| Our problems
are increasingly global; our communities increasingly culturally diverse;
our countries increasingly fragmented by ethnicity; our organizations
increasingly transnational. Thinking globally and acting locally aren't
enough anymore: we must think and act globally and locally simultaneously.
The extent to which any person on the planet today can achieve quality
of life depends more and more on the actions of all of us: everyone's
happiness depends upon our understanding of the interplay of global
and local systems, and how change works at all levels.
This course will look
at issues of change AND CHANGE MANAGEMENT in all of the STEEP (social,
technological, economic, environmental, and political) categories
from the perspective of global systems: global geopolitics, global
environmental change, the world economy, the technologies with which
we are transforming our planet, and how societies are adapting or
maladapting to change. The purpose of this course is to introduce
students from different program areas and disciplines to current
facts, trends, and schools of thought about future world conditions,
and their implications for professional life in settings such as
business, education, or government.
Assignments:
- Class participation
-- 10% of final grade;
- Future-oriented personal
essay (3 + 2 pages) -- 20% of final grade;
- Future Generations
exercise survey -- 10% of final grade;
- Scanning journal --
20% of final grade; and
- Foresight framework
report in your "cognate domain" [area of substantive interest].
You may choose to focus on an issue, such as international trade,
or education, or health, OR to focus on a geographic region or
country (10 pages) -- 40% of final grade.
Formats for each assignment/class
activity: specific, detailed descriptions of the format and content
required for each assignment will be available as handouts when
assigned.
Grading: see grading
policy specified below. Any written work may be revised and resubmitted
for a grade revision, on the student's initiative, prior to the
end of term.
Abilities/Outcomes:
- Identifying critical
issues of change with global implications;
- Understanding the
interaction of social, technological, environmental, economic,
and political systems at the global level, and how local and global
levels interact;
- Recognizing the impact
of general systems theory on the framing of problems and solutions
in the international arena (systems theory and the global problematique);
- Cataloging potential
strategies for positive global change at the individual, community,
national, and international levels;
- Communicating the
preceding clearly to others via discussion, presentation, and
writing;
Using the Internet and WorldWide Web for research.
Required Texts
Hertsgaard, Mark. Earth
Odyssey: Around the World in Search of Our Environmental Future.
New York: Broadway Books, 1999. ISBN 0-7679-0059-6
Friedman, Thomas. The Lexus and the Olive Tree: Understanding
Globalization. New York: Doubleday, 2000. ISBN 0-385-49934-5
Glenn, Jerome C., and Theodore J. Gorgon. 2002 State of the
Future. Washington, D.C.: American Council for the United
Nations University, 2002. ISBN 0-9657362-9-6
Gunderson, Lance H., and C.S. Holling, eds. Panarchy, Understanding
Transformations in Human and Natural Systems. Washington,
D.C.: Island Press, 2002. ISBN 1-55963-857-5
Zolli, Andrew (editor). TechTV's Catalog of Tomorrow.
Que Publishers. ISBN: 0789728109
Recommended and Classic
Texts
Benjamin, Don't Be
Afraid Gringo
Barney, Global 2000 Report to the President, Vol. 1
Caracas Report on Alternative Development Indicators, Redefining
Wealth and Progress
Gore, Earth in the Balance
Harman, Global Mind Change and An Incomplete Guide to
the Future
Henderson, Paradigms in Progress and The Politics of the
Solar Age
Kennedy, Preparing for the Twenty-First Century
Mander, In the Absence of the Sacred: The Failure of Technology
and the Survival of Indian Nations
Russell, The Global Brain Awakens
South
Commission, The Challenge to the South
World Commission on Environment and Development, Our Common Future
Worldwatch Institute,
State of the World Report 2001
Course Policies
- Academic Honesty
Policy: Please refer to the UHCL catalog for the Academic Honesty
Policy. Plagiarism, that is, using research without citations,
or using a created production without crediting the source, will
result in a grade penalty or failure of the course.
- Disabilities: If you
have a disability and need a special accommodation, consult first
with the Coordinator of Health Disabilities Services, Bayou 1402,
telephone 283-2627, and then discuss the accommodation with me.
- Absences: Class attendance
is necessary to complete the course successfully. You should make
every effort to attend class. Should you have a problem with attendance,
please call or see me during office hours. Attending during all
workshop practice sessions is critical.
- Incompletes: A grade
of "I" is given only in cases of documented emergency or special
circumstances late in the semester, provided that the student
has been making satisfactory progress. An Incomplete Grade Contract
must be completed.
- Withdrawals: Refer
to class schedule for dates to withdraw without evaluation from
a course.
- Grades: An "A" denotes
exceptional mastery in understanding, applying, discussing, and
writing about the material presented, with work exceeding assigned
specifications; a "B" indicates solid professional competence
in understanding, applying, discussing, and writing about the
material presented, with work performed to assigned specifications;
a "C" indicates minimum competence in understanding, applying,
discussing, and writing about the material presented; a "D" indicates
serious deficiencies in course competencies. "F" indicates total
failure to absorb any of the material presented, accompanied by
lack of effort to make up deficiencies.
NOTE: Students
may consult with the professor on any assignment for the purpose
of improving it and resubmitting it for a potential improvement
in grade.
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