This introductory course surveys fundamental Microsoft Excel concepts and functionality applicable to SIPA courses and in professional settings. Topics include understanding references and functions, writing formulas, interacting with spreadsheets, building basic models, controlling formatting and presentation and creating basic charts. The course is targeted at students with limited or no prior Excel experience. The course is open to SIPA students only. Note: A laptop is required for this course
Prerequisites: SIPA U4010 or equivalent experience This course explores skills needed for sophisticated spreadsheet development and problem solving in Microsoft Excel. Topics include implementing advanced logic using complex formulas, managing complexity with Excel's auditing features, leveraging lookup functions leveraging and calculated references, parsing and cleaning raw data, refining data structure, and constructing and leveraging PivotTables. The course does not focus on specific models or applications, but instead explores general concepts and techniques that can be flexibly applied to different solutions in Excel. The course is open to SIPA students only. Instructor approval is required: students will be waitlisted in SSOL and contacted by the instructor. Part of the Excel at SIPA course series. Deadline to drop this course is one week prior to the start date of the course. A notation of "W" will be assigned if requests to drop are not made by this deadline.
This intensive one-day workshop develops financial modeling skills through the hands-on construction of an interactive financial model. Using a real company as a case study, the lectures will direct participants to blend accounting, corporate finance and Excel skills to create a dynamic, three-statement financial model. The completed product has five years of projections, three years of historical data and supporting schedules including working capital, debt, equity, depreciation and amortization. Other advanced topics include understanding and controlling circularity errors, troubleshooting, sensitivity analysis and discounted cash flow valuations.
Navigating the employment market and successfully pursuing job and internship opportunities requires effective tools and search strategies. At all professional levels, job candidates must be able to clearly describe their unique professional qualifications and how they will contribute value to the hiring organization. This 2-session course is designed to facilitate a heightened awareness of career goals and develop the essential ingredients for an effective job search campaign: resume, pitch, online presence, and networking and interviewing skills. Participants will construct a professional resume appropriate to their target industry or organization and submit it for review and feedback. A distinct version of the course for international students covers the nuances of networking and job search in the US and provides CPT and OPT guidelines. Students should enroll in the version that aligns with their background and may attend sessions only in the course section for which they are registered. This course is a required component of the two-course (0.5 point, total) SIPA Professional Development requirement; the other component may be chosen from among a menu of five electives (see
SIPA U4041
through
SIPA U4045
). Students should complete both components of the PD requirement in their first semester.
Navigating the employment market and successfully pursuing job and internship opportunities requires effective tools and search strategies. At all professional levels, job candidates must be able to clearly describe their unique professional qualifications and how they will contribute value to the hiring organization. This 2-session course is designed to facilitate a heightened awareness of career goals and develop the essential ingredients for an effective job search campaign: resume, pitch, online presence, and networking and interviewing skills. Participants will construct a professional resume appropriate to their target industry or organization and submit it for review and feedback. A distinct version of the course for international students covers the nuances of networking and job search in the US and provides CPT and OPT guidelines. Students should enroll in the version that aligns with their background and may attend sessions only in the course section for which they are registered. This course is a required component of the two-course (0.5 point, total) SIPA Professional Development requirement; the other component may be chosen from among a menu of five electives (see
SIPA U4041
through
SIPA U4045
). Students should complete both components of the PD requirement in their first semester.
Navigating the employment market and successfully pursuing job and internship opportunities requires effective tools and search strategies. At all professional levels, job candidates must be able to clearly describe their unique professional qualifications and how they will contribute value to the hiring organization. This 2-session course is designed to facilitate a heightened awareness of career goals and develop the essential ingredients for an effective job search campaign: resume, pitch, online presence, and networking and interviewing skills. Participants will construct a professional resume appropriate to their target industry or organization and submit it for review and feedback. A distinct version of the course for international students covers the nuances of networking and job search in the US and provides CPT and OPT guidelines. Students should enroll in the version that aligns with their background and may attend sessions only in the course section for which they are registered. This course is a required component of the two-course (0.5 point, total) SIPA Professional Development requirement; the other component may be chosen from among a menu of five electives (see
SIPA U4041
through
SIPA U4045
). Students should complete both components of the PD requirement in their first semester.
Navigating the employment market and successfully pursuing job and internship opportunities requires effective tools and search strategies. At all professional levels, job candidates must be able to clearly describe their unique professional qualifications and how they will contribute value to the hiring organization. This 2-session course is designed to facilitate a heightened awareness of career goals and develop the essential ingredients for an effective job search campaign: resume, pitch, online presence, and networking and interviewing skills. Participants will construct a professional resume appropriate to their target industry or organization and submit it for review and feedback. A distinct version of the course for international students covers the nuances of networking and job search in the US and provides CPT and OPT guidelines. Students should enroll in the version that aligns with their background and may attend sessions only in the course section for which they are registered. This course is a required component of the two-course (0.5 point, total) SIPA Professional Development requirement; the other component may be chosen from among a menu of five electives (see
SIPA U4041
through
SIPA U4045
). Students should complete both components of the PD requirement in their first semester.
Navigating the employment market and successfully pursuing job and internship opportunities requires effective tools and search strategies. At all professional levels, job candidates must be able to clearly describe their unique professional qualifications and how they will contribute value to the hiring organization. This 2-session course is designed to facilitate a heightened awareness of career goals and develop the essential ingredients for an effective job search campaign: resume, pitch, online presence, and networking and interviewing skills. Participants will construct a professional resume appropriate to their target industry or organization and submit it for review and feedback. A distinct version of the course for international students covers the nuances of networking and job search in the US and provides CPT and OPT guidelines. Students should enroll in the version that aligns with their background and may attend sessions only in the course section for which they are registered. This course is a required component of the two-course (0.5 point, total) SIPA Professional Development requirement; the other component may be chosen from among a menu of five electives (see
SIPA U4041
through
SIPA U4045
). Students should complete both components of the PD requirement in their first semester.
Navigating the employment market and successfully pursuing job and internship opportunities requires effective tools and search strategies. At all professional levels, job candidates must be able to clearly describe their unique professional qualifications and how they will contribute value to the hiring organization. This 2-session course is designed to facilitate a heightened awareness of career goals and develop the essential ingredients for an effective job search campaign: resume, pitch, online presence, and networking and interviewing skills. Participants will construct a professional resume appropriate to their target industry or organization and submit it for review and feedback. A distinct version of the course for international students covers the nuances of networking and job search in the US and provides CPT and OPT guidelines. Students should enroll in the version that aligns with their background and may attend sessions only in the course section for which they are registered. This course is a required component of the two-course (0.5 point, total) SIPA Professional Development requirement; the other component may be chosen from among a menu of five electives (see
SIPA U4041
through
SIPA U4045
). Students should complete both components of the PD requirement in their first semester.
Navigating the employment market and successfully pursuing job and internship opportunities requires effective tools and search strategies. At all professional levels, job candidates must be able to clearly describe their unique professional qualifications and how they will contribute value to the hiring organization. This 2-session course is designed to facilitate a heightened awareness of career goals and develop the essential ingredients for an effective job search campaign: resume, pitch, online presence, and networking and interviewing skills. Participants will construct a professional resume appropriate to their target industry or organization and submit it for review and feedback. A distinct version of the course for international students covers the nuances of networking and job search in the US and provides CPT and OPT guidelines. Students should enroll in the version that aligns with their background and may attend sessions only in the course section for which they are registered. This course is a required component of the two-course (0.5 point, total) SIPA Professional Development requirement; the other component may be chosen from among a menu of five electives (see
SIPA U4041
through
SIPA U4045
). Students should complete both components of the PD requirement in their first semester.
Understanding the Global Workplace
: In the contemporary workplace, teams are comprised of leaders and contributors from myriad cultural backgrounds. Each person’s way of viewing and being in the world shapes their approach to teamwork, leadership, and interpersonal relations in general. This 1-session course examines how diverse experiences and perspectives are critical to the growth and productivity of teams and organizations. Participants will gain insight into unconscious biases and other impediments to teamwork in the workplace and learn interpersonal skills that foster effective collaboration, conflict management, and productive team outcomes.
Effective Public Speaking at Work:
Common workplace interactions such as leading or contributing to meetings and delivering presentations are critical components of professional life. Yet, for many professionals, public speaking is highly stressful. This 1-session course will introduce you to public speaking skills that produce effective results in the workplace, including how to structure, frame, and organize a presentation and deliver it with impact. You’ll learn the key elements of an effective presentation and how to communicate your message convincingly by analyzing your audience and determining its needs. Participants will have an opportunity to practice important verbal and non-verbal delivery techniques – and begin to overcome the fears of speaking up and speaking out.
Negotiation Skills in the Workplace:
Effective negotiation is a key skill for leaders and contributors worldwide at all professional levels in organizations and workplaces. This 1-session course is designed to promote understanding and build problem-solving skills that can lead to strength and competency in this vital activity of everyday work life. Participants will be able to define negotiation and articulate the key tension that exists in all negotiations; prepare for negotiations using a research-based framework; and articulate their strengths and weaknesses as negotiators, as well as ways they can improve negotiation outcomes.
Networking for Mid-Career Advancement:
Workplace environments have always been bastions of operative professional relationships, explicit and tacit. Historically, research has demonstrated the value and benefits of networking, both in finding jobs during early career and advancing within an organization during later career. In this 1-session course, you will learn what networking can and cannot accomplish; how to network effectively and respectfully; balancing the “getting” and “giving” aspects of networking; and an actionable framework for conducting effective career-advancement networking strategies. Students will learn how to cultivate and sustain professional relationships that can continue to be beneficial over time.
Using the MBTI to Enhance Communication & Teamwork:
The Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) is a well-known personality assessment instrument widely administered worldwide in organizational and workplace settings. It does not measure skills or aptitudes but personality preferences – the qualities that combine to make us unique individuals. In this 1-session course, students will learn the benefits of using the MBTI in professional settings and developing self-awareness of preferred decision-making, problem-solving, and relating to others. Interactive exercises will also promote understanding and insight into the preferences of those who share styles dissimilar to ours. Understanding your MBTI profile will enable you to appreciate important personality differences and mesh with the complexities of diverse organizational cultures.
The course is designed to introduce you to the field of public management. It is a practical course, organized around the tools managers may use to influence the behavior of their organizations. The course also discusses the political environment in which public managers must interact. This course serves as an introduction to management in government and in the non-profit and private organizations that contract with and/or partner with government to provide public services. Lectures, cases, discussions and group projects focus on an array of management tools that help managers implement public policy and deliver critical services. While many examples come from the instructor's experience in New York City and US state and federal agencies, numerous comparative cases and projects from Asia, Latin America and Europe are used to discover best practices, common challenges and the impact of culture on organization behavior. The course will be valuable to those expecting a career in large, complex organizations, either as a manager or a policy advisor. A laboratory section focuses on assigned readings and case studies, provides more opportunities for student discussions and brings in prominent guest speakers from multiple sectors.
The goal of the course is for students to develop an understanding of how the various functional areas of a nonprofit, guided by vision and strategy, interconnect to help a nonprofit organization make progress toward achieving its mission. Students will also explore strategic planning, strategic management, building a strong and inclusive organizational culture, and managing organizational change. Lectures, class discussion, case studies, and group presentations provide students with a platform for exploring key issues raised during the course.
This course will provide the analytical ability and practical skills to build the right strategy, entrepreneurial operations, and culture for both for-profit and non-profit organizations. The methodology of this class is to learn from case studies, leading management texts, and insights from practitioners. Students will learn to recognize and develop entrepreneurial skills by examining and analyzing the strategies employed by practicing entrepreneurs in building new ventures. Particular attention is given to the criteria used in analyzing the strategies of international and non-profit new venture ideas. Further focus on strategy, managing people, and organizational culture will be emphasized. Each student must develop an entrepreneurial venture focused on a social/non-profit, emerging market, or private sector opportunity.
Public Finance will introduce the nuances of the US municipal financing market from the perspective of issuers, investors and intermediaries. Students will learn about traditional fixed rate bond structures, but will also look at innovative financing techniques that have been implemented in recent years. In-depth discussions of interest rate markets and their impact on financing will be a key area of study. The growing pressures of public sector pensions are influencing how states and municipalities manage their budgets, and are under increased scrutiny by market participants; as such, pension accounting will be a focus area for the class as well. Financial distress and municipal bankruptcy will be examined through case studies of recent high profile issuers, such as the City of Detroit and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. The class is intended to prepare students to be versed in the fundamental concepts underpinning capital markets as they relate to municipalities and non-profit corporations, and to provide a knowledge base that can be utilized in practice in their careers.
This course will introduce students to the global context of CSR through comparative business perspectives. After considering the theoretical frameworks for undertaking CSR activities the course will addresses a number of public policy issues facing globalizing companies through a series of case studies. Under examination is the manner in which business and ethical considerations have impacted upon different social, labor, and environmental challenges. We will be asking students to consider: to what extent such factors have been, and will be, part of the corporate strategy decision-making process; why companies are having to adapt (or not) to different pressures; and whether they might sometimes be going above and beyond the standards required by regulation.
The purpose of this course is to establish a core energy skill set for SIPA students and prepare them for more advanced energy courses by providing a basic language and toolset for understanding energy issues. Existing energy sources and the infrastructures that deliver them to users around the world are undergoing a period of rapid change. Limits to growth, rapidly fluctuating raw material prices, and the emergence of new technology options all contribute to heightened risk and opportunity in the energy sector.
Recognition, prevention and resolution of environmental problems depends on effective environmental advocacy, but what constitutes effective collective action? Advocates typically argue that they represent the collective interests of the general public and underrepresented groups, and use a variety of tactics to express themselves over a range of scale. Government regulation and environmental science also often rely upon the product of advocacy to different degrees. How much has advocacy influenced environmental policy and political and civic engagement? This class examines the role of advocacy and science inside and outside the US environmental policy-making process, and addresses different approaches to environmental advocacy from the local to the global. Using both historical and contemporary sources, the course investigates how different groups experience the natural and built worlds, the interplay of citizens and science, the treatment of science by advocates and the media, and the role of advocates of various types in legislative, administrative and judicial decision making. It also takes a comparative approach of how other political systems (e.g. China) experience and responds to environmental advocacy. Along the way, we will explore connections between environmental change and social inequality, the rise of modern environmental politics, environmentalism and nationalism, and differing visions for the future of nature.
The development of quantitative risk management by the financial industry has gone hand-in-hand with that of quantitative approaches to financial regulation. The interactions between industry best practice and regulation have grown even closer since the global financial crisis, reflecting lessons learned (or not), the widening scope of regulation, and the now-central role of financial risk in the public policy agenda. This course introduces risk management principles in the context of public policy, presenting market, liquidity and credit risk measurement techniques employed by banks and other intermediaries, as well as their drawbacks and limitations. To help understand current approaches to risk management and regulation, the course studies financial market behavior in normal times and crises, the treatment of firms and debt in bankruptcy and how it differs for financial firms, the role of securitization in the financial system, and the roles of leverage and of market and funding liquidity in times of calm and distress.
The Global Leadership Seminar I is one of the core classes of the MPA in Global Leadership. It provides students with a grounding in the theory and practice of leadership, enables students the opportunity to interface with established leaders across the spheres of government, civil society, and business, and presents students with diagnostic insights to strengthen their leadership toolkits. The course culminates with each student submitting and presenting a plan to address a global policy challenge.
To design and manage successful economic policy professionals need a sophisticated command of modern microeconomics. This course strengthens and extends understanding of microeconomic theory, and gives practice applying it. We study the relationship between market structure and market performance, exploring conditions under which policy intervention can improve market performance, and when it can be counter-productive. Both distributional and efficiency aspects of intervention are stressed. An introduction to formal strategic analysis is included, along with its application in the modern theory of auctions.
The course covers major problems and methods in macroeconomics, with particular focus on issues faced by policymakers in small, open economies. Modern macro is characterized by three fundamental features: economic outcomes are determined in general equilibrium; expectations play a crucial role and all analysis must be based on micro-foundations. Firms depend on consumers, who in turn depend on labor income, profits and rents, which are influenced by government decisions and the environment in which they work. Therefore, in general equilibrium, everything is related to everything, and we must carefully analyze how the economy will respond to those forces that can be considered “exogenous.” At the same time, Current behavior crucially depends on expectations about the future and those beliefs are shaped by the credibility of policies, the reputation of policymakers and the likelihood of potential “shocks.” Finally, economic incentives determine actions and we must make sure that our analysis of decision processes is incentive compatible. Macroeconomic outcomes (unemployment, inflation, growth, income distribution) may or may not be optimal and, if they are not, there usually is room for well-designed policy actions to bring us closer to more socially desirable results. In this class we will develop a basic understanding of models and theoretical foundations, but the relevant analytical framework will be presented in the context of current policy dilemmas. Students are expected to build a technical foundation to allow them a reasonably sophisticated understanding of the existing state of economic policy debates. We will discuss theory and evidence on determinants of growth, economic stabilization, inflation, monetary, fiscal and financial policies. Along the way, we will touch on “hot” policy discussions: the future of capitalism and income distribution; policies to generate growth and the role of government; global economic imbalances, secular stagnation and the long decline in risk free interest rates; economic adjustment in the wake of shocks (technology breakthroughs, pandemics, regulatory fads); should advanced economies worry about the high levels of debt or should they engage in fiscal expansion? How about emerging markets with much more limited access to borrowing? How should monetary policy be conducted to attain desired inflation levels? Why does the financial sector play such a crucial role in a modern economy and why do financial meltdowns create such high cost
The public sector is increasingly unable to cover the development and investment needs that will be required to improve conditions for the over 3 billion people living in poverty worldwide or to achieve the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals. In some cases, governments have also shown themselves to be unwilling to shoulder these burdens alone. As a result, we have seen an increasing role and participation of the private sector in addressing many of the world’s greatest challenges, from climate change, to education, to health. Development practitioners have many of the skills needed to effect these changes. They also have a deep understanding of the underlying social, historical and structural issues that contribute to pervasive inequality, poverty and inefficiency. However, these practitioners often lack the language, tools and methods that are most effective for collaborating with the private sector. As more development practitioners will be called upon to work in the private sector, design public/private partnerships and offer advisory services to the private sector, they will need to be armed with the appropriate tools and language. This course seeks to provide these tools in the context of a broader and deeper debate about the role of the private sector, its responsibilities and tensions as it moves into the development space.
In the era of generative AI, deepfakes and disinformation, visual media have become an essential but perilous tool for human rights organizations, civil society, governments, media outlets, industry and our daily lives. Over the past decade, digital sleuths and journalists have developed methodologies and toolkits to analyze videos and photographs that prove chemical weapons use in Syria, help track human rights abuses in Ukraine, and document police brutality in the United States. And bystander videos continue to spark worldwide protests, as with the killing of George Floyd in 2020. But bad actors are increasingly using fake, distorted and synthetic media to influence narratives, deceive people, business and governments, and sow confusion and conflict in the international community. So how should stakeholders navigate the world of viral media when almost everyone has a camera in their pocket, and can easily and cheaply access image generators? This course will dive into the tools that can help you discover, debunk, verify and use viral videos, user generated content and synthetic media. The course takes advantage of guest speakers to have the most current takes on these issues, and so we will talk to leaders in the emerging industry that will dictate the future of our information ecosystem. Students pursuing journalism may want to tell compelling and trusted stories, while those on a policy track can focus on how to use this kind of media to inform or influence decision makers and the public. Others interested in government or the private sector will also need to address this rapidly changing environment to make critical decisions off of digital content. Through case studies and compelling guest speakers, we will analyze social, business, and geopolitical impacts of this exploding world of visual content, and look at emerging technologies that are helping or hurting people’s ability to trust what they see.
This condensed course provides a solid understanding of impact investing and financial innovation at the intersection of public policy, development, entrepreneurship, finance, and law. We combine a theoretical approach, practical experience in emerging markets, and case studies (e.g., education in Brazil, microfinance in Mexico and India, FinTech in Kenya and Brazil). Students are expected to develop personal projects in lieu of the exam (papers or business plans). We welcome students from SIPA and other schools.
Within the larger category of Sustainable Finance, Impact Investing is attracting growing interest from investors, academia, and the third sector. Impact investing allocates resources with a financial, social, and environmental return, while the impact is both intentional and measured. We analyze the latest global trends in Impact Investing, its revolutionary proposal, and its limitations.
Financial innovation plays a central role in the impact agenda through innovative financial instruments such as social impact bonds or green bonds and through inclusive financial services boosted by FinTech.
Was the pro-life narrative strategy a decisive factor in overturning Roe v. Wade? After countless videos of police brutality, why did the video of George Floyd’s murder dramatically accelerate the pace of cultural and policy change? After years of campaigns to reduce teen pregnancy, how was it that a TV show became one of the main drivers of reducing teen pregnancy to the lowest point in recorded history? After losing 31 state referendums, why did a new narrative approach enable the gay marriage campaign to start winning nationwide? These questions and storytelling examples are part of broader social impact campaigns which combined the right mix of strategy and narrative to create change. A social impact campaign is one that creates a significant change that addresses a pressing social issue. Often, there is too little focus on the power of narrative to change behavior and drive action.
This class will explore all aspects of social impact campaigns that harness the power of “effective” stories to engage audiences and prompt action. Additionally, we will investigate how corporations and brands develop campaigns and how they partner with the government, foundations and NGOs. Students will have the chance to question some of the leading creators/practitioners as they create their own social impact campaigns.
Impact investing is young but fast-growing industry. An increasing number of philanthropists, traditional investors, and asset managers look to impact investment as a compelling asset class. Entrepreneurs tackling social and environmental issues are finding in impact investors a more reliable and better-aligned source of capital to finance their ventures. The industry requires a committed, talented, and well-prepared pool of capital to continue evolving and growing. This class aims to provide the students with some of the essential skills and tools they will require to work and thrive in the impact investing industry. This is an experiential course designed to introduce students to impact investing and provide them with the skills used by impact investors every day. Students will work on the key "products" required in an impact investment transaction, including: assessing a possible impact investment; writing an investment memo with a full impact analysis, and presenting an investment proposal to a group of seasoned impact investors. COURSE DATES MAY VARY. SEE SYLLABUS FOR EXACT DATES & TIMES.
This course will provide students with a comprehensive introduction to the impact of armed conflict on children, the United Nations’ children and armed conflict (CAAC) mandate, and efforts to end and prevent children’s suffering. Upon completing this course, students will have an understanding of: the six grave violations and other abuses impacting children in armed conflict; the legal and normative frameworks for protecting children in armed conflict; the key mechanisms and actors leading international efforts to protect children in armed conflict; contemporary challenges and ethical dilemmas undermining the effective protection of children in armed conflict.
International migration's substantial economic and social effects are at the forefront of today's academic discussion, international debate as well as national policy strategies. This course introduces students to the key notions, norms, and narratives of international migration from economic, legal, sociological, international relations, and normative perspectives. Students will learn about transnational livelihood strategies and channels through which migration and migrants can enhance human development especially in their countries of origin, while creating better opportunities for themselves and contributing to their communities of destination. This includes in-depth discussions of the determinants, flows and effects of emigration, immigration, return, financial and social remittances, and diaspora investment. Highlighting migration phenomena in different scenarios in the global North, as well as in the global South, the course emphasizes the agency of migrants and gender differences in the experiences and effects, as well as the role their legal status plays. It will address the root causes of migration and the protection of migrants' human, social and labor rights. The course also furthers participants' understanding of the policy responses in both, the international and the domestic spheres. To this end, it introduces students to key policies and governance schemes, including temporary labor migration programs, bilateral labor migration agreements, and diaspora engagement institutions.
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.
The seminar will offer an insider perspective on current issues facing the Federal Reserve and detail the various interconnections between the Fed and financial markets. The course will examine and compare the extraordinary policy actions of the Fed in response to recent crises: the global financial crisis of 2007-2009, the pandemic financial stress of 2020, and the banking crisis of March 2023. In addition, the seminar will study the evolution of the Fed’s monetary policy framework, including specifics on the Fed’s market transactions, and will also explore key concepts of the financial system that are relevant to the central bank and fundamental to financial stability.
There will also be a focus on other topical issues relevant for the Federal Reserve. For the Fall 2023 semester, current issues include the shifting outlook for the Fed’s monetary policy, central bank independence and the politicization of the Fed, the escalating focus on the potential for central banks to issue digital currencies, and other emerging topics.
The purpose of this course is to enable you to become an informed user of financial information. To be properly informed you need to understand financial statements, the note disclosures and the language of accounting and financial reporting. We will focus on the three major financial statements – the balance sheet, the income statement and the statement of cash flows - that companies prepare for use by management and external parties. We will examine the underlying concepts that go into the preparation of these financial statements as well as specific accounting rules that apply when preparing financial statements. As we gain an understanding of the financial information, we will look at approaches to analyze the financial strength and operations of an entity. We will use actual financial statements to understand how financial information is presented.
This course describes the history and current situation of the level and distribution of global income, analyses the theory of economic growth and the empirical evidence on the factors influencing growth, including physical and human capital accumulation, technical change and population growth, explores the effects of trade, foreign direct investment, natural resources, geography, and public sector institutions on economic growth and distribution of income, and examines how financial development and exchange rate regimes affect the prospects for economic growth.
In addition to climate change, the seizure of resources, together with land-grabbing and ecological contamination and destruction, are pervasive throughout the world. State, corporate, and illicit power enable these circumstances, whether by managerial incompetence, or by force or finance, including invasion and corruption. In some cases, well-intentioned measures meet with antagonism, as a result of failed communication and participation. The voices of indigenous peoples are often among those purposefully or negligently unheard. In this course, development ethics, including environmental justice, are explained, as is their applicability in what is increasingly a global environment for which we are inescapably responsible.
This course explores the process of EU policy-making - how and why certain public policies are pursued by the institutions of the European Union - and analyses what the Union is doing to address a number of major policy challenges in today's interdependent world. After providing a general introduction to the overall policy process in the EU - looking at how policies are born, adopted, enacted, implemented and reviewed - this term's course will examine the specific policy agenda of the current European Commission (2019-24), led by Ursula von der Leyen, and do a 'deep dive' into EU action in three areas: the fight against climate change, the development of a 'digital Europe', and the EU response to the on-going coronavirus crisis. It will identify the key characteristics of these policies, assess how far they are succeeding or failing, and ask what they show about the evolving EU political system. The course will round off with an assessment of the growing emphasis on strategic foresight in the EU policy-making and identify new policies that are likely to be developed in coming years. Taught from a practitioner perspective by Anthony Teasdale, Director General of the European Parliament's research service, the course aims to provide a firm grounding in modern EU policy and should appeal to those interested both in EU politics and in the individual policy issues under discussion.
The course translates the academic study of organization theory, bureaucracy, and public management into practical lessons for sustainability professionals. We develop a framework for understanding and applying tools that can be used to influence organizational behavior and obtain resources from the organization’s environment. Earth systems-related case studies present a set of problems for public managers to address. Case studies deal with public, private, and nonprofit environmental management, in the United States and internationally.
This course examines the role of states, cities, and other sub-nationals in crafting and implementing the policy, technical, and behavioral changes necessary to address the climate crisis. While this topic has received increased attention since the election of Donald Trump in the United States, the reality is that cities, states, and other sub-nationals would still have an enormous, if not leading, role to play even with a cooperative federal government. Indeed, one could argue that subnationals represent the front lines in the fight. Substantively, our focus will be on the role of these actors in driving the necessary transition to clean energy, perhaps the key component in the overall effort to combat climate change. The energy sector is also particularly fertile ground for state and city action since states and cities oversee their power grids, establish building codes, and regulate electric and other utilities. Many of the issues and dynamics we will examine in the energy area also have direct application to other aspects of climate policy, such as food and agriculture and land use. The goal of the course is to get students to think more deeply about climate change and the complex intersection of science, economics, and politics that makes policy in this area so interesting and, at the same time, so difficult.
This course aims to establish a first-principles understanding of qualitative and quantitative techniques, tools, and processes used to wield data for effective decision-making. Its approach focuses on pragmatic, interactive learning using logical methods, basic tools, and publicly available data to practice extracting insights and building recommendations. It is designed for students with little prior statistical or mathematical training and no prior pre-exposure to statistical software.
The goal of this course is to train advanced students on the principles, practices, and technologies required for good database design, management, and security. An introduction to the concepts and issues relating to data warehousing, governance, administration, security, privacy, and alternative database structures will be provided. The course concentrates on building a firm foundation in information organization, storage, management, and security. Students planning to enroll in this course should be comfortable with the fundamentals of programming and basic data structures. This course prepares students to build and administer a database and covers representing information with the relational database model, manipulating data with Structured Query Language (SQL), database design, and database security, integrity, and privacy issues.
Understanding geographic relationships between people, land use, and resources is fundamental to public policy. Policymakers routinely use spatial analysis to inform decision-making. This course will introduce students to Geographic Information Systems (GIS), a tool to analyze and visualize spatial data. The course will emphasize the core functions of GIS: map making, data management, and spatial analysis. Students will learn cartographic best practices, how to find and create spatial data, spatial analysis methodology, and how to approach problem solving from a geographic perspective. Throughout the course, students will build a portfolio of professional quality maps and data visualizations.
This course is the first part of a one-year sequence and focuses on microeconomics. The objectives of the course are (i) to provide you with the analytical tools that are needed to understand how economists think and (ii) to help you to develop an open-minded and critical way to think about economic issues. At the end of the course, you will understand the concepts that underlie microeconomics models and the jargon used in the economic profession. This course will provide numerous applications to facilitate your understanding of the concepts that will be discussed in the class. Note: This course is not eligible to fulfill the core economics requirement for students in the IFEP concentration or DAQA specialization. This course may not be repeated under the SIPA U6400/01 sequence.
Corporate finance is an introductory finance course. It is a central course for students taking the international finance track of the International Finance and Economic Policy (IFEP) concentration. The course is designed to cover those areas of business finance which are important for all managers, whether they specialize in finance or not. Three fundamental questions will be addressed in this course: How much funding does a firm require to carry out its business plan? How should the firm acquire the necessary funds? Even if the funds are available, is the business plan worthwhile? In considering these questions, the following topics will be covered: analyzing historical uses of funds; formulating and projecting funding needs; analyzing working capital management; choosing among alternative sources of external funding for company operations; identifying costs of funds from various sources; valuing simple securities; evaluating investment opportunities; valuing a company based on its projected free cash flow The course will combine lecture time and in-class case discussions, for which students should prepare fully. The goal of the course is to provide students with an understanding of both sound theoretical principles of finance and the practical environment in which financial decisions are made.
The use of quantitative research techniques, statistics, and computer software in designing public policies and in evaluating, monitoring, and administering governmental programs. Practical applications include research, design measurement, data collection, data processing, and presentation of research findings.
Students learn quantitative techniques of organizational decision-making, including how to formulate and design policy questions amenable to empirical inquiry, as well as how to identify and apply specific measurement and analytic methods appropriate to particular questions. Students are also introduced to the foundations of systems analysis: how to model and understand the design, operation, and impact of a system.
This course provides an introduction to nonprofit and social enterprise finance, financial management and budgeting. The course is practical and hands-on. The course will examine how the principles of financial planning and management assist nonprofit managers in making operating, program and long-term financial decisions. Through the use of readings, discussions, Case Studies, Excel labs, and a consulting project, students will learn underlying concepts as well as practical skills. No prior finance or budgeting experience is required and there is no prerequisite for this course. The course is designed to give students a range of core financial and managerial skills that are especially relevant to students who want to go on to establish, manage or work in nonprofit organizations or social enterprises.
Emerging markets (EMs) are volatile animals. Firms operating in EMs may suddenly face higher inflation and interest rates, credit scarcity, and a devaluation, forcing many to file for bankruptcy. How could firms protect from currency risks? Are hedging practices foolproof? What are the sources of credit available for firms? Are shadow financial sectors the solution to sustaining a firm’s working capital? What resources do firms have to mitigate a credit shock?
During the whole semester, students will work in teams to analyze the financial challenges that firms face in an emerging market of their choice. In the process of doing so, you will have the opportunity to use all the macro-financial and corporate finance concepts and frameworks learned in other courses and links involved. Your team will be able to present its work to class and receive feedback on content and presentation. By means of case studies, discussions, and contributions for guest speakers—most from international organizations--and yourself, the course will cover all the challenges described above.
Many of the decisions we make and actions we take have profound environmental effects, yet economic and political considerations often dominate decision-making in a way that fails to take into account the environmental foundation of our livelihoods. A slow, yet steady extension of environmental imperatives into previously ‘non’ environmental sectors such as agriculture, trade and energy production, provide some movement towards sustainability. This class explores how the political system identifies public issues as problems requiring public action, and creates and implements policy solutions. It assesses what conditions foster change by anticipating likely outcomes and effective points of intervention to achieve policy goals. It emphasizes the politics of environmental policymaking, using energy, agriculture and forestry as cases of global enterprises with local to global scales of inquiry. We will explore the tension between the market and economic models and politics and political models of policymaking; interests and interest-group politics; the connections among expertise, knowledge, and policymaking; and the particular politics of policy issues that cross jurisdictional boundaries, including federalism and globalization. We will start the semester considering two contrasting theories of policymaking: an economic, market-based approach with application in environmental policy issues and a political approach. The latter constitutes a critique of the economic paradigm and sets up the tension between the concerns for policy efficiency and effectiveness stemming from the economic model, and those of equity, representation, and consensus derived from the political model. Participants will develop a sense of the history of environmental activism, relevant actors in environmental politics and management, their roles, sources of power and influence, the effects of formal political processes and the sources of potential conflicts.
Public sector budgeting in the United States, and perhaps globally, has become increasingly contentious in the aftermath of the2008 financial crisis and subsequent recession. This course introduces students to the field of budgeting and fiscal management in the public sector. We will look at the special challenges of developing a budget within a political environment and the techniques used for reporting, accountability and management control. Domestically, the landscape for government budgeting is being tested in unprecedented ways. Fiscal pressures at the federal and state levels have increasingly pushed responsibilities for program funding to the local level. Municipal bankruptcy, once a theoretical and untested concept, has emerged more frequently as a solution despite its long-term consequences. Selected topics will include inter-governmental relationships, taxes and other revenues, expenditure control, audits and productivity enhancement. Lectures will also address current events related to public sector budgeting at all levels, especially as the world continues to confront the COVID-19 global pandemic and the ensuing economic and fiscal crises. This course seeks to provide students with practical knowledge for budgetary and financial analysis. Drawing from theory and from case studies, students will acquire practical skills to help them design, implement and assess public sector budgets. The practical nature of the subject requires the students’ active hands-on participation in assignments such as in-class debates, case analyses and a budget cycle simulation. By the end of the semester, conscientious students will be able to formulate budgetary recommendations backed up by cogent analysis and calculations.
This course examines the political economy of the major oil and gas exporters of the Arabian Peninsula. It begins with a view of state formation and development of their energy industries. It follows with a theoretical overview of the concept of economic statecraft and then explores how, when and why the Gulf Arab states (specifically, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Qatar) have used tools of financial intervention, buoyed by oil and gas revenue, to achieve foreign policy goals. The Gulf Arab states are development actors in a class of their own, often able to deploy sums of direct support that international financial institutions and international organizations cannot match in either investment or aid. How are the Gulf states emerging as development actors across the Middle East, Africa and Asia? What are the implications for investment in clean energy and the energy transition in the Gulf and in recipient states?
This course will take a deep dive into a 10-step set of decisions involved in designing and implementing an effective carbon market or tax system across a range of conditions and sectors from power and industry to transportation, waste, forestry and agriculture. The course will consider emissions trading, carbon taxes, and hybrid and complementary programs in an integrated manner. The class will highlight real-world examples throughout and identify lessons learned and common challenges based on international experiences with carbon pricing to date across Europe, North and South America, Asia and Oceania. Students will learn design principles and tradeoffs, perspectives of key stakeholders, and modeling tools and frameworks to inform policy choices and market participants’ decisions. The course will include a hands-on emissions trading simulation exercise as well as guest talks by market actors to illustrate concepts in practice. By the end of the course, students will have evaluated alternative policies and be prepared to understand, navigate, and potentially shape future carbon pricing policy developments.
This class will look at the obstacles and opportunities for financing the energy transition in emerging markets. We will start by studying what the energy transition is, how it relates to climate goals, and what it entails to understand what needs to be financed. The course will then look at the different estimates of how much will the energy transition costs and what this means for emerging markets. The class will survey the current financial energy landscape to assess what is working, what is missing, and the potential governance structures that are needed to mobilize such financing. We will survey the existing sources of financing from the private sector, development agencies, and international financial institutions to understand the specific challenges and opportunities for each source of financing. The course will also look at the financing toolkit available, from blended finance vehicles, de-risking instruments, and the new ones that are being deployed, like ESG investing and thematic bonds. The course will also introduce students to carbon markets and the role they can play in financing the energy transition in emerging markets. Lastly, the course will also survey the financing of transition assets to understand how and when capital should be deployed and what this means to retire or retrofit existing fossil fuel assets.