Politics of Sustainable Development

This course is designed to provide an introduction to the process of political development. It introduces a set of analytic tools based on the strategic perspective of political science and political economy to evaluate the current debates in political development and to draw policy-relevant conclusions. Throughout the course, we will discuss the political dimensions and challenges of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, along with the 17 Sustainable Development Goals and their transformations as modular building blocks. First, we explore the politics of economic development: the role of leadership, political systems, and institutions in promoting growth. We study the mechanisms that underlie the persistence of poverty. Utilizing numerous country case studies, we will answer: What is political development? What explains why some countries have prospered while others remain poor, violent, or unequal? Why do we observe growth, stability and freedoms in some and not in others? Second, we will explore the causes and consequences of the state, political institutions, and democracy. What is at the root of state capacity, political participation, and other aspects of political development? What is the role of property rights and rule of law in development? How do we promote gender equality and empowerment? How do we detect and mitigate the effects of corruption? How do we foster political stability? In the third part of the course, we will focus on policies that foster stability and development. We will critically examine the effects of Western intervention in the developing world, historical legacies of slavery and colonialism, and the various tools of foreign policy: aid, democracy promotion and military interventions. We will further explore the extent to which outside interventions alleviated poverty and whether it improved public goods provision or promoted political stability. Finally, the course will consider the role of emerging powers in the context of global governance and their influence on the future course of development in the Global South.