POLS 131 Current World Problems

Overview of Course

Current World Problems is a fast-paced, discussion-driven course that tackles the biggest challenges shaping the 21st century. Designed for undergraduates from any major, the class explores how global systems—economic, political, and environmental—interact to produce both extraordinary progress and deepening crises. Together, we will investigate how capitalism generates innovation yet often widens inequality; why poverty persists despite unprecedented global wealth; and how environmental degradation, a warming climate, and declining global health threaten communities and ecosystems worldwide.
Through case studies, discussions of books, and multimedia sources, you’ll learn to connect individual experiences to global forces, evaluating competing explanations for today’s most urgent problems. We will examine issues such as the political economy of global supply chains, the human consequences of pollution and biodiversity loss, and global public health challenges and structural inequities. By the end of the course, you will have a toolkit for thinking critically about some key global issues and a clearer sense of the social, economic, and policy choices that will shape the planet’s future.