Climate change has historically been studied as a global collective action problem. However, it can also be understood as the aggregate result of actions by countries, cities, businesses and individuals, that increase or decrease emissions and resilience to climate impacts. This course explores what this shift in perspective implies for national and local politics and policy around climate change. Learning outcomes include: Alternative framings of the climate crisis and implications for climate politics; perspectives of developing countries on climate change; and debates around climate governance, adaptation, industrial policy, and finance.

This course explores fundamental issues in health policy in the global and domestic context. Through lectures, discussion, and case studies, we will examine interdisciplinary frameworks and methods for addressing challenges in public health. We will explore the complex interactions and tradeoffs in policy interventions to improve health; the role of various stakeholders in health care systems; and the social, economic, and political constraints affecting health policy. Students will gain foundational knowledge surrounding the global burden of disease and strategic skills to assess and influence health policy.

An introduction to the institutions and political processes of American government and democracy. Topics will include the Constitution and American political tradition, federalism, political institutions, elections and representation, interest groups and social movements, civil rights and liberties, and the politics of public policy

Why are some states democracies while others are authoritarian dictatorships? Why does ethnicity seem to be at the heart of so much conflict in the world today? And why are some countries rich and others poor? This course is an introduction to the study of politics and political life in the world outside the United States, covering developed and developing countries. It examines how nations and states form and why some fail; how social movements can promote social justice; how democracy functions around the world; and whether capitalism and democracy can coexist.

This course introduces major theories of international relations (IR), uses them to explain historical and contemporary IR policy issues such as the rise and fall of powers, the outbreak and outcome of war, human rights, global environmental regulation, development, and the power of international law. The course also offers training how to write academic analyses, real-world policy memos, and media opinion pieces. It is designed as preparation for specialized IR courses and research, as well as jobs in foreign policy.

This course offers a friendly and practical introduction to data science for social science. Mathematical notation used in the course will be minimized. The course focuses on learning computing and programming tools for managing and analyzing data, as well as understanding the conceptual foundations behind different approaches to data analysis. By the end of the course, students should be able to summarize and visualize data, evaluate causal claims, use linear regression for data analysis, quantify uncertainty, and work with professional tools such as R and RStudio.

This course explores the political relationship of the military to the state and to society. It introduces students to the core concepts of civil-military relations, including civilian control, professionalism, and military intervention. The course engages significant cases from global twentieth-century history and surveys contemporary military politics around the world. Topics include coups d'état, responses to protests, and democratic transitions.

Why do people move across borders, and what happens when they do? Migration has shaped our world for centuries, and today, it is at the center of heated debates in politics, the media, and academic research. In this course, we will explore the forces driving human mobility - like economic opportunity, social networks, conflicts - and what happens when migrants settle in new places. We will take a global view and ask big-picture questions: How do people make decisions about moving? How do policies shape migration flows? How do politics influence these policies?

Does where you live determine your destiny? This seminar will engage students in a rich dialogue about these questions and more, drawing from the best social science evidence to date from the social sciences. In the first half of the course, we will consider research conducted on neighborhood-level (census tract) differences in big cities. In the second half, we will consider research focusing on differences between communities across the entire U.S., including rural America. Student presentations are a significant part of this course.

Course provides an introduction to public policy, concepts, tools, and applications. SPI 298 takes on questions such as: What is policy and who makes it? What are the major elements of policy? What tools and methods are used in policy design and analysis? What are examples of the range of policy challenges and solutions? Policy topics may include: poverty, housing, war, economic development, inequity and inequality, workers rights, child health, opioids, immigration, civil rights and democracy. Policy design tools include system mapping, stakeholders, power types and relationships, implementation, and unintended consequences.

SPI 299 is an introductory coordinating workshop for SPIA juniors who are beginning the two-year sequence to fulfill their junior paper and senior thesis independent research requirements. This workshop provides an introduction to the resources and support available to undergraduate researchers, background guidance and instruction helpful for conducting research, and a forum to practice and further develop the skills needed to engage successfully in independent research.

The junior policy research seminar serves to introduce departmental majors to the tools, methods, and interpretations employed in policy research and writing. Students may choose from a range of topics.

In policy seminars students work in groups first formulating the general problem, then engaging in individual research on subtopics, and finally presenting their inferences for discussion and debate and producing a collective policy report.

Course introduces use of economics in understanding both the sources of and the remedies to environmental and resource allocation problems. It emphasizes the reoccurrence of economic phenomena like public goods, externalities, market failure and imperfect information. Students learn about the design and evaluation of environmental policy instruments, the political economy of environmental policy, and the valuation of environmental and natural resource services. These concepts are illustrated in a variety of applications from domestic pollution of air, water and land to international issues such as global warming and sustainable development.

This course will review and analyze the foreign policy of the People's Republic of China from 1949 to the present. It will emphasize Beijing's relations with the US as well as examine its dealings with the USSR, Asia and the developing world. It will explore the changes and continuities in the PRC's foreign policy during three periods; 1) the era of Mao Zedong's dominance, 2) the reform era begun under Deng Xiaoping and 3) the turn back toward authoritarianism since the advent of Xi Jinping.

This course will familiarize students with the practical aspects of policy formulation and implementation that pertain to current public policy issues in the Middle East. The primary focus will be on the challenges associated with improving governance at the national and sectoral levels. It will also examine effective national strategies for capacity-building, rehabilitation, and economic development against the backdrop of strained social contracts.

As the United States has increasingly looked to its federal government to provide policies and protect rights that benefit its population, how have the branches of government risen to the occasion? Where have they struggled? What obstacles have they faced? What complexities have arisen over time? This course is an investigation of the institutional, political, and legal development of the unique "American state" in the contemporary era.

To understand American inequality, politics, history, and cities, it is necessary to understand American violence. This course will cover ideas about how to explain violence, moving from theories that focus on individuals to focus on neighborhoods, policing, guns & culture. We'll think about how to explain trends in violence and about ways cities can respond to violence. And we will put these ideas into practice by working closely with a local organization driven by the goals of reducing violence and building stronger neighborhoods in nearby Trenton.

Analyzes the historical construction of race as a concept in American society, how and why this concept was institutionalized publicly and privately in various arenas of U.S. public life at different historical junctures, and the progress that has been made in dismantling racialized institutions since the civil rights era.

This course will examine how institutions develop, vary in design, and shape public policy. Law will be a primary focus because it is central to the development of institutions in modern societies and provides the formal means for expressing and fixing policy. The course will cover a wide range of institutions- social, economic, and political- not only in an American context but also in comparative perspective.

An introduction to the main issues and research findings underlying decision-making and judgment under uncertainty. The focus is on the contrast between the normative theory of judgment and choice, and the psychological principles that guide decision behavior, often producing biases and errors. Among other topics, we will consider political, medical, and financial decision-making, poverty, negotiations, and the law, along with the implications of the findings for the rational agent model typically assumed in economics, throughout the social sciences, and in policy making.

This course examines the implications of AI, particularly foundation models, for law and public policy. Topics will include how AI affects and reshapes legal doctrine and policy, including: intellectual property law, administrative law, anti-discrimination law, and more. Also covered will be emerging regulatory policies and legislative efforts around AI, as well as the limits of proposed approaches. Emphasis will be placed juxtaposing the legal and policy considerations with technical design decisions, in an interdisciplinary and accessible way. This course is suitable for students of all backgrounds; no technical knowledge is assumed.

This course provides students with a basic technical understanding of the science and technology relevant to current and emerging national and global security issues. Topics covered in this course include nuclear weapons, biotechnology and biosecurity, delivery systems for weapons of mass destruction, cyberwarfare, global surveillance, quantum technologies, and artificial intelligence. In the second half of the semester, students work in small teams on in-depth case studies exploring a current or emerging global-security issue of their choice and combining both technical and policy analysis.

This course will study the system of international protection, who is understood to qualify and why, how the system has changed over time, and what these developments mean for a broader understanding of human rights across borders. We will also take a critical look at asylum, examine ideas of deservingness and innocence and their intersection with categories of race, class, and gender, and question what it means for certain people to be constructed as victims and others to be seen as not eligible for protection. This class will also collaborate with a New York organization to work directly on ongoing asylum claims.

This undergraduate lecture course examines the effects, response to, and legacies of pandemics in the past -- their short term and lasting impacts on government, civil liberties, trust in experts, ethnic and racial tensions, social inequalities, and global and local economies. The course uses insights from these past cases of world-changing pandemics (from the plague through influenza, polio, AIDS, and COVID) to inform our understanding of current social, political, and economic challenges. Analysis of the past is also used to inform policy discussions about planning for the future.

The course examines major moral controversies in public life and competing conceptions of justice and the common good. It seeks to help students develop the skills required for thinking and writing about the ethical considerations that ought to shape public institutions, guide public authorities, and inform citizens' moral judgments in politics. We focus on issues that are particularly challenging for advanced, pluralist democracies such as the USA, including justice in war, terrorism and torture, market freedom and distributive justice, immigration, refugees, and criminal justice in conditions of social injustice.

This survey course will introduce you to the central issues in K-12 education policy. We will first consider the normative dimensions of education policymaking: What are the substantive and distributional goals of K-12 public education? What does, and should, equality of educational opportunity mean in theory and practice? After introducing a framework for combining values and evidence, we will consider the empirical evidence on a range of policy levers, including policies that address school accountability, teacher quality, school choice, and curricula.

In both wealthy and low and middle income countries, the most disadvantaged people in societies are more likely to be exposed to health threats and more likely to suffer the consequences of those threats. We see evidence and the consequences of health inequities across countries and within them, and across socioeconomic, gender, racial and ethnic groups. In this course, we consider differences in the burden of disease and explore the myriad reasons for these differences. We also examine how the structure of health systems and health services, and the ways these are resourced, can exacerbate inequities.

People have converted almost half of the world's native habitats to agriculture and harvested more than 75% of the remaining forests. This has conversion has contributed more than a quarter of the carbon people have added to the air and has been the primary cause of biodiversity loss. This course will explore potential solutions for meeting rising food, wood and energy demands while protecting habitats and their carbon.

State courts are dominant in our federal system. Each year state courts process over 50 million civil, criminal and family cases, nearly 20 times the caseload of the federal courts. The case types range from major crimes to minor traffic offenses, "big law" litigation to small claims lawsuits, administrative agency appeals, and family disputes. Led by a long-time state appellate judge and law professor, the course will examine the wide varieties of cases adjudicated in the state trial and appellate courts and their institutional and societal importance within our nation's system of justice.

This course explores the fundamental role of public policy, economics, and technology in transforming the national healthcare landscape through progressive innovation over time. Through lectures, discussions, and cases studies we will examine the complex history, present day realities, and future considerations of health policy, healthcare economics, emerging technologies and their cumulative role in shaping care delivery, access, and national health outcomes for all Americans. We will examine landmark health policy decisions over the past century that have defined American healthcare and will analyze their downstream impact.

This course will examine current policy challenges in the U.S. with a focus on the role of the federal government in addressing them. Taught with consideration of economic principles, the course will discuss articulated rationales for government involvement in issues, the tools typically available to address them, the history of some selected policy challenges, and proposed ways forward. A focus will be on whether existing institutions have kept up with changes in the U.S. economy and society. The course will incorporate the Trump Administration's approach as well, likely in real time.

This course offers an in-depth exploration of the contemporary landscape of philanthropy, addressing critical issues, evolving trends, and the ethical and practical considerations that influence philanthropic practices today. Through a combination of peer-reviewed articles in sociology, philosophy, policy, and history; case studies; and articles from non-profit newspapers, students will develop a nuanced understanding of philanthropy's role in addressing societal challenges, with an emphasis on strategic and impactful giving.

The US federal government reserves the exclusive power to decide who can enter the nation lawfully. Once newcomers have settled, however, it is largely states, localities and community-based organizations that create the conditions under which immigrants meet their basic needs and pursue their aspirations. Not surprisingly, these conditions vary from one place to another sometimes dramatically. This is an applied policy class. We will engage with state and local elected officials, policy makers and advocates visiting their communities and hosting them on campus.

Writing well matters. Good writing also plays a role in the circulation of ideas in society and can also have a direct impact on the development and health of a democracy. Writing as a social and political practice can be learned. The focus each week will be on writing that has made an impact. We will look at a variety of forms that can lead to shifts in policy and perception. This course will also offer an introduction to writers who may not be on your radar. We will also explore how speechwriting and rhetoric can be used to persuade and galvanize audiences. Reading is central to good writing, and we will unpack what works and why.

This course offers an experiential examination of conflict resolution theory and practice. Through interactive exercises, simulations, and community-led trainings, students will learn skills in negotiation, mediation, and restorative justice circlekeeping. We will focus on analyzing the impact of emotion, power, and culture on conflict escalation, de-escalation, and resolution. Disputes will be studied at the interpersonal, group, community, institutional, and transnational levels.

The course examines the history of financial innovation and its consequences. It examines the evolution of trading practices, bills of exchange, government bonds, equities, banking activity, derivatives markets, and securitization. How do these evolve in particular state or national settings, how are the practices regulated, how do they relate to broader development? What happens as financial instruments are traded across state boundaries, and how does an international financial order evolve? What are the effects of international capital mobility? How is resulting conflict and instability managed, on both a national and international level?

The Policy Advocacy Clinic provides a unique offering for students to learn about and participate in the policymaking process. This one-year, two semester course includes two core components: a fall semester academic seminar where students study the policymaking process and a spring semester Policy Task Force where students engage in active campaigns to advance public policy. Topics will cover both the academic and practical, ranging from studying public policy theories, the legislative process and administrative law to developing the skills needed to engage in policy analysis, campaign planning, and power-mapping.

The senior thesis (498-499) is a year-long project in which students complete a substantial piece of research and scholarship under the supervision and advisement of a Princeton faculty member. While a year-long thesis is due in the student's final semester of study, the work requires sustained investment and attention throughout the academic year. Required works-in-progress submissions, their due dates, as well as how students' grades for the semester are calculated are outlined below.

An analysis of the forces that shape the behavior of public organizations and individuals in organizational settings. The emphasis is on the workings of U.S. governmental agencies. Special attention is given to writing skills as they apply to the roles of advisers and decision makers in public-sector organizations.

Statistical analysis with applications to public policy, begins with an introduction to probability theory followed by discussion of statistical methods for estimating the quantitative effects of changes in policy variables. Regression methods appropriate for the analysis of observational data and data from randomized controlled experiments are stressed. By the end of the course students are able to do their own empirical analysis using statistical software package, interpret regression results and competently assess the work of others. The course assumes a fluency in high school algebra.

Statistical analysis with applications to public policy, begins with an introduction to probability theory followed by discussion of statistical methods for estimating the quantitative effects of changes in policy variables. Regression methods appropriate for the analysis of observational data & data from randomized controlled experiments are stressed. By course end, students are able to do their own empirical analysis using statistical software package & interpret regression results from the professional literature. The course assumes fluency in calculus, which is necessary for rigorous mathematical analysis of probability & statistics.

This course presents concepts and tools from microeconomic theory with an emphasis on how they are applied to public policy analysis. No previous experience in economics required although students should be familiar with basic concepts in calculus. A strong understanding of algebra is a prerequisite.

This course is an introduction to the use of microeconomics for the analysis of public policy on an advanced level. The emphasis is on both the intuitive and formal logic of economic principles, a deeper perspective on the impacts of typical policy measures, and an introduction to the use of professional microeconomic tools to assess and weigh these policy impacts. One goal is to move students towards the ability to read professional microeconomic literature with appreciation of both its contributions and foibles.

This course introduces students to evaluation. It explores ways to develop and implement research-based program improvement strategies and program accountability systems; to judge the effects of policies and programs; and to assess the benefits and costs of policy or program changes. Students study a wide range of evaluation tools; read and discuss both domestic and international evaluation examples and apply this knowledge by designing several different types of evaluations on programs of their choosing.

An introduction to the political analysis of policy making in the American setting. The course includes theoretical and empirical analyses of political institutions, including executives, legislatures, and bureaucracies. It also examines the political environment in which these institutions operate, with special attention given to the role of public opinion, interest groups, and elections.

Examines a series of major issues of policy designed to illustrate and develop skills in particularly important applications of microeconomics. Topics include education and training, the minimum wage, mandated benefits, affirmative action, the theory of public goods and externalities, and the basic theory of taxation.

This course used historical analysis to evaluate why some presidents have been considered to be among the most effective leaders and why others have left a legacy of failure. We focus on the twentieth century, from Nixon to Biden, for our case studies. The seminar evaluates social scientific models of leadership and delves into the historical record to discover any consistent patterns that are relevant for today. Careful consideration is given to the distinct challenges posed by different institutional and political settings. The course also explores the ways in which historical analysis can be useful to policymaking.

This course challenges participants to examine and reflect upon their own leadership experiences & aspirations through various lenses, including academic research, historical examples, and an exploration of leadership skills & personal qualities associated with organizational success. We emphasize discussion, group work and the application of the readings to real-life scenarios. Topics covered include: models of public leadership & influence, critical thinking & decision-making, working in teams, harnessing inspiration & creativity, recognizing & managing risk, aligning budgets with strategy and values & effective management styles.

This course focuses on the causes, consequences, and responses to urban inequality. The course is organized in four parts. First, we consider how one comes to learn about and understand cities and neighborhoods. Second, we review classic and current ideas about how urbanization affects the way we live and interact with each other. Third, we assess various explanations for urban inequality. Fourth, we focus our attention on central problems and challenges of urban life, from segregation to violence, and consider policy responses.

This course introduces competing theories of international relations and evaluates their explanation of foreign policy decisions and general patterns in international relations over the last century. Broadly covering security policy and international political economy, topics include the causes of war, the role of international organizations to promote cooperation, and the interaction between domestic actors and governments in negotiations on trade and the environment.

The field of Security Studies is distinguished by its focus on a clearly delineated set of intellectual and practical problems. This course serves as the required gateway for all students entering the Princeton School of Public and International Affairs.

This course examines the politics of international financial institutions, with attention to the old-guard International Monetary Fund, the Asian Development Bank, and the African Development Bank, as well as new initiatives led by China, such as the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank. China's rise has altered the balance of global financial power. Meanwhile, the election of Donald Trump marked a distinct rupture in US engagement with the rest of the world. As we study these international dynamics, the course examines the domestic political motivations for (apparently) international affairs.

Examine ways in which international and regional financial and development institutions may be deployed as agents of change in the quest for democracy in the Arab world. A primary focus of this course is on (a) formulating the reform agendas in a manner that not only serves the immediate objective of improving governance, but seeks to do so while simultaneously promoting democratic principles and practices, and (b) facilitating the adoption of such agendas by taking advantage of the centrality of the promotion of good governance and reform to the purview of key international and regional financial and development institutions.

This course addresses the challenges of international advocacy by considering the strategies that the international human rights movement has developed. We examine methods that the human rights movement uses, from shaming abusive governments to conditioning access to various diplomatic & economic benefits. We consider a range of countries, a variety of multilateral institutions that contribute to the defense of human rights (the UN & the International Criminal Court); and a panoply of human rights abuses, from war-time atrocities to authoritarian repression, from issues affecting climate change to economic, social & cultural rights.

This course provides students with an intensive overview of the rapidly evolving geopolitical, economic, and ideological rivalry between the world's two most powerful states: the United States and China. The course is intended both for masters students intending to pursue careers in the analysis, formulation, and execution of public policy, and for PhD candidates, many of whom are involved in research and teaching.

Analysis of political change and the operation of political institutions in the development process, with emphasis on the interaction of political and economic factors. Various definitions and theories of political development are examined and tested against different economic, ethnic, geographic, and social contexts.

This seminar explores important factors facing the field of global health today, as well as policy actions to address these factors. It examines demographic changes and rapid urbanization, climate change and its implications for global health, the increased importance of non-communicable diseases in low- and middle-income countries, the rise of social media and misinformation/disinformation, new health risk factors such as antimicrobial resistance, and the increased prominence of humanitarian emergencies due to conflicts, natural disasters, pandemics and other disease outbreaks.

This course explores the impacts of & societal responses to climate hazards. Drawing on case studies, students interrogate relationships among extreme events, human behavior, disaster management, public policy, technology, and social inequality to deconstruct what makes people and places vulnerable to hazards. By the end of the course, students should be able to identify the leading environmental and policy drivers of societal vulnerability to hazards and understand how natural & societal processes interact to create disasters. They also learn about public data sources & applying analytical tools used in disaster risk reduction.

The Patient Protection & Affordable Care Act (ACA) was the defining and polarizing law of the Obama era. While its provisions to expand health insurance coverage, control costs, and improve the health care delivery system have made measurable improvements in the health care system and the experience of consumers, many challenges remain with the law and its structure. The workshop focuses on the policy, operational and political challenges of the ACA and future coverage and delivery system reforms. A core focus is the role that states play in the management of their health care systems.

This course examines the principles of negotiation and provide firsthand experience in simulated negotiations. Sample topics include distributive negotiation, integrative negotiation ("expanding the pie"), conflict management, and coalitions. Research on the variables that affect success in negotiations are discussed. Students engage in a series of bargaining exercises between individuals and teams, and results are analyzed by the class.