SOS 308
Ethical Challenges: Development, Poverty, and
Globalization
Master Level Seminar Autumn 2003 (10 credits)
Lecturer: Asunción Lera St. Clair
Asun.St.Claire@sos.uib.no
Department of Sociology
University of Bergen
First lecture: 3rd October 10.15 –12.00
Place: Seminar room, Department of Sociology
Course Description
The seminar aims to offer students an overview of some of the main
ethical challenges posed by international development within the context of
globalization. The course addresses empirical, conceptual, and ethical
dimensions of international development polices, but it also investigates some of
the ethical dilemmas of humanitarian interventions posed by global forces. The
course emphasizes the moral claims of the most vulnerable and weak sectors of
society—severe poverty; and second, the course emphasizes the assessment of
what are some of the main challenges of implementing rights-based approaches.
With respect to development, we will seek to understand and ethically
evaluate the present character and future prospects of development in poor
countries and regions. With respect to humanitarian interventions we will seek to
understand some of the moral dilemmas entailed by the inclusion of moral
guidelines-such as concerns for human rights—in practices. With respect to
globalization, we will seek to understand and ethically evaluate what are some of
the global “goods” and the global “bads” created by globalization processes, its
actors, and those who bear their burdens. Last, the seminar pays especial
attention to the role of moral awareness in the generation of empirical data and
the design of public polices.
Throughout the course we will consider two concrete cases. First, we will
explore the theoretical issues learned in the lectures and readings by looking at
the development dilemmas and options facing Ecuador’s Huaorani Indians (as
depicted by Joe Kane in Savages). What kind of development approach and
external influences brought about by globalization processes would be “best” for
the Huaorani, what should we mean by “best,” and who should decide and
implement the approach and policies? What are the moral differences between
addressing the problems of the Huaorani as matters for development or as
matters for humanitarian intervention?
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The second case is about the role of development and humanitarian aid in
the Rwandan genocide. Rwanda was considered by most aid agencies working
in the country almost up to the initiation of genocide as an example of a welldeveloping county. Almost none of the development aid and humanitarian foreign
workers there expected the genocide to happen nor did they do anything to stop
it from happening. To what extent was this due to misguided notions of
development and narrow indicators of development? To what extent the artificial
division of labor between humanitarian development agencies has negative
impacts? What were the effects of the absence of ethical self-reflection and the
lack of awareness of the role of ethical values and social forces? How come
development aid in Rwanda today still follows the same technical guidelines than
before the genocide occurred?
Objectives
By the end of the course, students should be familiar wit the body of
literature in the field of development ethics, some familiarity with related
problems in globalization theorizations, and some understanding of the field of
humanitarian intervention. For those unfamiliar to development studies and
poverty research, this includes a succinct introduction to some of the major
concerns in these two areas of knowledge and familiarity with the main debates
in current scholarship. Students without previous knowledge on ethical theory
will also learn some ethical terminology, some of the major ethical reasoning
traditions, and some of the current work in both ethics and social and political
philosophy. At the end of the course, students should be able to critically
examine the topics presented in class and to have a capacity to critically evaluate
the assigned readings.
Mandatory Readings
Crocker, David (2002), “Globalization and Human Development: Ethical
Approaches,” Paper presented at the General Assembly of the Pontifical
Academy of Social Sciences, Globalization and the Common Humanity:
Ethical and Institutional Concerns, The Vatican, 25-28 April 2001.
(Mimeo), (total 20 pages).
Dower, Nigel (2002), “Global Ethics and Global Citizenship,” in Nigel Dower and
John Williams (eds.) Global Citizenship: A Critical Reader, Edinburgh:
Edinburgh University Press. 12 pages
Fung, Archon and Erik Olin Wright Eds. (2003), Deepening Democracy:
Institutional Innovations in Empowered Participatory Governance, London:
Verso. (Introduction and Chapter 2: The Porto Alegre Case) pages 3-73.
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Gasper, Des (forthcoming 2003), The Ethics of Development: from Economism
to Human Development, Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press (selected
sections) chapters 1 and 2 (47 pages)
Glover, Jonathan (2001), Humanity: A Moral History of the Twentieth Century,
London: Pilmico, Chapter 1 (pages 1-7), Chapters 14-18, (119-154) pages
and Chapters 42, 43 and Epilogue (pages 400-414). Total pages 65.
Kane, Joe, 2nd ed. (1996), Savages, New York: Vintage. (Complete book, 270
pages but non-academic reading).
Narayan, Deepa, et al, Voices of the Poor: Crying Out for Change, New York:
selected sections (max pages 65) online at:
http://www.worldbank.org/poverty/voices/reports.htm#cananyone
Pogge, Thomas (2002), World Poverty and Human Rights: Cosmopolitan
Responsibilities and Reform, Cambridge: Polity Press. Introduction,
Chapters 1 and 2.
Sen, Amartya, Development as Freedom, Cambridge, MA: Harvard University
press, paperback, (Chapters 3 and 4), pages 54-110 (total pages 54).
Singer, Peter (2002), One World: The Ethics of Globalization, New Haven:
Yale University Press (chapters 1, 3, 5 and 6) (Total pages 65)
Stiglitz, Joseph (2002), Globalization and its Discontents, New York: Penguin
pages 3-22.
Terry, Fiona (2002), Condemned to Repeat: The Paradox Of Humanitarian
Action, Ithaca, NY: Cornell University Press. (1-54 and 216-245).
Uvin, Peter (1998), Aiding Violence: The Development Enterprise in Rwanda,
Kumarian Press. Chapters 7, 10 and 11, pages 141-160 and 205-238,
total pages 53.
Requirements
1. Consistent Attendance and Participation: Students should come to
class having read carefully the assigned reading. They should be able to
summarize the reading’s main arguments and raise at least one question
of interpretation, to identify one positive feature, and raise one criticism.
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2. Class Presentation: Each student will make a class presentation on a
chosen topic from the assigned reading. The class presentation will be a
short summary of the assigned reading, and a critical examination of the
subject.
3. Examination: Short Essay questions
4. Final Paper: Students will turn a final term 20 pages paper. Students will
be asked to present a one-page sketched proposed topic two weeks into
the course. Four weeks into the course, students shall present a 3 page
outline and proposed bibliography. Instructor will be available to help
students in the drafting of the paper.
Lectures (9 Sessions marked from 0 to 8)
Lecture 0: Introduction (no mandatory readings)
During the first part of the sessions we will introduce all the participants in the
seminar; to learn from each others projects, areas of expertise and expectations
for the seminar. The second part will be dedicated to introduction the contents,
objectives and expectations of the seminar and to attempt to tailor those to the
ongoing work of the participants in the seminar.
Lecture 1: Ethics and Development
Des Gasper : What is the Ethics of Development? The Meaning of Development
in The Ethics of Development: from Economism to Human Development
Lecture 2: What ethical issues are raised by globalization in the
context of development and poverty
David Crocker: Development ethics and globalization
Peter Singer: The Ethics of globalization
Joseph Stiglitz: Globalization and its discontents
Lecture 3: Rights and Capabilities
Thomas Pogge: Poverty and human rights
Amartya Sen: Development as freedom and capability poverty.
Lecture 4: Voices of the Poor
Deepa Narayan, the World Bank and Voices of the Poor
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In class Voices of the Poor film.
Lecture 5: The Paradoxes of Humanitarianism
Fiona Terry: The paradoxes of humanitarian interventions
Peter Ulvin: Aiding Violence
Lecture 6: Moral awareness, poverty and suffering
Pogge: Loopholes in moralities
Glover: Tribalism, some people and not others, ethics humanized,
Lecture 7: Deepening Democracy: Participation, Deliberation and Global
Citizenship
Nigel Dower on Global citizenship
Fung and Olin, Empowered Participatory Governance
The Porto Alegre Case
Alter globalization
Lecture 8: Conclusions
Recommended Readings:
Alkire, Sabina (2002), Valuing Freedoms: Sen’s Capability Approach and Poverty
Reduction, Oxford: Oxford UP.
Dower, Nigel (2002), Global Citizenship: A Reader, Edinburgh: Edinburgh UP.
Gasper, Desmond (forthcoming), The Ethics of Development: from Economism
to Human Development, Edinburgh: Edinburgh UP.
Goodin, Robert (2003), Reflective Democracy, Oxford: Oxford UP.
Held, David et al (1999), Global Transformations: Politics, Economics and
Culture, London: polity press
Kaul, Inge et al (1999), Global Public Goods: International Cooperation in the
21st Century, Oxford: Oxford UP.
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Nussbaum, Martha (2000), Women and Human Development: The Capabilities
Approach¸ Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Onora O’Neill (2000), Bonds of Justice, London: Cambridge University Press.
Pogge, Thomas (2002), World Poverty and Human Rights, Cambridge: Polity
Press.
Richardson, Henry (2002), Democratic Autonomy: Public Reasoning about the
Ends of Policy, Oxford: Oxford UP.
Rieff, David (2002), A Bed for the Night: Humanitarianism in Crisis, New York:
Simon & Schuster
Sen, Amartya, Development as Freedom
Shue, Henry (1989), “Morality, Politics, and Humanitarian Assistance,” in Bruce
Nichols and Gail Loescher (eds.) The Moral Nation: humanitarianism and
US Foreign Policy, Notre Dame: Notre Dame UP.
Stiglitz, Joseph (2002), Globalization and its Discontents, New York: Penguin
Suhrke, Astri, Selected readings by Christian Michelsen Institute Reports on
Rwanda.
United Nations Development Programme, Human Development Report 2002:
Deepening Democracy in a Fragmented World (Oxford University Press, 2002).
ISBN: 0195219155. Online at www.undp.org/hdr2002
United Nations Development Programme, Arab Human Development Report
2002: Creating Opportunities for Future Generations (Oxford University Press,
2002). Online at http://www.undp.org/rbas/ahdr
Vaux, Toni (2003), The Selfish Altruist: Relief Work and War, London: Earthscan.
World Bank (2003), Breaking the Conflict Trap: Civil War and
Development Policy, A World Bank policy Research Report, available
online www.worldbank.org
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