GEO 363 Global Migration

Human migration is one of the defining issues of the 21st century. This course situates contemporary global migration within historical and geographic contexts. To do so, this course analyzes the driving factors behind historic patterns and contemporary trends in global migration. Taking a human geographic perspective, this course undertakes this examination of migration at multiple scales, from the global scale of demographic trends and migratory flows, to the individual scale of embodied human experience. The overall aim of this course is to equip students with the contextual knowledge and the analytical skills to engage the topic of migration from a variety of perspectives. Topics covered in the course include forced migration, refugees and asylum seekers, humanitarian aid, border controls and security, economic migration, climate-driven migration, as well as debates around citizenship and multiculturalism. In exploring these topics, special attention is paid to the importance of “race,” ethnicity, language, culture, and gender to experiences of and debates about migration

Credits

4

1. Students will be able to explain environmental, economic, social, and geo-political push and pull factors driving human migration/forced migration, and their complex interrelation.
2. Students will be able to discuss contemporary scholarship on migration generally, with specific reference to at least one migration case study.
3. Students will be able to analyze current policy responses to migration and border enforcement.
4. Students will be able to formulate their own position on migration related policy issues such as border enforcement, humanitarianism, and multiculturalism.
5. Students will be able to demonstrate an empathetic understanding for the multiple stakeholders involved in migration issues.
6. Students will be able to effectively convey information on the complex issue of migration in written in verbal formats.