POLS 395 Special Topics in Politics
Topics vary semester to semester. Specific topics may satisfy different Core Program requirements.
Climate Policy and U.S. Politics
This course will explore the politics around climate change and climate policy, with a specific focus on the U.S. We will analyze the history of U.S. climate and energy policy, and explore how this policy response is shaped by public opinion and polarization, executive orders, the courts, federalism and state actions, and interest group political spending. We will also explore recent climate policies such as the Inflation Reduction Act in depth, and compare them to policy approaches in other countries. The framework of climate justice will be applied throughout the course, and we will analyze how climate justice can best be implemented through the U.S. political system. Students will conduct research on U.S. climate policy to inform policy memos and other writing assignments. This course fulfills the second-stage writing requirement for the Politics major.
Prerequisite
Graduate students may not enroll in this class. Frosh students may not enroll in this class.