NGOs, Peacebuilding, and Development

Course Description

Summary

In the last thirty years, non-governmental organizations have played an outsized role in global affairs, perhaps most notably in development and peacebuilding processes. How did the NGO form develop, and why? How do NGOs interact with states, global institutions, and grassroots populations in the Global South? What effects - positive, negative, and complicated - have NGOs had on global affairs, and how are their roles changing in the 21st century? This course will critically examine the work of NGOs in peace and development around the world, with a concentration on Latin America. Students will use the lenses of political economy, social movement studies, and gender studies to examine various NGOs in order to better understand their complex dynamics, and apply their understanding to a critical analysis of a particular NGO. Students who have worked with NGOs in Field Work Term can expect to incorporate their experiences into the classroom.