Political Science

Politics is about power and action, which are generally deemed necessary to the edification of individual and collective good life. Political theory is broadly understood as an inquiry into the nature and major features of individual and collective good life. The nature and purpose of political theory are said to be best understood by an introductory examination of how political thinkers conceive of power relations and address the issue of the practical implications of the organization of power relations. This type of examination constitutes the core of the course. In particular, the course is primarily about several visions of politics, past and present, considered on their own merits. Some of these visions have had a significant impact on national and international politics, while others did not, or not directly. They are studied to critically understand how the Master of Political Theory formulated their arguments, what is really at stake in their statements, and possibly whether, and to what extent, what they thought is relevant to us.

This course explores Taiwan's relationship with the United States. It also examines the scope of the Department of the Communist Party of China since the normalization of relations with the United States in 1978 from the final stages of negotiations to the end Chen's presidency in 2008. The two countries have safely survived relations, including arms sales, strategic dialogue and military exchanges. Due to the United States’ status as a global power, the "Taiwan Relations Act" (and its concerns with major issues of democracy, economic development, national defense, foreign relations, and developing relations with mainland China) is of great importance to continued relations. This course examines several major events over a 30-year period from the points of view of Taipei, Washington, and Beijing. During this period, the teachers have actually participated in various events, and can offer personal observation and reflections to students. Students select topics from the China, the United States and the Communist point of view to write a paper (less than 1,500 Chinese characters) on the day before class to upload to the CEIBA website for downloading the class to read.

This course examines current environmental and climate change movements in Europe and the United States, including their background and their significance. At the same time, it utilizes these movements as a lens to understand the politics of climate change and social movements more generally. Specifically, this course investigates the main political ideas driving environmental and climate activism; analyzes the main features, forms, developments, and challenges of environmental and climate activism; discerns their impact and relevance in sustainability politics today; and introduces an understanding of social movements as key drivers of social change. The course provides a thorough understanding of climate and environmental activism: its origins, pathways, and diversity, as well as its relevance for sustainability politics in general. Through an interdisciplinary approach that draws on research and theories of social movement studies and environmental politics from several of the social sciences, there is an empirical focus on Europe and the United States, as well as links with other continents and global politics.