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Fall 2023 Courses

Expand the course offerings below to learn more about the class schedule, theme, and cross listings. 

REQUIRED TRACK COURSES 

Please see course descriptions for enrollment restrictions. Some required courses are open to non-Global Studies majors. 

Global Development Studies 

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GDS 3010 –  Global Development Theory I

Theoretical approaches to global development from anthropology, economics, environmental sciences, history, politics, and sociology, and analysis of selected case studies. Prerequisite: the student must be a GDS major in order to enroll. Instructor permission.

001

TR 11:00AM-12:15PM | MON 118 

Gabrielle Kaya Kruks-Wisner

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GDS 3100 –  Development on the Ground

Examines the protocols of planning for and conducting development projects and the research associated with them both locally and internationally. Special attention to the ethical obligations inherent in development work and the dynamics of collaborating with local communities. Prerequisite: Instructor permission AND the student must be a GDS major in order to enroll.

001

TR 02:00PM-03:15PM | MON 118 

David Edmunds

Global Public Health 

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PHS 3130 –  Introduction to Health Research Methods

Much of what we know about human health & health-related behavior is based on quant & qual research. This course involves students in the research process from start to finish, including formulating a research question; conducting a background literature review; choosing a study design; developing data collection tools; recruiting a study population; collecting data; assuring data quality; analyzing data; & interpreting & presenting results. Instructor permission.

001

TR 09:30AM-10:45AM | Multistory (Old) Hospital C1 

Aaron Pannone

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PHS 3825 –  Global Public Health: Challenges and Innovations

Undoubtedly, we've made important advances in global health, but there's still a long way to go. What factors determine health? What threats do we face today? What issues should we be working to change? We will explore these questions & more through a variety of interactive lectures & small group activities centered on 4 major themes: History & Trends, Determinants of Health, Culture, & Communication. Instructor Permission.

001

T 09:30AM-12:00PM | Multistory (Old) Hospital 3181 

Chris Calvin

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PHS 4050 –  Public Health Policy

Explores the legitimacy, design, & implementation of a variety of policies aiming to promote public health & reduce the social burden of disease & injury. Highlights the challenge posed by public health's pop-based perspective to traditional ind-centered, autonomy-driven approaches to bioethics & const. law. Other themes center on conflicts between PH & pub morality & the relationship between PH and social justice. Instructor Permission.

001

TR 12:30PM-01:45PM | GIL 257 

Kathryn Quissell

Global Environments & Sustainability 

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GSVS 2150 – Global Sustainability

This integrated and interdisciplinary course provides foundational knowledge on the multifaceted aspects of both problems and solutions related to sustainability, and challenges participants to deepen their understanding of global sustainability issues through a real-world, collaborative Think Global/ Act Local project. Combined Sections: GSVS/ARCH 2150/5150/COMM 3880

001

TR 11:00AM-12:15PM | MIN 125 

Phoebe Crisman 

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GSVS 3310 – Sustainability Policy

Students will survey the main currents of US & international natural resource policy (air & water quality, endangered species protection, public land management, private land conservation), consider their origins in conservation thought, and learn to evaluate these policies via examples and assignments from current natural resource and environmental challenges. Students will learn about the actors and processes by which policy decisions are made. NOTE: Students can't enroll if previously taken GSVS 3559 topic #13 Natural Resouce Policy.

001

TR 02:00PM-03:15PM | GIB 211 

Spencer Phillips 

Global Security & Justice 

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GSSJ 3010 – Global Issues of Security and Justice

This is the foundation course for students admitted to the Global Studies-Security and Justice track of Global Studies. Instructor Consent Required.

001

MW 02:00PM-03:15PM | CAB 389 

Peter Furia 

Global Commerce in Culture & Society 

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GCCS 3010 – Global Commerce: Concepts, Cases 

Theories and cases studies concerning social, cultural and historical aspects of business, trade, finance, organizations, property systems, regulation and work. How are economic institutions and systems of exchange shaped by social and cultural contexts that they affect in turn? What alternative ways of organizing commerce are suggested by world comparative and historical study? Instructor Permission Required.

TR 09:30AM-10:45AM | CAB 132

Laura Goldblatt 

ELECTIVE COURSES 

Global Studies elective courses are open to all University students. 

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GDS 3113 – Buddhist Development 

Buddhism takes an ethical and practical view of how individuals and societies can develop toward greater equity, sustainability, and satisfaction. This course will investigate, from a Buddhist perspective and practicing Vipassana meditation, the state of development in the developed and developing world, in Buddhist and Western societies, with emphasis on the role of the individual, personal choice, and personal growth. Instructor Consent Required.

MW 03:00PM-04:45PM | NAU 141 

Cliff Maxwell

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GDS 4951 – University Museums Internship 

This is the first semester internship at either UVA Art Museum or Kluge Ruhe. Students will work approximately 100 hours per semester in the museum, and will participate in three training sessions and three academic seminars. Instructor Permission, by application; deadline May 1. Please see information at art.as.virginia.edu/course-descriptions and www.as.virginia.edu/departments-programs. Instructor Consent Required.

F 10:00AM-12:30PM | FHL 208 

Melissa Love 

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PHS 3050 – Fundamentals of Public Health

Public health is multidisciplinary, universally relevant, & constantly evolving. In this survey course, we learn about past & current public health issues & explore the core disciplines of public health through a combination of lectures & small group discussion of documentaries & case studies. We develop an appreciation of how public health knowledge relates to our lives & learn about career opportunities. Instructor Consent Required.

TR 12:30PM-01:45PM | Multistory (Old) Hospital C1 

Paige Hornsby

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PHS 3102 – Introduction to Public Health Research: Population Data Analysis

This course is designed to provide students with the knowledge & skills needed to use population data to answer research questions. Students will utilize SPSS to access, evaluate, & interpret public health data. The course will give students an opportunity to generate hypotheses & variables to measure health problems. The course will also describe how the public health infrastructure is used to collect, process, maintain & disseminate data. Instructor Consent Required.

Th 06:00PM-08:30PM | CHEM 206 

Rajesh Balkrishnan

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PHS 3186 – Comparative Health Care Systems

Provides a background for students who may be interested in learning about challenges & opportunities for improvement in health status for citizens in all countries. Although at the operational level, each national system is unique, there are common characteristics that permeate the design & structure of most health care delivery sectors. The major health reform activities occurring in developed & developing countries will be highlighted. Instructor Consent Required.

MWF 02:00PM-02:50PM | CHEM 206 

Kathryn Quissell

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PHS 3620 – Built Environment & Health Impact

The planning & design of the built environment to promote public health & equity requires systems thinking & a trandisciplinary approach to research. Students will learn & apply collaborative research methods including scientific health literature review, diagramming concepts, & case study analysis to synthesize logic models as theoretical frameworks for projects & policy. Instructor Consent Required.

MWF 10:00AM-10:50AM | CHEM 206 

Schaeffer Somers

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GSVS 2050 – Sustainable Energy Systems 

This course investigates a major source of human impact upon the Earth - energy consumption to fuel human activity. The course a) provides a cross-disciplinary perspective on the challenge of human-centered energy use, b) explains the historical origins of today's energy systems, c) describes current energy systems, d) examines the components of sustainable energy systems, and e) considers keys to their deployment. Combined Sections: STS 2050-1

TR 03:30PM-04:45PM | MEC 205 

James Groves 

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GSVS 3150 – 001 – Sustainability Leadership 

In this experiential, workshop-based course, students will develop leadership skills in translating ideas into action, using UVA's Grounds as a living lab for sustainability - the campus as a sustainability classroom. Students will gain insight into a process in which individuals can catalyze change to solve global problems and advance strategic goals on a local level through a place-based, project-based, and human-centered approach. 

TR 11:00AM-12:15PM | PV8 105 

Andrea Trimble & Dana Schroeder

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GSVS 3210 – Evidence for Policy 

The practicum uses problem-based learning to develop relevant facts and sound arguments surrounding local, national and global sustainability challenges. Working with live case studies in the U.S. and abroad, we will follow the steps from problem formation, through model building, data collection, and qualitative and quantitative analysis, and finally on to technical and advocacy communications grounded in our facts. Note: Students can't enroll if previously taken Anti-requisite GSVS 4559 topic #6 Sustainability Practicum.

TR 02:00-3:15PM | BRN 328 

Spencer Phillips 

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GSSJ 3559 – Migration and Social Movements in the Americas

This course will provide an overview of migration, struggle, and social movements in the Americas. From the Spanish conquistadors’ arrival in the Aztec capital of Tenochtitlán, to today’s migrant caravans traveling thousands of miles on foot, we will explore an alternative history of the Americas and their social movements through the concept of migration.

TR 02:00PM-03:15PM 

Levi Vonk

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GSGS 2559 – Intro to Global Studies

This is an interdisciplinary course that exposes students to critical global economic, environmental, cultural, health and governance issues. It provides an overview of the main conceptual approaches to global studies and thus enhances their ability to understand and evaluate important real-world issues and problems. It introduces key issues found in the various tracks of the GS program (GDS, GSVS, GPH, GSSJ, GCCS, GSMS), and familiarizes perspective GS applicants with essential perspectives and skills for success.

100 - MW 2:00PM-3:15PM

Tessa Farmer

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GSGS 2559 – Mass Migration and Global Development

This course explores mass migration’s relation to global development initiatives. When do migrants “count” in development projects, and when do they not? What kinds of political, social, and economic claims are migrants permitted to make on their own terms, and when are these claims mediated by development and humanitarian initiatives?

MW 03:30PM-04:45PM 

Levi Vonk

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GSGS 3100 – Conceptions of the Global 

This course examines leading schools of thought in Global Studies from a critical perspective. Students will engage with foundational political, social, and cultural concepts that underpin contemporary economic, cultural, and political institutions of power. The course brings together material from anthropology, political theory, and cultural studies. Note: Students can't enroll if previously taken GSGS 2559 #8 Conceptions of the Global.

W 03:30PM-06:00PM | MON 116 

Sylvia Tidey 

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GSGS 3559 – Space, Place & Global Development  

Geography matters!  We’ll explore theories and cases to better understand such issues as the struggle over the ocean and other public commons, the role of sacred spaces in Indigenous communities, how migrants make a place for themselves in their new homes, economic resilience and how capital, goods and people circulate in the economy, and more.  This is a good introduction to themes raised in Global Studies, and a relatively rare survey of geographic thinking at the university.

MW 02:00PM-3:15PM | CMN 1110 

David Edmunds

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GSGS 3559 – Dot Orgs: Getting Results in the Real World 

This course examines the history and role of NGOs in pursuing ecological sustainability and social justice, as well as the legal and institutional frameworks that govern the sector. In this class, students will also practice proposal-writing, budgeting, developing advocacy campaigns, and reporting on program activities. Instruction will rely heavily on case studies and hands-on exercises. Guest speakers from the local, national, and international NGO community will further enhance the content and experience the course provides.

TR 12:30PM-1:45PM | CAB 132 

Spencer Phillips

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GSGS 3559 – 1492 and Beyond 

This course examines the impact of Christopher Columbus’ voyage and the cultural shifts that it marked in Africa, Europe, and the Americas from 1492 to the present. It also explores how Indigeneity and race have been constructed in relationship to European expansion through the study of primary and secondary source texts in a variety of disciplines, including art, literature, film, and history. We will take special note of current movements to re-write history especially regarding contemporary challenges to historical monuments across the country by grassroots communities. As such, students will explore the legacy of the Conquest and histories of resistance that emerged as a response through texts that address notions of national identity, diaspora, hegemony, race, gender, and class.

TR 03:30PM-4:45PM |  CAB 042

Robin Garcia

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GSGS 3559 – Dynamics of Great Powers: View from the South

How do developing countries in the global South navigate the emergence of renewed great power competition? Through the course, we will seek to answer this question by looking at the engagement of countries and actors in the global South with established and emerging powers in an increasingly multi-polar World. Understanding this interaction has important implications for a substantial portion of the World's population based in developing countries.

TR 12:30 – 1:45 PM | GIL 245

Tayyab Safdar

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GSGS 4100 – Activism for Social Justice 

Each student or small group will develop a project, be matched with a Global Studies faculty mentor, identify relevant community groups, and spend the semester working on that project. Students will discuss ideas, formulate plans, identify tactics, and engage with important social justice literatures. Importantly, the course will engage with the project of activism itself, which has the potential to replicate systems of inequality.

TR 03:30PM-04:45PM | MON 122

David Edmunds

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GSGS 4559 – Journalism and Social Inequality 

This course explores how journalism portrays social inequities. How is truth constructed in journalism? Who gets to speak? Who is left out? Together we will read longform journalism and literary nonfiction covering topics such as migration, policing, housing, and healthcare. Students will then write an op-ed or literary nonfiction piece about a social inequality of their choosing, with the goal of publishing it in a local or national outlet.

TR 09:30AM-10:45AM | CAB 395

Levi Vonk