SUS 7020 - Civic Leadership, Decision-Making & Systems Thinking

(4 units)

This course considers the rights, roles and interrelationships of citizens, their government, special interest groups and private organizations to drive social, economic and environmental change. To foster coalition-building skills among burgeoning practitioners, the course introduces networks, systems and leadership theories; democratic decision-making tools; and citizen engagement and inclusion models. Students will apply course readings, case studies and leadership theories through a group project realized through the design and implementation of a public policy issue campaign. The group project will be comprised of the following modules: issue identification and definition; need finding and research methods; stakeholder, economic, and policy analysis; prototyping and evaluative research. Through this exercise, students will develop a solid template for embarking on a future policy agenda at their place of work, neighborhood, city or elsewhere. The course provides a foundation for future applied coursework in leadership for sustainable management, sustainable urban development, economics and policy, and the integrative capstone plan.