Global Public Policy

Course Code: PUBLG087

Course Tutor: Professor Neil Mitchell (Department of Political Science)

Assessment: One 3,000 word essay

Credit Value: 15

About the course

Students will: develop an understanding of the rationale for global public policy, particularly the transnational dimension of governance which operates within and between the local, national and international levels of governance more traditionally covered in other modules and programmes; learn who the key actors are and how they influence the policy cycle on different issues; understand the ways in which an emerging theoretical literature on policy communities and networks of governance can help to interpret these developments; the potentials, challenges and limitations of global public policy; as well as learn about a range of different cases of contemporary global public policy.

By the end of the course, students will be able to:

• Demonstrate a broad knowledge of core areas of global public policy
• Develop a critical understanding of the political actors and contexts within which global public policy is made
• Work with abstract theories and concepts and in a context of generality about the demand for and supply of global public policy
• Apply the theories of global public policy and networks of governance to applied cases
• Demonstrate a knowledge of some key cases of global public policy making, e.g. the Kimberly Diamond Process, the World Commission on Dams, The Global Fund, etc.
• Select and apply appropriate techniques to solve identified problems
• Justify conclusions using arguments drawn from the literature with appropriate rigour
• Communicate effectively and clearly in written and oral formats
• Analyse and solve complex problems accurately