A growing number of geopolitical struggles today are fought through infrastructure: chips and compute, undersea cables and satellites, standards and supply chains, and the cloud platforms that increasingly mediate economic and military power. This course examines how international technology policy is made in practice when interdependence is inescapable but security stakes are rising. We focus on the policy instruments that translate technical capability into political leverage: export controls and industrial policy, platform regulation and content governance, cybersecurity strategies and alliance coordination, and the management of high-consequence transitions (e.g., post-quantum cryptography). While the course focuses primarily on the fast-evolving relationships among the United States, Europe, and China, the dynamics we study routinely extend beyond this core and shape technology policy worldwide.

Students learn to read strategies and policy documents as instruments of power, to identify assumptions and implementation risks, and to produce decision-grade outputs under real-world constraints. Assessment emphasizes professional policy writing, one in-class crisis simulation, and a final portfolio (submitted as an alternative final assessment) rather than in-class exams.

The course is organized around three recurring propositions:

• Infrastructure creates leverage. The most durable advantages often come from chokepoints, dependencies, and switching costs, not just ``innovation.''
• Governance happens in the plumbing. Standards, procurement policies, compliance regimes, liability rules, and interoperability constraints can lock in power and shape conflict.
• Dual-use is normal. ``Civilian'' systems routinely become security-relevant because they are widely deployed, privately operated, and difficult to replace quickly.

By the end of the course, students should be able to (i) explain how material and digital infrastructures (re)shape the international system, (ii) evaluate competing policy strategies across jurisdictions, and (iii) communicate clear recommendations to decision-makers under uncertainty and time pressure.

This course is an in-depth introduction to the study of the politics of the Middle East. The course is divided into several thematic interrelated parts. First, an overview of International Relations theory will guide the analysis and approaches used to understand and analyze various dynamics in the Middle East. After understanding the theoretical underpinnings, the class will be divided into several general themes that are important to understand the Middle East’s current affairs, priorities, and issues inclusive of (1) the emergence of the state system, (2) the role of non-state actors, (3) the evolution of governance and revolutions, (4) Arab-Israeli relations, (5) the Israeli Palestinian conflict, amongst other issues. Further, discussions in International Relations theory will help us understand the region and its place in the global political system. Based on the historical and theoretical background provided, students will emerge with tools and approaches to analyze social and political issues in the Middle East, grasp the nature of the interplay between international, regional, and local dynamics to explain Middle East politics, and understand the implications of the pressing issues in the Middle East for the global political system.

Introduction to Global Development provides students with a foundational understanding of the political, economic, and social forces that shape development outcomes across the world. The course introduces classic theories of development, contemporary critiques, and the real-world constraints practitioners face.

Drawing on global cases, data, practitioner insights, and current debates, students will learn to analyze why some countries prosper while others struggle, what actors influence development, and how today’s geopolitical landscape, climate pressures, and fragility shape the future of global development.

The course culminates in an applied Budget Allocation Simulation for Haiti, where students assume the role of development decision-makers managing a $150 million portfolio.

There are no prerequisites for this course.

After experiencing decades of rapid economic growth, China has emerged as one of the most powerful countries in the world, and it is already having a profound impact on the global economy and international security. This class seeks to make sense of China’s complex political system. The course starts by focusing on modern Chinese history from the end of the Qing Dynasty to the economic reforms of the Reform and Opening Era. It then examines important features of modern Chinese governance such as center-local relations, fragmented authoritarianism, state-society relations, factionalism, the relationship between the CCP and state institutions, surveillance, censorship, the hukou system, and nationalism. The course then focuses on modern challenges in the governance of China including corruption, environmental degradation, slowing economic growth, and a looming demographic crisis. The course finishes by examining China under the leadership of Xi Jinping and how domestic politics influences its behavior on the world stage.

This graduate-level course (for MA and PhD students) surveys prominent scholarship on the theory and practice of international security. Although this course covers several topics central to the study of international security, it is by no means exhaustive. Thus, graduate students preparing for comprehensive exams are encouraged to read more widely, including recommended readings in this syllabus and other syllabi on security studies. Some of the topics that will be covered in this course include debates about the security studies field, deterrence, coercion, bargaining, audience costs, war termination, causes of war, leaders, psychology, status, reputation, emotions, memory, power transitions, grand strategy, alliances, offense-defense balance, military doctrine, strategic culture, nuclear weapons, weapons of mass destruction, civil war, terrorism, humanitarian intervention, and emerging technologies. This course will draw on a combination of classical works in the field of security studies as well as more contemporary policy-focused works. Throughout the course, students will ask what security means, what constitutes threats, how the nature of conflict has changed (or not) in world politics today. Students will develop a foundation of knowledge about important debates in the field of international security and draw upon concepts from the course to understand contemporary events in international security. In addition to the content on international security, students will also develop their policy writing, research, and analysis skills. Due to time constraints, the course cannot cover every topic in international security, and it will only provide cursory overviews of some topics that are regularly offered and covered much more thoroughly in other INTA courses (i.e., terrorism, WMDs, nuclear weapons). Students are strongly encouraged to take courses offered by other INTA faculty for a deeper study of these topics. Similarly, while these course draws uponconcepts from international relations theory, it does not duplicate material covered in INTA 6102, International Relations Theory.

This course is designed to give students an introduction to American political foundation & political institutions, actors, and processes but with an added comparative perspective with other countries. The students will not only be expected to understand these topics but also be able to critically evaluate them.

This class will explore comparative approaches to statecraft. It will examine the sources and conduct of statecraft in modern world politics. The course will be divided into three parts. The first part of the course will cover theories, concepts, the sources and implementation of statecraft, and the components of order in the international system. The second part of the course will examine different dimensions of power and statecraft, including concepts related to modern military power and alliances, hybrid and information warfare, sanctions and economic statecraft, as well as how new emerging technologies shape the conduct of statecraft in world politics. The third and final component of the course will focus on applying these concepts to assessing Russian, Chinese, and American statecraft. 

Throughout the course, students will critically evaluate different dimensions of statecraft and apply them to real-world cases. Assignments throughout the course will provide students opportunities to apply research and critical thinking skills, as well as practice communicating to different types of audiences in a clear and succinct manner.

This course is intended to introduce students to the study of International Affairs. This is a political science course focused on the history and development of theories relating to the international system and how this translates to foreign policy. It will cover the main IR theories in the first half of the course, then moving on to real-world applications to understand current events and global governance.

This course will investigate the economic and political dynamics of technological innovation and the role of strategies, policies, regulations, and other institutions in its global diffusion. We also explore why some countries are better at innovation than others.

The course is divided into four modules:

PART I              Defining and Understanding Science, Technology, and Innovation                                                    

PART 2             Governing Technological Innovation & STI Policy

PART 3             Creating Regulatory and Technology Standards

PART 4:            Special Issues

We ask:  What do we mean by science and technology? Why do countries adopt similar or different science, technology, and innovation strategies, regulations, and standards in support of economic growth? What are the different paths that technological innovation and diffusion take, and how do they impact productivity and competitiveness? Who governs these processes and how? Ultimately, these questions help us understand the role of government, markets, and society in shaping global technological and economic change. While the subject is vast, the course's scope helps keep it manageable. It draws on the scholarly and popular literature, as well as industry examples. The course also compares US technology innovation strategies with those of Europe, Asia, and selected developing countries.

The course is open to advanced undergraduates and graduate students. Prior work in political science or economics is strongly recommended. 

I have tried to keep your weekly readings manageable. The course delves more deeply into economic, political, and technological elements. However, you are given the flexibility to choose research topics of particular interest to you.  

Please keep apprised of current issues regarding the economic and political dynamics of technological innovation by reading a good daily or weekly publication such as The Wall Street Journal, The Financial Times, The New York Times, and/or The Economist. I will also be posting current event articles on Canvas from time to time.  These will help link some of the more conceptual themes in the course with real-world events. 

This course will utilize a combination of lectures, discussion, and activities to explore the political, economic, and strategic issues, both international as well as domestic, involved in the spread of weapons of mass destruction since the end of the Second World War. The course will begin by characterizing the relationship of technology to society before focusing on weapons, with particular emphasis on nuclear weapons.