeguard stability and predictability of international legal relations; as common language useful in reaching consensus or, at least, peaceful disagreement; and as key to understanding the reality of contemporary international relations. Bringing together different perspectives, the course demonstrates how international rules, while made by governments and mostly addressed to them, can be of great relevance to private actors and to their interests.

This course introduces the arts of diplomacy and negotiation. To this end, the course offers both a theoretical and practical approach and presents the key concepts and tools behind the arts of diplomacy and negotiation. It analyzes the links between diplomacy and negotiation as well as the main challenges attached to traditional and modern diplomatic practices; discusses the impacts of globalization on the evolution of diplomatic practices and more specifically the impact of culture on international negotiation; identifies the main tools and strategies for successful negotiations: therefore, the course also serves as an introduction to communication techniques. It provides an opportunity to practice all these tools and concepts during workshop sessions, exchange in group debates, crisis and negotiation simulations. The course is designed to be very interactive: students are expected to actively participate in class and their communication skills will be assessed.