Global Poverty and Practice

University of California, Berkeley

This is an archived copy of the 2015-16 guide. To access the most recent version of the guide, please visit http://guide.berkeley.edu.

Overview

The Global Poverty and Practice (GPP) program is an undergraduate minor, administered by the The Blum Center for Developing Economies.

The GPP Minor gives students an opportunity to examine contemporary forms of poverty, wealth, and inequality through academic course work and practical experience. The program trains students to critically and historically engage with complex issues of poverty and inequality, equipping them with methodologies and skills of engagement, and encouraging the reflexivity necessary for meaningful practice. Central to the minor is a fieldwork opportunity in which students connect theories and practices of poverty action through partnering with nongovernmental or community organizations, government agencies, or other poverty or development programs in California and around the world.

Students graduating with a minor in Global Poverty and Practice will be able to demonstrate a basic understanding of the following:

  1. Scholarly approaches to understanding poverty, wealth, and inequality in a historical and global context.
  2. Knowledge of international development and domestic poverty alleviation policies, programs, institutions, and social movements.
  3. An ability to critically engage in public debates about poverty and poverty action through written texts, as well as through the use of social, digital, and visual media.
  4.  Knowledge of the history and contemporary politics of poverty and inequality in a particular place or world region, in preparation for the practice requirement of the minor.
  5. Analytical and practical skills gained through the practice experience in a particular sector of poverty action (e.g., agricultural and rural development, urban poverty, public health, human rights, legal systems, education, energy resources, and sustainable technology), at various scales (e.g., community, global) and in various forms (e.g., government policy, social movements).
  6. An understanding of different modalities and relations of power involved in poverty action, developed through historically informed analytical skills, the practice experience, and critical reflection.

Undergraduate Program

Global Poverty and Practice : Minor

Graduate Program

There is no graduate program in Global Poverty and Practice

Visit Program Website

Courses

Global Poverty and Practice

GPP 105 The Ethics, Methods, and Pragmatics of Global Practice 4 Units

Offered through: International and Area Studies
Terms offered: Fall 2017, Spring 2017, Fall 2016
This course is intended to provide students with the necessary background and knowledge to undertake projects and work experience of a global scope. Students will be exposed to a diversity of methodological frameworks, introduced to the basic skills needed to effectively participate in organizations, and to understand the ethics of global service and practice. Students will be required to complete a literature review and a major project proposal.

GPP 115 Global Poverty: Challenges and Hopes in the New Millennium 4 Units

Offered through: International and Area Studies
Terms offered: Fall 2017, Fall 2016, Fall 2015
This class seeks to provide a rigorous understanding of 20th century development and thus 21st century poverty alleviation. Students will take a look at popular ideas of poverty alleviation, the institutional framework of poverty ideas and practices, and the social and political mobilizations that seek to transform the structures of poverty.

GPP 140 Special Topics in Global Poverty and Practice 2 Units

Offered through: International and Area Studies
Terms offered: Spring 2016
A short course designed to accommodate changing topics that explore issues and problems related to the goals of the Global Poverty and Practice Minor program. The topics often reflect the research interests of the instructor and supplement regular curricular offerings. Topics change each semester. Specific descriptions of current offerings are available through the department.

GPP 150 Special Topics in Global Poverty and Practice 4 Units

Offered through: International and Area Studies
Terms offered: Spring 2017, Spring 2016
Changing topics that explore issues and problems related to the goals of the Global Poverty and Practice Minor program. The topics often reflect the research interests of the instructor and supplement regular curricular offerings. Topics change each semester. Specific descriptions of current offerings are available through the department.

GPP 150AC Special Topics in Global Poverty and Practice (American Cultures) 4 Units

Offered through: International and Area Studies
Terms offered: Fall 2015
Changing topics that explore issues and problems related to the goals of the Global Poverty and Practice Minor program. The topics often reflect the research interests of the instructor and supplement regular curricular offerings. Topics change each semester. Specific descriptions of current offerings are available through the department.

GPP 196 Global Poverty and Practice Capstone Course 3 Units

Offered through: International and Area Studies
Terms offered: Fall 2017, Spring 2017, Fall 2016
This course is intended to provide students with a forum for reflection on the Practice Experience component of the Global Poverty and Practice minor. Lessons learned in the minor will be applied to the realm of public discourse through various forms of public scholarship. Issues of power and privilege, civic engagement, and tensions between tourism vs. travel and community service vs. engagement will be addressed. Students will also explore academic and professional post-graduation options.

Contact Information

Global Poverty & Practice Minor

100 Blum Hall

Phone: 510-643-5316

blumcenter@berkeley.edu

Visit Program Website

Vice Chair

Clare Talwalker, PhD (International & Area Studies)

Phone: 510-642-1289

ctalwalker@berkeley.edu

Director of Student Programs

Sean Burns

Phone: 510 666-9127

burns@berkeley.edu

Minor Adviser and Program Coordinator

Chetan Chowdhry

Phone: 510-664-4423

cchowdhry@berkeley.edu

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