Sustainable Economics Development Concentraion Course Descriptions
BA 489 Internship in Business (or Study Abroad or WorldWide field study) (1-8 credits)
Provides an experiential learning opportunity in which skills and knowledge learned in course work can be applied and tested through work with an off-campus business or non-profit agency. Students' preferences as to type of organization or business are matched with available area firms to the extent possible. Some on-campus internships may be developed.
Prerequisites: Business and Economics major, senior standing or permission of the department and a 2.5 overall GPA.
ECO 301 Microeconomic Theory and Practice (4 credits)
For advanced students who are majoring in business and economics or who believe they may take an economics graduate degree in the future. Microeconomic topics discussed in previous courses are explored in more depth and are applied using case analyses estimating demand and cost curves using regression analysis. Topics include consumer choice, firm equilibrium, and input, output, and price decision of the firm.
Triad: Social Science.
Prerequisites: ECO 201 Microeconomics, MAT 141 Statistics, and junior standing.
ECO 307 International Trade (4 credits)
This advanced course develops the theories and principles involved in the trade of goods and services between nations as well as the international finance of such trade. Why do countries trade? What are the effects of trade on the world incomes as well as on national and personal incomes? What are the causes and effects of international factor movements, such as labor migrations and foreign investment? What about multinationals? International value of the dollar? Students study a country of their choice in depth producing a final report and presentation that applies the many models and concepts learned in the class.
Triad: Social Science or College Composition II.
Prerequisite: ECO 201 Microeconomics.
ECO 380 Environmental and Ecological Economics (4 credits)
Students explore the relationship between human social and economic systems and the environment. We analyze how markets fail, causing many environmental problems, how markets can be harnessed, and how various government strategies can lead to better management of environmental resources and ecosystem services. Topics such as resource valuation, cost-benefit analysis, and multi-criteria analysis are discussed as well as alternative government policy approaches. Students complete a major class project on an issue selected in coordination with the instructor.
Triad: Social Science or College Composition II.
Prerequisite: ECO 201 Microeconomics.
ECO 383 Economic Growth and Development (4 credits)
The process of economic development and growth, as well as the sustainability of growth are the primary themes of this class. We explore the meaning of and measures for development and underdevelopment, the connections between growth and development, the processes that lead to growth and development such as the economic, social, political, and cultural, obstacles to growth and development, and the policies that can alleviate them. Throughout the class the questions of the sustainability and desirability of growth are continually questioned. Students either write and present a country report, or participate in a regional group project studying a regional development issue. In either case students apply course material in a specific context, learning research, analytical, writing, and presentation skills.
Triad: Social Science, Language/Global Issues, or College Composition II.
Prerequisites: Business and economics major: ECO 201 Microeconomics and ECO 210 Macroeconomics, or Non-majors: ECO 190 Contemporary Social and Economic Issues and permission of the instructor.
Plus an additional 12 hours from the following list, or other courses as approved by the student's advisor and the Department Chair. Minimum 32 hours.
ENS 425 Sustainable Development and the Politics of Growth (4 credits)
Since "sustainable development" is so often cited as the goal of our environmental policy, this course will attempt to discover exactly what is meant by this term. Issues of economic incentives will be analyzed. Unlike a standard course in environmental policy that focuses on the formulation and implementation of statutory law at the federal level of the American government, this course will emphasize economic, theoretical, and international issues.
ENS 451 Community and Land Use Planning (4 credits)
This course will address theoretical and practical aspects of land use planning at the local level. The terms "community" and "citizenship" will be analyzed in their modern and historical contexts. Students will investigate various concepts and techniques used by state, regional, urban, and rural planning organizations. Topics such as historic preservation, public lands, and conservation partnerships will also be discussed.
Prerequisites: Junior standing, PSC 151 Introduction to American Government and ENS 116 Introduction to Environmental Studies.
ODL 315 Group Process (4 credits)
The basic principles of small group interaction will be explored in both didactic and experiential components of the course. Part of becoming an effective group leader is exploring the nature and consequences of one's interaction with others. Students will be asked to participate in a number of activities that will allow students to learn with their own personal styles of interacting with others. These activities will be supplemented with theory in group dynamics. It is the intent of the course that the student will be able to transfer skills learned in the class to settings where group leadership is required (i.e., almost any job).
Prerequisite: PSY 100 Introduction to Psychology.
PAX 325 Resolving Conflict Local and Global (4 credits)
Using insights from sociology and psychology, the nature of social conflict at all levels--personal, group, and global--will be studied in order to gain insight into possible resolution. The role of mediation in its many dimensions will be investigated and practiced. Insights gained at a theoretical level will then be applied to international conflicts, and proposals for possible resolutions will be developed. The study concludes with attention to world order scenarios that might lead to a more peaceful future.
Triad: Language Global Issues.
PHI 252 Environmental Ethics (4 credits)
This course will cover several significant approaches to environmental ethics. The central focus of the course will be twofold: the question of our ethical and metaphysical relation to non-human life and to nature; and the ethical status of the human and the non-human world. Within these larger and interconnected questions, we will discuss the holism/individualism debate; the deep ecology/ecofeminism debate; and the question of the meaning of sustainability. A significant portion of this course will be spent on the Land Ethic, Deep Ecology, and Ecofeminism and the theoretical and practical issues raised by them.
Triad: Language/Global Issues.
PSC 257 International Relations (4 credits)
This course is a general survey of the essential concepts and practices of international politics, examining the historical past of international communities as well as current international concerns and issues.
Triad: History/Political Science or Language/Global Issues.
PSC 330 Politics of Developing States (4 credits)
This issue-oriented course examines important questions in the politics of developing states. It will look at the legacies of colonialism, neocolonialism, and nationalism in the developing state, as well as the impact of modernization, the WTO, IMF, World Bank, and other international institutions on the development of the third world countries. Population growth and its environmental impact will also be examined through different case studies.
Triad: History/Political Science or Language/Global Issues.