[geogu-l] new undergraduate seminar

[RICHARD ROTH]

We are offering a new undergraduate seminar in economic geography next quarter, taught by J.W. Harrington. This promises to be a unique and valuable small-class, hands-on experience, with research at its heart.

-Rick Roth

Note: the course is currently showing up in the Time Schedule as 3 credits, but will really be 5 credits, once they fix the system.
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SEMINAR  IN  ECONOMIC  GEOGRAPHY
Geography 498, Spring 2007 (5)
Wednesdays, 2:30 – 4:50 
Professor Harrington
sln:  13390

This Spring Quarter, a small group of students will explore these questions together:
•	What sorts of actors are fundamental to understanding events and trends in the world economy – international corporations, financial traders, national governments, knowledge workers?  What are the fundamental actors in regional economies (like metropolitan Seattle), which don’t have a single government, and which are necessarily “open” to national and international flows of capital, workers, and ideas?

•	In such a world, what elements can be considered characteristic of or specific to a given region – or must regions be considered passive, temporary vessels for national and international flows?

•	What does it mean to say we live in a “knowledge economy”?  How can we possibly say where knowledge resides, or where it is created?

•	In such a world, what influences the production, procurement, and location decisions of firms?

•	What impact can an individual thinker have on how we study these issues?


In addition, each student will develop her/his individual thinking, through a series of increasingly focused, written arguments or proposals.  The class will be small enough that the nature of this assignment will be tailored to the individual student.  Possibilities include:
•	Develop an empirical understanding of relevant economic issues (e.g., foreign investment;  the economic or environmental sustainability of a region’s international exports)  for one particular region.

•	Dig into a public-policy debate or need (tax policy to encourage economic development;  the best means for improving workforce readiness) for a particular region of a relevant class of regions.

•	Propose and design a rigorous empirical investigation of an important question (the impact of university presence, size, and quality for regional economic growth;  national or regional institutional effects on the work experience of transmigrants (or the work experience of undocumented workers);  explaining interregional or interstate differences in the growth of a particular economic sector;  exploring the subnational, regional impact of international trade policy)


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Richard Roth				Assistant to the Chair
rroth at u.washington.edu 			Department of Geography
voice: (206) 543-3246			Box 35-3550
  fax: (206) 543-3313			University of Washington
 			Seattle, WA  98195