Topics covered :

1. FALL 2011: SPECIAL TOPICS CEE 498MEA: Multilateral Environmental Agreements Tuesdays and Thursdays 2:00-3:20 pm, 3310 Newmark (Yeh center) 3-hr credit, senior and graduate students – open to all disciplines (Students: communicate your particular interests to the instructor) Information: Dr. Sotiria Koloutsou-Vakakis, sotiriak@illinois.edu • Topics covered: • nature of environmental problems that drive nations to make Treaties and Conventions • developed and developing world - do environmental protection and sustainability have the same meaning for everyone? • international convention process, negotiation process • fairness and self-interest, Parties, regional groups, IOs, NGOs and other special interest groups • identification of key issues, and problem framing in MEAs • technical expert groups, scenario building and effective communication of scientific information • important variables and performance indicators • implementation and compliance • linkages and complexity in International Environmental Governance and how they affect effectiveness • Class format: • Lectures to introduce topics. • Class discussions to comprehend and gain insight on topics • Projects to develop/improve analytical and communication skills. • Who would want to take the class? • Senior and graduate students who are interested in: • learning how global environmental agreements are made • understanding how science affects policy and under what circumstances • evaluating how their work in the lab relates to sustainability and how it impacts the global environment • developing skills on effective writing and well documented argumentation on global environmental issues • posing important and relevant policy questions and designing policies to address them • New this year: • Use of quantitative tools to design policies.