INTD Seminar in International Development Global Health, Climate Change, Gender Equality and the new Sustainable Development Goals Fall 2014

Transcription

1 INTD Seminar in International Development Global Health, Climate Change, Gender Equality and the new Sustainable Development Goals Fall 2014 Instructor Mr. Stephen Lewis, Professor of Practice in Global Governance, Institute for the Study of International Development stephen.lewis@mcgill.ca Class Details Mondays, 2:35 PM - 5:25 PM Sherbrooke 688, Room 365 Office Hours Peterson Hall, Room 244 Tuesdays, 10:00-12:00 pm, or by appointment Course Description The year 2015 marks the end of the Millennium Development Goals. This course will assess the successes and failures of the MDGs, and focus on an assessment of the Sustainable Development Goals that appear likely to be put in place for the next fifteen years. The approach will consist of an in-depth analysis of those Goals that appear to be most important: poverty, climate change, disease and crucial aspects of gender equality. While there will be major texts from which to draw, much of the analysis will be based on ongoing media coverage of the various SDGs. It should be noted that during the first month of the course, the United Nations will be devoting a full day to a debate on climate change, and will be holding a Summit to determine, more definitively, the new Goals. Inevitably, this will necessitate a grasp of the workings of the United Nations, so multilateralism will be an integral part of the course. Assignments and Grades Class participation 15% Class presentation 20% (Dates as chosen by students) Book Review 25% (Due October 20) Essay 40% (Due November 24) Student presentations will be a required element of the course. These presentations will be done in pairs. With the exception of the first two classes (September 8 th and 15 th ) and other designated exceptions, there will be two presentations per class: one before and one after the mid-point

2 afternoon break. It is suggested that the presentations be between twenty and thirty minutes in length (longer if desired), and the presenters lead the discussion that follows, with Mr. Lewis intervening as required. Students can choose the subject and the week of greatest interest to them. These selections will be done on September 8 th as part of the introductory overview. Basis for Grading Class participation will measure both the presentation and the degree of involvement of students in the discussion that follows all presentations. The presentation will be marked on narrative content, analysis, ingenuity and force of argument. It is anticipated that most presentations will be multi-media, but that is not a requirement. Any one of the twelve designated books can be chosen for review. It is expected that the review will be analytic, critical, argumentative it s entirely legitimate to take strong issue with the author. A straightforward description of the book s contents is not acceptable. The essay is the crucial component of the course. The subject matter can derive from any aspect of the course; the essay title should be discussed with and cleared by Mr. Lewis. There will be great latitude provided in the choice of title, but the more adventuresome and controversial the better. Academic Integrity and Students Rights McGill University values academic integrity. Therefore, all students must understand the meaning and consequences of cheating, plagiarism and other academic offences under the Code of Student Conduct and Disciplinary Procedures (see for more information). In accord with McGill University s Charter of Students Rights, students in this course have the right to submit in English or in French any written work that is to be graded. 2

3 Course Outline Readings will be assigned one or two weeks in advance. They will consist primarily of reports and articles available on mycourses. It is expected that students will draw upon these current reports prepared by United Nations agencies, NGOs and leading think tanks. Current news coverage will also be critical, as well as any formal texts. September 8: Introductory overview September 15: The role of the United Nations; structural organization, strength and warts. Mr. Lewis will deliver a lecture and lead discussion. It will be useful to read the first six chapters of The No-Nonsense Guide to the United Nations by Maggie Black. September 22: Student Presentation Status of the MDGs as we wind down to Successes and failures. What worked; what went wrong and why? Group discussion, led by Mr. Lewis, of the new SDGs. Do they make sense? What about the 169 targets? Should there be priorities? Is anything missing? How best can they be implemented? September 29: Student Presentation SDGs continued; discussion led by Mr. Lewis. Poverty: Is the 2030 World Bank target realistic? What is required to rid the world of poverty? How did China turn the tide on poverty? Can the green revolution be transported to Africa? And what of hunger? Is the problem production or distribution? Which government policies should be changed? Is trade policy the culprit? What parts are played by the World Food Program and OCHA? Can they possibly keep up with natural disasters and the proliferation of refugees? What are the obligations of international humanitarian intervention? October 6: October 20: Lewis lecture on HIV/AIDS: a case study on what went right and what went wrong. Student Presentations Global Health: Infectious diseases; Malaria and Tuberculosis. What about other neglected diseases? What about non-communicable diseases --- cancer, diabetes, cardio-vascular, etc. --- have they been entirely eclipsed by HIV? What has Ebola taught us? How do we achieve health systems strengthening? Is Medicare a possibility for all countries in the developing world? Do we need an international Convention on Public Health? Maternal and Child Health: The Ban Ki-moon initiative; the Stephen Harper initiative; why is maternal health so far behind; can you have maternal health without access to family planning and abortion? 3

4 October 27: November 3: Student Presentations Gender equality: it is said to be the most important struggle on the planet? If so, explain. If not, why not? Is there contemporary legitimacy to a feminist analysis? Sexual violence: intimate partner violence, marital rape, gang rape, rape in conflict why is there so little focus on prevention? What are the potential answers what are the obstacles? What do we do about men? Student Presentation Mr. Lewis addresses the issue of sexual violence. The global health of children, from child marriage to female genital mutilation to child soldiers to the education of girls and beyond. November 10: Student Presentations The latest data on climate change and what it means for the planet. Are the denialists still alive and well? To what extent are various responses realistic carbon tax, cap and trade, carbon sequestration, divestment campaigns? November 17: Student Presentations The landscape of renewables: solar, wind, biomass, nuclear and geothermal. How realistic is to shift massively to renewables? How has Germany done it? The ultimate Canadian dilemma: tar sands, pipelines Northern Gateway and Keystone XL. And no discussion of pipelines is complete without addressing the rights of indigenous peoples, rights that have been redefined in a recent Supreme Court decision. November 24: Student Presentation Why have international negotiations on climate change broken down time and time again? What has been the role of Canada, the United States, China, Brazil, Bolivia? Mr. Lewis will lead a discussion to sum up the current status of global warming. December 1: December 4: Mr. Lewis will lecture on the anatomy of international funding for the proposed SDGs. A course review. Lecturer to be announced. 4

5 Required Reading The following three books are required reading. Black, Maggie The No-Nonsense Guide to the United Nations. Oxford: New Internationalist. Chivers, Danny The No-Nonsense Guide to Climate Change. 3rd ed. Toronto: Between the Lines. Whiteside, Alan HIV/AIDS. A very short introduction. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Books from which book review can be chosen: Collier, Paul The Bottom Billion. Oxford University Press. Easterly, William The White Man s Burden: Why the West s Efforts to Aid the Rest Have Done so Much Ill and So Little Good. Oxford University Press. Ensler, Eve In the Body of the World: A Memoir of Cancer and Connection. Picador. Fine, Cordelia Delusions of Gender: How our Minds, Society and Neurosexism Create Difference. W.W. Norton and Co. Klein, Naomi. (September 2014).This Changes Everything: vs. the Climate. Simon and Schuster. Mahbubani, Kishore The Great Convergence: Asia, the West, and Logic of One World. Public Affairs. Mitchell, Alanna Sea Sick: The Global Ocean Crisis. McLelland & Stewart. Nutt, Samantha Damned Nations: Greed, Guns, Armies and Aid. Random House LLC, Orbinski, James An Imperfect Offering: Humanitarian Action the Twenty-First Century. Doubleday. Sachs, Jeffrey The End of Poverty: Economic Possibilities for Time. Penguin Books. Timberg, Craig & Halperin, Daniel Tinderbox: How the West the Aids Epidemic and how the World Can Finally Overcome It. Penguin Press. Worden, Minky, Editor The Unfinished Revolution: Voices from Global Fight for Women s Rights. Seven Stories Press. All of the above books are available at the bookstore and at the book reserve (McGill Library) The mycourses page will be regularly updated with reports, articles, and videos to inform and complement the class discussion. 5