" In analyzing fiscal issues, conventional public finance approaches focus mainly on taxation and public spending. Policymakers and practitioners rarely explore solutions by examining the fundamental problem: the failure of interested parties to act collectively to internalize the positive externalities generated by public goods. Public finance is merely one of many possible institutional arrangements for assigning the rights and responsibilities to public goods consumption. This system is currently under stress because of the financial crisis. The first part of the class will focus on collective action and its connection with local public finance. The second part will explore alternative institutional arrangements for mediating collective action problems associated with the provision of local public goods. The objective of the seminar is to broaden the discussion of local public finance by incorporating collective action problems into the discourse. This inclusion aims at exploring alternative institutional arrangements for financing local public services in the face of severe economic downturn. Applications of emerging ideas to the provision of public health, education, and natural resource conservation will be discussed."

This course provides an introduction to the technology and policy context of public communications networks, through critical discussion of current issues in communications policy and their historical roots. The course focuses on underlying rationales and models for government involvement and the complex dynamics introduced by co-evolving technologies, industry structure, and public policy objectives. Cases drawn from cellular, fixed-line, and Internet applications include evolution of spectrum policy and current proposals for reform; the migration to broadband and implications for universal service policies; and property rights associated with digital content. The course lays a foundation for thesis research in this domain.

Competition in Telecommunications provides an introduction to the economics, business strategies, and technology of telecommunications markets, including markets for wireless communications, local and long-distance services, and customer equipment. The convergence of computers, cable TV and telecommunications and the competitive emergence of the Internet are covered in depth. A number of speakers from leading companies in the industry will give course lectures.

The School of Chemical and Environmental Engineering has concerns about the lack of knowledge amongst school pupils, and their teachers, of the type of work undertaken by an Environmental Engineer. The interactive presentation was developed as part of an awareness raising exercise for aspects of Environmental Engineering. Targeted at KS3 pupils particularly in Year 9 (Y9) the themes of air/ soil/water pollution were chosen because of their links to the KS3 National Curriculum for Science ( eg unit 9g Environmental Chemistry). The rationale behind the presentation was that visually it must be engaging and provide a clear indication of the consequences of actions but at the same time have questions using appropriate language that provide a basis for extending discussion / teaching beyond students/teachers current experience.

The presentation has been made available through our website and demonstrated at a variety of events where School Teachers meet eg 14-19 Conference ( School of Education) and PGCE Science Mentor Meetings ( School of Education).

This course explores the proper role of government in the regulation of the environment. It will help students develop the tools to estimate the costs and benefits of environmental regulations. These tools will be used to evaluate a series of current policy questions, including: Should air and water pollution regulations be tightened or loosened? What are the costs of climate change in the U.S. and abroad? Is there a "Race to the Bottom" in environmental regulation? What is "sustainable development"? How do environmental problems differ in developing countries? Are we running out of oil and other natural resources? Should we be more energy efficient? To gain real world experience, the course is scheduled to include a visit to the MIT cogeneration plant. We will also do an in-class simulation of an air pollution emissions market.

Introduction to methods and problems in research and applications where quantitative data is analyzed to reconstruct possible pathways of development of behaviors and diseases. Special attention given to social inequalities, changes over the life course, heterogeneous pathways, and controversies with implications for policy and practice. Case studies and course projects are shaped to accommodate students with interests in fields related to health, gerontology, education, psychology, sociology, and public policy. Students are assumed to have a statistical background, but the course emphasizes the ability to frame the questions in order to collaborate well with statistical specialists; the goal is methodological "literacy" not technical expertise.

This course will provide the student with an overview of the role that ethical, cultural, religious, and moral principles play in public policy. The course will introduce the student to common themes found in the foundational theories of ethics and morality in politics such as justice, equality, fairness, individual liberty, free enterprise, charity, fundamental human rights, and minimizing harm to others. These themes are integrated into various decision-making models that you will learn about. Students will examine five types of decision frameworks used to make and implement public policy, as well as rationales used to justify inequitable impact and outcomes of policies. Upon successful completion of this course, students will be able to: explain how personal morality and ethics impact the policymaking process; discuss various ethical frameworks used to resolve policy dilemmas; identify statutes, ethical codes, and legal opinions that define the normative parameters of key domestic and international policy issues; assess the impact that public interest groups have on policymaking and execution of policies. (Political Science 401)

Provides an introduction to policy-making. Explores policy questions from the perspective of different focal actors, including administrative agencies, citizen and interest groups, and the media. Examines the interplay between policy development and institutions, and reviews normative and empirical models of policy-making. Considers the significance of the democratic context for policy-making. Primary focus on domestic policy.

Women workers rarely appear in labor market theory. When they do, they are represented as a separate category, determined by biological differences and their family responsibilities. Subject examines the status of working women under a variety of governmental policies and labor conditions. First part is a survey of key debates on sex and gender differences in employment and wages. Using the changing structure of the US labor force as an example, second part examines attempted policy responses to the increasing feminization of the labor force. Students apply theoretical issues to a policy topic of their choice (e.g., familiy leave, unionization, tax credit, or income support, etc.).

This course will focus on understanding aspects of modern technology displaying exponential growth curves and the impact on global quality of life through a weekly updated class project integrating knowledge and providing practical tools for political and business decision-making concerning new aspects of bioengineering, personalized medicine, genetically modified organisms, and stem cells. Interplays of economic, ethical, ecological, and biophysical modeling will be explored through multi-disciplinary teams of students, and individual brief reports.

The Sixth Goal of the Millennium Development Goals (MDG) is: Combat HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases such as tuberculosis. In Bolivia, a country with a population of over 8,000,000 people, it was claimed in 2006 that there were 2366 confirmed cases of HIV. According to the World Health Organization, Bolivia is considered to be a country with a low incidence of the virus affecting 0.10% of the adult population. In contrast, it has been estimated that 50% of the population is infected with Chagas Disease with 60% of the country declared as endemic. Fifty thousand people die from this illness in Latin America every year. Bolivia has the highest incidence of infection in the region, the majority of whom live in poverty-stricken areas. This paper will discuss how global development policies perpetuate a form of social injustice within developing countries by the prioritization of health problems which respond to global trends rather than those indentified within individual countries. Using Chagas Disease in Bolivia as an example I will argue that the policies and actions which favor HIV/AIDS over Chagas Disease reflect a form of social injustice. I support this claim through Iris Young's work on social justice, where she describes the need to move beyond the distributive paradigm where the focus is on the patterns of distribution, to one which focuses on the level of participation in deliberative and decision-making processes.

Subject examines the opportunities and risks firms face in today's global world. Subject provides conceptual tools for analyzing how governments and social institutions influence economic competition among firms embedded in different national settings. Public policies and institutions that shape competitive outcomes are examined through cases and analytical readings on different companies and industries operating in both developed and emerging markets. 15.224 is similar to 15.223, but restricted to Sloan Fellows. From the course home page: In addition to traditional case/class discussions, this course will include some presentations by various guest speakers. The hope is that greater exposure to/interaction with these real-world practitioners will "bring to life" some of the issues discussed in the readings/cases. Whenever possible, informal dinners and/or coffees will be organized for small groups of students interested in meeting with our guest speakers.

This graduate course is in three Parts. Together they are intended to provide theoretical, empirical, and policy perspectives on source and consequences of globalization, focusing on emergent structures and processes, and on the implications of flows of goods and services across national boundaries - with special attention to the issue of migration, on the assumption that people matter and matter a lot. An important concern addressed pertains to the dilemmas of international policies that are shaped by the macro-level consequences of micro-level behavior.

Tracing the evolution of international interactions, this course examines the dimensions of globalization in terms of scale and scope. It is divided into three parts; together they are intended to provide theoretical, empirical, and policy perspectives on source and consequences of globalization, focusing on emergent structures and processes, and on the implications of flows of goods and services across national boundaries – with special attention to the issue of migration, on the assumption that people matter and matter a lot. An important concern addressed pertains to the dilemmas of international policies that are shaped by the macro-level consequences of micro-level behavior. 17.411 fulfills undergraduate public policy requirement in the major and minor. Graduate students are expected to explore the subject in greater depth through reading and individual research.

Creative Commons interviews ISKME Founder and OER Commons Creator Lisa Petrides. The interview covers open educational resources and current policy issues.

This is a course in industrial organization, the study of firms in markets. Industrial organization focuses on firm behavior in imperfectly competitive markets, which appear to be far more common than the perfectly competitive markets that were the focus of your basic microeconomics course. This field analyzes the acquisition and use of market power firms, strategic interactions among firms, and the role of government competition policy. We will approach this subject from both theoretical and applied perspectives.

This team-taught subject is for doctoral students working on emerging technologies at the interface of technology, policy and societal issues. It integrates concepts of research strategy and design from a variety of disciplines. The class addresses problem identification and formulation of research topics, the role of qualitative and quantitative research methods, and the use of various data collection techniques. Coursework focuses on students' thesis proposals, faculty-student study panels, critical evaluation of research design, and ethical issues in conducting research and gathering data.

Explores how public policy and private markets affect housing, economic development, and the local economy; provides an overview of techniques and specified programs policies and strategies that are (and have been) directed at neighborhood development; gives students an opportunity to reflect on their personal sense of the housing and community development process; emphasizes the institutional context within which public and private actions are undertaken.

Explores how public policy and private markets affect housing, economic development, and the local economy; provides an overview of techniques and specified programs policies and strategies that are (and have been) directed at neighborhood development; gives students an opportunity to reflect on their personal sense of the housing and community development process; emphasizes the institutional context within which public and private actions are undertaken.