This course is a co-creation with FGGA, with a separate course catalogue number for Political Science Students.
Admission requirements
This course is part of the minor Global Affairs and is open to Political Science Students as an elective course.
To register for this course you need to be enrolled either for the minor Global Affairs, or as an undergraduate or exchange student at the Institute of Political Science at Leiden University. There are 100 places open for students enrolled in the minor and 100 places for undergraduate students of Political science, on a first come first served basis.
Description
This course critically examines how global problems are – and might be better – governed. What rules and regulatory processes are currently ordering global affairs? What alternative approaches to governing a global world might be available?
Contemporary society is heavily globalized, in the sense that people are deeply interconnected across the planet. We see this globality in matters such as armed conflicts (e.g. worldwide involvements in and consequences of wars in Gaza and Ukraine), digital technologies (e.g. the internet), ecological problems (e.g. climate change), economic affairs (e.g. internationally transmitted inflation), geopolitical shifts (e.g. a worldwide rise of China), humanitarian crises (e.g. food insecurities), identity politics (e.g. transborder LGBTQ+ movements), pandemics (e.g. Covid-19), and social inequalities (e.g. global wealth divides). All such problems, and more, are substantially planetary in scope.
Governing global-scale developments (such as AI, biodiversity loss, Islamophobia, etc.) is one of today’s greatest political and societal challenges. How can we craft suitable rules and regulatory processes that can shape and direct global connections in positive directions? This course introduces students to the measures, actors, networks, structures, and ideologies that currently govern – and might in future differently govern – the globe.
The first week of the course addresses globality: the condition of people being interrelated on a planetary scale. We cover the manifestations, history, and drivers of global connectivity. The second week reviews the challenges that globality poses in contemporary society: for cultural identity, democracy, distributive justice, ecological integrity, economic welfare, liberty, peace, and solidarity. The third week considers the variety of actors (both governmental and nongovernmental) that do the governing of global affairs. The fourth week examines how these multiple state and nonstate actors combine in polycentric networks of governing, which raises major issues concerning democracy, effectiveness, fairness, peace, and sustainability. The fifth week looks beyond actors to the practices and underlying orders that structure the governance of global problems. The sixth week explores the legitimacy of current global governance, from both empirical and normative perspectives: how far do existing arrangements have ‘the right to rule’? The seventh week assesses contending policy frameworks that are available to govern a global world. We assess the possible promises and pitfalls of each ideological approach, hopefully leaving students more empowered to make their own choices about desirable global futures.
Course objectives
After completion of the course, students are expected to be able:
Knowledge
to describe the global qualities of contemporary society and its governance
to identify the actors and networks that participate in governing global connections
to recognise practices and underlying orders that structure global politics
Insight
to appreciate the complex dynamics through which global issues are governed
to reflect on the legitimacy (or otherwise) of arrangements for governing a global world
to assess the potential promises and pitfalls of various ideological approaches to global policy
Skills
to understand academic writings and lectures about governing a global world
to participate in probing discussions of global challenges and their governance
to communicate effectively in both speech and writing about governing a global world
Teaching method
7 lectures of 2-3 hours by instructors and guest lecturers.
Participation in lectures, discussions and exercises is required in order to obtain a grade. One lecture may be missed. Being absent more than once may likely lead to expulsion from the course.
The total study load for this course is 140 hours, consisting of:
21 hours for attending lectures
119 hours studying – work on assignments
Assessment method
Midterm assignment
25% of total grade
Re-sit not possible
Grade must be compensated
Final assignment
75% of total grade
Grade must be 5.50 or higher to pass the course
Re-sit possible
Re-sit will take the same form
Participation in lectures, discussions and exercises is required in order to obtain a grade. One lecture may be missed. Being absent more than once may likely lead to expulsion from the course.
Students will also be permitted to re-sit the final if they have a calculated overall course grade lower than 5.50 or with permission of the Board of Examiners. There is no re-sit for the mid-term, which needs to be compensated.
Late hand in penalty: 0,5 minus per day, and after seven days we do not accept papers any longer.
The Course and Examination Regulation of Security Studies and the Rules and Regulation of the Board of Examiners of the Institute of Security and Global Affairs apply.
Reading list
The reading list will be added on Brightspace.
Registration
General information about course and exam enrolment is available on the website.
Leiden University uses Brightspace as its online learning management system. After enrolment for the course in MyStudymap you will be automatically enrolled in the Brightspace environment of this course.
Contact
For substantive questions, contact the lecturer(s) (listed in the right information bar). Political Science students who take this course as an elective can contact the Student Services Centre with questions about enrolment at ssc@leiden.edu.
For questions about the minor, contact globalaffairs@fgga.leidenuniv.nl.
Remarks
All sessions will be in English.
Essays need to be written in English.
This course takes place in The Hague.
Please note that the re-sits of this minor will be organised in January.
Schedule
The timetables are available through MyTimetable (see the button in the upper right corner).