Tuesday, March 13, 2012

Interested in Global Development? Join Spring GEOG 499B Seminar Class!

Interested in global development work? Volunteering abroad? Activism at home? Join a multidisciplinary 2 credit seminar for Spring quarter!

The Critical Development Forum's course is back by popular demand! We had over 30 requests for 20 spots this quarter, so sign up now for SPRING.

This quarter we were overwhelmed by the amazing student response to the two credit Critical Development Seminar course, GEOG 499B. We had a fantastic time learning from one another, and we're happy to offer it again next quarter. See a bit of what we discussed online at cdfseminar.tumblr.com.



Spring 2012 class offering - back by popular demand!

GEOG 499 B/GEOG 600: Beyond Good Intentions: Evaluating Global Development Work Critically

 2-4* Credits, Student Directed Seminar, Spring 2012

Thursdays, 3:30-5:20PM, Room TBA

Facilitator:
Abby Temple, (History, African Studies & Global Health)

Faculty Adviser: Professor Matt Sparke (Geography, Global Health, International Studies)

Email atemp@uw.edu to request a spot. Include your name, major, year in school, and a few sentences about why you are interested in taking the course.

Course website and e-syllabus (from Winter 2012 session): cdfseminar.tumblr.com

When are good intentions not enough? When are they harmful? How can we best use our good intentions to make a difference in issues of poverty, injustice, and inequality? This is a forum for students with good intentions - those of us who serve and advocate for the poor and marginalized locally and globally - to take a pause from the ongoing momentum of our work for self-reflection. The seminar provides an academic space to complement the student-driven Critical Development Forum.

Throughout the course, we will challenge ourselves to reflect critically and honestly on our motivations and explore the contradictions of our past, current, or future work and advocacy. Readings will unpack the historical, social, political, economic, cultural, and environmental context of our engagement in development and global (in)justice. We hope to inspire students to overcome the fear of questioning good intentions in order to deepen the impact of their work and provoke structural social change.

The success of the course is reliant upon students from ALL disciplines and levels of experience.  We especially encourage engineering, health science, natural science, and arts students who might never have taken a social science/humanities course to enroll. Students with extensive experience working in local or global development and justice work as well as students still exploring their options are both encouraged equally to be part of the forum. The variety of students in the course during Winter Quarter of 2012 allowed students to push their own boundaries, and listen to ideas from all perspectives.

* The course offers a 4-credit option, which gives students the task of designing a project to engage the University and local community in the themes of the course. Where better to spark change than right on our own campus?

Contact Abby via email at atemp@uw.edu

The
Critical Development Forum (CDF, http://students.washington.edu/cdfuw/)  is dedicated to promoting a critical dialogue between students, faculty, and professionals at the engaged in global development and global justice work. We encourage those interested in challenging poverty and inequality to reconnect with one another, critically reflect on their work through a social justice lens, and challenge themselves to move beyond good intentions.