CEE Concentration Registration Priority.
The course provides an overview of different ways of conceptualizing the relationship between politics, environmental change, and economic processes. While it embeds these paradigms in a history of the growth of capitalism, the inter-state system, and scientific progress, it concentrates on the global environment of the 20th and 21st-century world, with particular attention to developing countries and their dilemmas. Ideologies, material processes, and institutions are critically examined to analyze how our ways of ‘knowing’ and changing the environment cannot be understood separate from social relations and power dynamics. By covering many subjects and drawing on many local and global examples,
Fundamentals of Environmental Policy
intends to give students a solid grasp of key academic debates and the complex trade-offs inherent in crafting environmental and development policies.
IFEP Concentration Registration Priority.
This course examines the intersection of international politics and international economics. It covers an analysis of the historical background to and contemporary reality of the political economy of international trade, finance, monetary relations, foreign investment, and climate policy; problems of economic development; and globalization.
As long as societies have gone to war, commanders have had to consider how they will treat captives. It can be a factor at every stage of a struggle, from negotiations to avert war, tactics and strategy for winning, and post-conflict resolution. And long after the end of fighting, the experience of captivity can continue to shape how people recall and commemorate their history. This course examines how generations of lawmakers, diplomats, military commanders and activists have dealt with the problem of captivity. It will also explore the experience of the captives themselves, as well as their guards, including those guards who themselves were made prisoner after being accused of war crimes. Students will become familiar not just with different kinds of modern conflict, but also the diff`erent disciplinary methods for studying it, from sociology and political science to philosophy and international law.
This course equips students with both time-honored and cutting-edge advocacy skills to advance and protect human rights. Working on a current issue of their choice, students will develop a full advocacy strategy, defining goals, identifying targets, and selecting tactics grounded in rigorous research.
Using real-world case studies, the course explores how successful campaigns are built, including coalition-building, media engagement, and advocacy with UN bodies and national policymakers. Students will analyze what makes campaigns effective and how to adapt strategies across different political and institutional contexts. Students will also debate how human rights advocacy can meet the challenge of the rise of authoritarian power, closing civic space, dramatic reductions in funding, and human rights threats exacerbated by new technologies.
Throughout the semester, students will develop a toolkit of practical skills widely used in the human rights field. Assignments are designed to mirror professional advocacy work and include drafting advocacy letters, op-eds, and submissions to UN mechanisms or treaty bodies, as well as producing a final advocacy strategy.
The course includes a diverse set of guest speakers who have designed and led impactful advocacy and also features interactive simulations, giving students hands-on experience with engaging policymakers and communicating persuasively in high-stakes settings.
This course introduces students to the diverse methodologies, actors, and outputs involved in human rights research and reporting. Students will examine how governments, international organizations, NGOs, and journalists approach documentation and advocacy, while developing skills in interviewing, document analysis, data collection, and report writing. The course emphasizes ethical considerations, sociocultural awareness, and gender sensitivity throughout the research and reporting process.
Through case studies, simulations, and guest speakers, students will explore the strategic use of human rights documentation in advancing justice and accountability. Assignments include analytical reflections, response papers, and a final research report tailored to one of the core reporting perspectives studied.
This course explores how human-centered design and innovation methods are used to drive public-sector change. Students will learn how to apply design tools to complex policy and service delivery challenges while also engaging with the ethical, philosophical, and institutional questions that shape civic innovation work. Weekly sessions follow the full arc of a design-based innovation project, from scoping and research to prototyping and implementation, paired with critical themes such as power, embodiment, ethics, and systems change.
Students will practice design methodologies, develop speculative future policy proposals, and refine storytelling skills for public impact. The course culminates in a PechaKucha presentation reflecting personal insights into innovation practice.
This course explores the evolving relationship between the private sector and human rights, with emphasis on legal frameworks, global standards, and practical approaches to corporate accountability. Students examine the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights and other key instruments that shape responsible business conduct across sectors.
Through case studies, role-playing exercises, and guest speakers, students analyze human rights risks and strategies in industries such as apparel, extractives, finance, and tech. Topics include human rights due diligence, corporate complicity, responsible disengagement, and litigation. The course equips students to assess business conduct, engage stakeholders, and advance rights-based accountability.
CEE Concentration Registration Priority.
This course introduces students to the structure and strategy of international project finance in the energy sector, with emphasis on projects central to the global energy transition and LNG market expansion. Through real-world case studies and hands-on modeling exercises, students will analyze project risks, develop risk ratings, and assess cashflows to determine equity returns and lender credit metrics.
Topics include contract structuring, completion and market risk mitigation, the role of development finance institutions, renewable energy incentives, and evolving trends in merchant power and virtual PPAs. Students will examine investment drivers for energy infrastructure and gain a practical understanding of how project economics align with capital source expectations. The course concludes with student team presentations applying course concepts to real-world energy finance challenges.
Enrollment in this course is restricted to students who have officially declared the CEE concentration, as reflected in their Stellic profile. If space allows, enrollment may be extended to additional students at a later date.
This course examines the political and ethical challenges of confronting historical violence and the demands for redress in transitional, democratic, and post-conflict societies. Through case studies from across the globe, students explore how memory, historical responsibility, and justice intersect in efforts toward reconciliation. The course analyzes evolving norms around historical redress, reparations, and accountability, particularly in light of expanding debates on colonialism, race, and slavery in established democracies. Topics include the emergence of transitional justice, the politics of reparations, competing narratives of victimization, and the contested role of history in national and international reconciliation efforts.
CEE Concentration Registration Priority.
This seminar examines the development of utility-scale renewable energy projects from the perspective of project developers while exploring the roles of key stakeholders, including regulators, policymakers, utilities and other offtakers, equipment suppliers, financiers, and local communities. Through case studies of recent and ongoing projects in different regions of the world, students analyze how technology, policy, permitting, global supply chains, project finance, energy markets, construction, and existing infrastructure shape project outcomes. The course follows the renewable energy development process from site and technology selection through permitting, financing, construction, and operations. It also examines major policy initiatives and political developments that influence renewable energy deployment, including industrial policy, tax incentives, tariffs, and regulatory frameworks. Students will develop an understanding of the factors that determine project success and evaluate the policy and market levers available to accelerate the energy transition.
In May 2016, the UN Human Rights Council passed a highly contested resolution condemning discrimination and violence based on sexual orientation and gender identity, and establishing the first-ever Independent Expert on these issues. The protracted debate surrounding the resolution underscored how lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and intersex (LGBTI) rights remain among the most contentious topics in international human rights, law, and public policy.
Disputes over LGBTI rights are often framed as a clash between ‘human rights’ and ‘traditional values,’ highlighting a central challenge in advancing LGBTI claims: how to assert universal principles based on identities that are historically contingent and culturally shaped.
This course examines how LGBTI rights intersect with broader debates in areas such as bilateral relations and good governance, while also addressing challenges including legal recognition of same-sex partnerships and transgender identities. It explores the political uses of anti-LGBTI sentiment and investigates how LGBTI rights become flashpoints for deeper societal and political divisions.
Students will reflect on the complexities of advancing LGBTI rights in transnational contexts, engage with current scholarly debates, and develop the tools to address LGBTI rights across academic and professional domains. Contemporary developments and breaking news will be integrated into course discussions and assignments.
CEE Concentration Registration Priority.
Carbon pricing has become a central tool in global climate policy, with over 70 jurisdictions implementing carbon taxes or emissions trading systems that now cover more than one quarter of global emissions. This course explores how carbon markets and taxes are designed, reformed, and evaluated, using real-world case studies from Europe, the Americas, Asia, and beyond.
Students will engage with a structured, step-by-step framework for designing effective carbon pricing policies across sectors, including energy, transportation, industry, and land use. The course examines market-based mechanisms such as cap-and-trade, carbon taxes, and crediting programs, along with emerging policy innovations and debates around integrity and equity.
Topics include carbon border adjustments, voluntary markets, the role of carbon pricing in trade, investment, and corporate climate strategies, and the intersection of pricing with complementary policies. Students will assess existing policies, model policy impacts, and develop informed policy proposals.
Fall 2026 Course Dates: September 18 & October 2, 2026.
This simulation course is a short two-day course designed to enable participating students to weigh and apply human rights principles, best practices, and standards to simulated human rights emergencies. The simulation exercise challenges student participants with issues facing human rights practitioners when responding to human rights crises and provides practice operating within the human rights system and devising innovative solutions to complex challenges. Participants will evaluate data reports, assess relevant human rights tools and mechanisms, and propose interventions. The simulation will include a day of simultaneous exercises, followed by another day of debriefing, evaluation, and identification of key challenges and lessons.
CEE Concentration Registration Priority.
Existing energy sources and the infrastructures that deliver them are undergoing a period of rapid change. Limits to growth, fluctuating raw material prices, and the emergence of new technologies contribute to heightened risk and opportunity in the energy sector. This course aims to establish a core energy skill set for students and prepare them for more advanced coursework by introducing a foundational language and toolset for analyzing energy issues.
Through both theoretical and practical approaches, students will examine how energy technologies are developed, financed, and deployed. The course highlights root drivers of change in the industry, emerging technologies, and the critical factors that influence their successful commercialization. Understanding these dynamics is also essential to designing effective energy policy aligned with broader social welfare goals.
By the end of the course, students will have a working knowledge of conventional and emerging forms of energy generation and delivery. They will also develop the analytical tools to assess which technologies may succeed, which may not, and what innovations may help drive further deployment.
Enrollment in this course is restricted to students who have officially declared the CEE concentration, as reflected in their Stellic profile. If space allows, enrollment may be extended to additional students at a later date.
IFEP Concentration Registration Priority. Prerequisite: SIPA IA6200 Accounting.
(Note: Based on their performance in SIPA IA6260 Accounting Fundamentals, IA6260 students may be allowed to register if space remains.)
This course provides an introduction to corporate finance, focusing on how firms assess funding needs, evaluate investment opportunities, and select financing strategies. The course equips future policymakers and practitioners with core analytical tools in financial decision-making. Topics include working capital management, cost of capital, security valuation, capital structure, and free cash flow analysis. Emphasis is placed on applying financial concepts to real-world situations through case studies, quantitative problem sets, and hands-on modeling. Students will gain exposure to Excel-based analysis and decision-making under uncertainty. Prior coursework in accounting is required, and fluency in Excel is essential.
This course is designed to introduce the student to routine and episodic primary care of the pediatric patient. The focus will be placed on age-appropriate physical, cognitive, and emotional development, as well as frequently encountered illnesses seen in an outpatient setting.
D&G Concentration Registration Priority.
This course will provide students with a framework for historical and current debates on development. It will offer students a basic understanding of what constitutes “development” (ends) and how to promote it (means). The initial lecture presents the broad issue of development trends and the multidisciplinary approach, as seen today through the Sustainable Development Goals adopted by the United Nations in 2015. The subsequent classes then look at classical and contemporary theories of economic development. They will be followed by a critical comparative analysis of development experiences. A series of lectures will then concentrate on institutional issues, social development, and environmental sustainability (climate change).
This interdisciplinary course examines the complex intersections of climate science, human rights, and sustainable development. Students will first explore the fundamentals of Earth’s climate systems and core human rights frameworks. The course then analyzes how global climate disruption intersects with social vulnerability, equity, and justice. Topics include the science of climate variability, international climate governance, climate change litigation, migration and displacement, adaptation strategies, and sector-specific impacts on food, health, and livelihoods. Special attention is given to the experiences of frontline communities and small island states, as well as to policy responses grounded in climate justice.
Students examine the issue of violence against women and families. The demographics of the population, theories of domestic violence, crisis intervention, and short- and long-term clinical issues will be examined, as will service modalities for women victims and survivors, batterers, and their children.
This graduate seminar analyzes and compares national security strategies, including military doctrine, alliance policies, and foreign economic policy. The course examines how international structure, domestic politics, and leadership psychology contribute to policy outcomes. Students will explore how different strategies serve as stabilizing or destabilizing forces in the international system.
Specific topics include great power strategies before the two World Wars, American Cold War containment strategy, China's Cold War strategies, and sources of stability and instability since the Cold War’s end.
Students should have a strong background in international relations theory and/or international security. Those without such preparation are permitted to enroll but may find it difficult to keep up with the readings.
As governments, multilateral organizations, philanthropies, corporations, and impact investors face increasing pressure to demonstrate meaningful and lasting results, the ability to generate and use credible evidence has become central to advancing sustainable development. This course examines how impact measurement and evaluation (M&E) supports decision-making across these sectors, combining technical rigor with real-world application. Students will learn to design theories of change, monitoring and evaluation frameworks, impact measurement and management (IMM) systems, and evaluation approaches while exploring how different organizations define and measure impact, navigate trade-offs related to scale and sustainability, and use evidence to strengthen learning, accountability, and strategic decision-making. Through applied cases and a semester-long client project, students will develop practical skills for designing M&E strategies that respond to complex development challenges.
This course introduces students to major historical and contemporary debates on Latin American economic development and its social consequences. It adopts a comparative perspective, examining the region’s trajectory relative to North America, Western Europe, East Asia, and other developing regions. Particular attention is given to the institutional, political, geographic, and social factors that help explain Latin America’s comparatively low long-run growth, productivity, equality, and social development.
The course begins with long-term economic trends and competing explanations for the region’s relative performance. It then examines the colonial legacy, including institutions, labor systems, landholding patterns, and state formation, comparing Latin America with other world regions. The course also explores post-independence development, the effects of the Industrial Revolution, and the export era from the late nineteenth century to 1929.
The course then examines Latin American economic development during the twentieth and twenty-first centuries, including the Great Depression, World War II, state-led industrialization, the debt crisis, the lost decade of the 1980s, market-oriented reforms, and recent economic transformations. These experiences are compared with East Asia, advanced economies, and other developing regions. The final section addresses current issues, including macroeconomic policy, trade, structural transformation, inequality, labor markets, social policy, technological change, climate transition, demographic slowdown, recent global crises, and Latin America’s future development prospects.
This case-based seminar explores the evolving role of nonprofit organizations and their partnerships with government and business in advancing social impact. Students will examine the structure, challenges, and opportunities within the nonprofit sector, including social entrepreneurship, public-private partnerships, and venture philanthropy. The course emphasizes real-world cases across global contexts and diverse sectors such as housing, health, education, environmental conservation, and urban development. Through discussion, stakeholder role-play, and group presentations, students will deepen their understanding of how cross-sector collaboration can scale solutions to public challenges and create lasting value.
Some of the most powerful financial tools for fighting poverty are not found in banks, but in communities. This course explores how the world’s poorest people save, borrow, share risk, and build resilience through informal savings systems such as tandas in Mexico, susus in West Africa, dhikutis in Nepal, voluntary savings and lending groups largely in Africa, and self-help groups in India.
Students will compare community-based finance with cash transfers, remittances, microfinance, mobile banking, and fintech to ask what truly works, what falls short, and how financial inclusion can build on local wisdom rather than simply adapt Western financial models. Our motto is: “from our ideas to theirs.”
Through case examples, guest presentations, and hands-on project design, students will learn practical tools for creating initiatives that reach people at the bottom of the economic pyramid, including goal setting, methodology, selection, staffing, budgeting, monitoring, and evaluation. Working in small groups, students will design practical projects presented on the final day of class.
This course is ideal for students interested in development, social entrepreneurship, public policy, philanthropy, community finance, or poverty reduction. No technical or financial background is required—only curiosity and a willingness to question conventional assumptions about finance.
Taught by Jeffrey Ashe, a pioneer in microcredit—spreading solidarity group lending to more than thirty countries—and savings groups, whose work through the Saving for Change Initiative helped 850,000 poor village women gain access to savings groups. His current work focuses on promoting rotating savings and credit associations (ROSCAs) in immigrant communities through Grassroots Finance Action, which he directs. Students will have access to his books on savings groups and ROSCAs, as well as his earlier writing on microfinance
This seven-week Strategic Philanthropy course offers students an overview of the U.S. and global philanthropic landscape, with an eye toward the bespoke ability of philanthropy to fill gaps in public systems, mine for innovation to thorny problems, and drive targeted impacts. For reference: Philanthropic and foundation funding comprises roughly 20% of US charitable giving which totaled $103.5 billion in 2024; and global philanthropic giving reached approximately $2.3 trillion worldwide in 2024. Students will examine case studies, hear from guest speakers who are leaders in the field, and engage in class discussions to lay a foundation for understanding an array of complex approaches to philanthropy and how it interacts with the public and private sectors. Course topics will range from the crucial role of measurement in strategic philanthropy, the relationship of private philanthropy to the red tape and restrictions of public dollars, the potential impact of family wealth, and common grantmaking strategies. We will also explore and examine U.S. and international cases and best practices in philanthropy, including the differences in grantmaking in the U.S. and globally. By the end of the course, students will have a baseline understanding of the philanthropic sector and the critical role philanthropy plays in shaping pressing social, economic, environmental, and political challenges.
IFEP Concentration Registration Priority.
This course explores the intersection of financial risk management and public policy, focusing on the regulatory and institutional frameworks that have evolved since the global financial crisis. Students will learn to apply core risk management concepts—such as market, credit, counterparty, and liquidity risk—in assessing financial stability and regulatory policy. The course emphasizes intuition and applied techniques, using graphical and numerical methods rather than advanced math. Topics include Value-at-Risk, leverage, securitization, risk regulation, systemic crises, and macroprudential oversight. Students will engage with real-world cases and financial data, develop familiarity with regulatory reforms (e.g., Basel III), and understand the rationale behind central bank interventions and stress testing.
Columbia Business School is the academic home of Benjamin Graham and the birthplace of security analysis and value investing. Graham taught Advanced Security Analysis at Columbia from 1927 to 1956. Graham and David Dodd published their seminal work, Security Analysis, in 1934 and Graham published The Intelligent Investor in 1949. Roger Murray took over teaching the course upon Graham’s retirement and taught it until he retired in 1977. After a 16-year gap, value investing returned in the fall of 1993 under Professor Bruce Greenwald’s guidance and has been offered at the school ever since. Interestingly, the course was renamed Introduction to Value Investing, which was the first time the course referenced value investing in its name. Notable graduates from the program include Warren Buffett, Mario Gabelli, Leon Cooperman, Chuck Royce, Art Sandberg, Glenn Greenberg, William von Mueffling, and Todd Combs. This course introduces a framework for investing based on fundamental analysis and evaluates investment opportunities through the lens of an equity investor. Although much of the material in this course has a strong academic foundation, the goal is to develop practical tools that the student can use immediately to improve their investment process and decision making in the real world. The course will demonstrate how to determine a company’s fundamental value. Key inputs in the analysis will be the company’s level of profitability and financial returns, the duration of its competitive advantage, the value of its growth opportunity, the strength of its management team, and the risks inherent in the investment. These tools apply to public and private markets, and the course will show how to use the tools in each opportunity. The course material will be delivered through lectures, exercises, readings, in-class discussions, and homework assignments; the last day of the course will be devoted to student presentations of an investment recommendation using the tools from the course. This survey course is designed to introduce the fundamentals of the Graham and Dodd value approach to investment analysis. The basic analytical structure and its relationship to many elements from the MBA curriculum will be described through lectures, exercises, readings, in-class discussions, and homework assignments; the last day of the week will be devoted to student presentations of an investment recommendation.
The international development landscape is being reshaped by skeptical policymakers at home and partner countries – both of whom increasingly see the need to adopt new approaches. This course examines several cases of successful innovation in development finance — not to recycle those models, but to identify patterns of what makes innovation work, so the next generation of policymakers can reshape the field as conditions demand.
Through looking at several case studies, notably the International Finance Facility for Immunization (IFFIm), the Advanced Market Commitment (AMC) and disaster risk insurance pools, we will identify some of the factors for success and failure. Students will experiment with developing new ideas through practical application.
The instructor will draw on personal experience in global health and education financing. Guest speakers will provide practitioner perspectives on what works, what doesn’t, and why.
By the end of the course, students will develop their own innovative proposal to address a current development challenge and present it as a pitch to a hypothetical CEO, applying lessons learned from historical cases to contemporary problems.
CEE Concentration Registration Priority.
This course examines global and national energy policies with international implications, focusing on the intersections of energy sustainability, energy security, and energy equity, commonly referred to as the "energy trilemma." Students will explore how national decisions shape global outcomes and how international frameworks influence domestic policies. Special attention is given to the political economy of the energy transition, with case studies on fossil fuels, renewables, subsidies, and critical mineral supply chains.
The first half of the course covers technical and market dimensions of high- and low-carbon energy sources, fiscal policies, and transition projections. The second half explores geopolitical drivers of energy policy, international trade and investment, and the financing of the low-carbon transition in developing economies. Students will assess real-world policy challenges through a data-driven and interdisciplinary lens, applying a political economy approach to sustainability and global energy governance.
HRGE Concentration Registration Priority.
This course examines the global legal and policy frameworks aimed at promoting gender equality and advancing women’s rights. Drawing on international human rights instruments, national policies, and multilateral commitments, students will explore both the moral case and the strategic rationale for closing gender gaps. The course investigates how law, policy, and evidence intersect in shaping outcomes across development, health, economic growth, political participation, peace and security, climate resilience, and social protections. Students will also evaluate backlash to gender equality, the evolving discourse on gender rights and identity, and the implications of intersecting factors such as class, race, religion, and sexual orientation. Students will develop policy recommendations and deepen their understanding of global trends and debates surrounding gender justice.
This is a two-day intensive course. Over the past decade, the number of civil wars globally has increased dramatically, driven by a proliferation of non-state armed groups, illicit transnational networks and regional actors. The rise of civil wars has meant conflicts are not only harder to resolve via traditional forms of diplomacy, but also more likely to relapse; in fact, 60 per cent of the civil wars that reached peace agreements in the early 2000s have since fallen back into conflict. As an organization created to prevent wars between states, the UN has struggled to meet the challenges of today’s conflicts, particularly when it comes to engaging non-state actors. At the same time, the UN is often uniquely positioned to make contact with armed groups that may be blacklisted by key member states, and it is often UN peace operations that are best placed to implement strategies to address the various threats they pose.
What are the origins of the growth of today’s form of non-state armed groups and why have they increased in relevance in recent years? How has the rise of rebel and so-called “terrorist” groups affected the character of war today, and what implications does this have for conflict prevention and management? What challenges (and opportunities) do non-state actors pose to traditional forms of conflict resolution, and what can be learned from the UN’s experiences in places like Afghanistan, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and Mali?
Drawing on a mix of academic literature, case studies and first-hand accounts of those involved directly in UN-led operations in the field, students will explore these questions and grapple with the very real predicaments that face today’s mediators and peacekeepers around the world. By the end of this course, students will have a firm grasp of the core theories and concepts that drive UN engagement with non-state actors, how the UN and its partners have developed strategies in asymmetrical and complex environments, and a practical experience of the difficulties of applying principles to reality. This course will be of interest to those wishing to pursue academic research on the UN, scholars of critical studies of international relations, and those hoping to build a career in conflict resolution and management.
Effective communication is critical to the success of international organizations (IOs). Whether securing funding from member states, raising awareness of global challenges, or countering misinformation, IOs rely on strategic communications to fulfill their mandates. As noted by UN Secretary-General António Guterres, “strategic communications is central to the success of all our work.”
This course equips students with interdisciplinary tools to understand and support the communications work of IOs. Students will explore the unique structures and missions of IOs, the role of public and digital diplomacy, brand management, and communication for development (C4D). The course also addresses specialized practices such as peacekeeping communications and celebrity diplomacy.
By bridging theory and practice, students will gain the knowledge and skills needed to analyze, critique, and contribute to communications efforts in IOs. The course prepares students for careers in IO communications teams or for policy and academic analysis in this evolving field.