Nov 24, 2024  
2024-2025 Undergraduate Catalog 
    
2024-2025 Undergraduate Catalog

POLS 204 - Political and Legal Dimensions Disasters

4.00 credit hours
Natural and manmade disasters are a perennial feature of political life. When a non-routine event happens (from a hurricane to a terrorist attack to a nuclear accident), political and legal actors and institutions must activate in order to prepare for, respond to, and explain what happened. The costs imposed by disasters have always been high, and these events, while relatively low on the public’s agenda, are constant sources of challenge for politics at all levels. This course will introduce students to the political and legal dimensions of disasters, including: How does politics respond to disasters? What are the main institutions that engage with disaster politics and policies? Who is responsible for harms caused by a disaster, and how has the law evolved in the area of disaster politics?

Cardinal Directions Designation(s): Social Sciences, U.S. Power Structures.
iCon(s): Sustaining Our World.


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