The course focuses on how contemporary changes in the global economy or in the post-industrial society may (or may not) affect the functioning of our democracies. As we will discuss during the first sessions, the main characteristic of democracy-as-we-know is that large groups of citizens are represented in decision-making institutions. The main pedagogical objective of this course is to develop students’ critical thinking about what representation is and how it manifests: when are political leaders representative of their constituencies and when are they not; how can we assess whether they are?

After a brief introduction about how political science contributes to the public debates about democracy, the course starts by characterizing western governments as ‘representative’ and identifying political parties as the actors responsible for a successful combination of representation and government, and thus as the actors that are determinant for the proper functioning of our democracies. The course then proceeds with the presentation of the current challenges faced by parties and how these challenges may in turn affect the functioning of democracy. The focus of the course is on the process linking citizens’ preferences to public policy, and how this is challenged by ongoing societal and economic developments. Some examples of studies that attempted or claimed to test the democratic linkage are presented, together with their merits and shortcomings.

This advanced introductory course examines how these geopolitical and strategic transformations shape political, security and economic relations in the Indo-Pacific. It also explores the domestic and ideational factors – including political leadership, nationalism and identity politics – that influence the foreign policies of the region’s major actors. While the course focuses primarily on developments in the post-Cold War era, particular attention is given to recent events, placing them within the region’s broader historical and cultural context.

The course equips students with the conceptual and analytical tools necessary to understand and critically evaluate the principal debates, actors and dynamics shaping the international politics of the Indo-Pacific in the 21st century. Students will develop the ability to identify the main drivers of strategic competition, cooperation and regional instability, and to critically assess the role of diplomacy, regional institutions, alliances and minilateral partnerships in managing regional tensions.

This course explores how digital technologies and society shape each other over time through a range of topics. Digital technologies have transformed our lives, everyday practices, relationships and the ways institutions are governed. People are not passive recipients of these technologies: they adopt, use and reshape them in diverse ways. Through various sessions, students will be introduced to digital sociology starting with theory and structure, then moving on to identity, resistance, global and ecological issues, and finally, critical futures.

Each session will begin with student presentations (either individually or in groups depending on the class size). Students will present a case study related to the topic of the week and discuss it in connection with the assigned readings for approximately 30 minutes, followed by reflections and discussion from their peers. In the second half of the lecture, the lecturer will present an additional case study and integrate relevant theories for that week.

By the end of the course, students will have a strong theoretical foundation in digital sociology and will have learned how to connect theory with case studies and relate digital technologies to everyday life, societal issues and forms of power, agency and resistance.

Programme

Week 1 – Introduction to digital sociology

Week 2 – Digital inclusion and inequalities

Week 3 – Big data, platforms and algorithmic governance

Week 4 – AI and society

Week 5 – Labour and capitalism in digital economy

Week 6 – Youth, digital cultures and education

Week 7 – Gender and sexuality in digital spheres

Week 8 – Immigrants, diaspora and digital belonging

Week 9 – Activism and social movements

Week 10 – Digital war and peace

Week 11 – Digital ecologies and the environment

Week 12 – Digital futures and ethics

• Know the basic theoretical debates in the field of public policy analysis
• Mobilize concepts to analyze the different sequences of public policies
• Use public policy analysis to explore contemporary political and economic issues in France, in the USA and in the European Union

I. THE POLICY CYCLE

II. THEORIES OF PUBLIC POLICY ANALYSIS

III. ACTORS OF POLICY-MAKING