College Catalog
Course Descriptions
Peace and Justice (PEAC)

PEAC 100 Introduction to Environmental Issues and Policy
Survey of critical environmental issues and policy responses to those issues. Topics addressed include: population growth, natural resource use, global climate change, endangered species protection and others. Lecture and discussion. Course fulfills General Education Area 3 - Human Relationships. See Extended General Education Course Description. Cross listed with ENVP 100.

PEAC 200 Introduction to Peace and Justice
Peace and Justice is an interdisciplinary field of study that includes courses from a wide variety of academic areas. The first course clarifies the meaning of peace and justice and the relation between them. The course also introduces the Catholic Church's tradition of social teaching on peace and justice. The major part of the course consists of an introduction to each of the three major topic areas in the minor: economics and environmental justice, cultural dimensions of justice, and issues in war and peace. Guest speakers will be a regular part of the course, reflecting the interdisciplinary nature of the minor.

PEAC 260 Gender and Culture
What is gender and how is it related to culture? This anthropology course takes a cross-cultural look at the concept of gender, examining men's and women's roles, masculinity, femininity, and sexuality as they are expressed around the world. Particular attention will be given to gender as it relates to popular forms of culture and everyday life. Both the history of anthropological studies of gender and new directions in the field will be introduced. Extensive use of films, videotapes, and student-directed projects. Normally offered Spring semester. Alternate years. Cross listed with SOCI 260 & WMGS 260.

PEAC 262 War and Peace in the American Literary Tradition - GS 5 or GS 6
This course is an examination of major voices in American war experience in the modern and contemporary eras. Texts include poems, memoirs, stories, novels, and films; some of the authors examined are Ernest Hemingway, John Dos Passos, Edith Wharton, E.E. Cummings, Ezra Pound, Joseph Heller, Randall Jarrell, Richard Eberhart, John Hersey, Tim O'Brien, W. D. Ehrhart, and Bobbie Ann Mason. Students trace changing characterizations in art of the American war veteran from Hemingway's Fredric Henry through the war in the Persian Gulf. Alternate years. See General Education Extended Course Description. Cross listed with HUMA 262.

PEAC 301 Environmental Studies
A lecture course with a laboratory/discussion component concentrating on an interdisciplinary view of humanity's past, present, and future impact on the environment and discussions of possible solutions to these problems. Topics include general principles of ecology (as applied to human impact on the biosphere), human population growth, food production, air and water pollution, energy resources and use, and biological resources and diversity (such as tropical rain forest and endangered species issues). Perspectives of the natural sciences, social sciences, arts and humanities, and of education are all employed to examine the causes and dimensions of environmental issues and possible solutions. Cannot be used by Biology majors or Environmental Science majors to fulfill GS 11 credit. Students may not take both SSCI 301 and ENVS 300 for credit. . Fulfills General Eduaction Area 11- Global Society See General Education Extended Course Description. Cross listed with SSCI 301.

PEAC 318 Feminist Theology
This course introduces the student to Feminist Theology as a theology of liberation, examines its foundations in feminist theory and Christian revisionist sources, and explores its contributions the Christian, especially the Catholic, faith tradition. Fulfills General Education Area 1 Upper - Religious Studies Requirement. See General Education Expanded Course Description. Cross listed with: RELS 318

PEAC 325 Ethics: International Issues (see Infrequently Offered Courses section of the Catalog). Cross listed with PHIL 325.

PEAC 333 Christian Ethics: Theology and Society
The course addresses the enduring problem of the relationship between Christian faith and moral questions. It does so in the light of the convictions of a Catholic Christian faith community tradition. It seeks to determine the faith responses to contemporary social ethical issues. The social issues studied will vary. Each semester. RELS majors/minors taking course for major/minor should sign up for RELS 433. Fulfills General Education Area 1 Upper - Religious Studies Requirement. See General Education Expanded Course Description. Cross listed with RELS 333.

PEAC 340 Israel/Palestine: The Roots of the Arab-Israeli Conflict
This course examines the origins and development of Jewish-Arab rivalry in the Middle East, beginning with the advent of Zionism in the 19th century and concluding with a review of current events. Social and economic dimensions of the conflict are considered alongside the political history, and students are introduced to a wide range of materials on the topic. Spring semester, alternate years. Cross listed with HIST 340.

PEAC 347 Theology and the Concern for Justice
A critical survey of recent theological movements emerging out of non-traditional contexts that stress the theme of justice and liberation for the poor and oppressed, challenging the way Christians both experience and understand their faith. The course explores a variety of theological issues related to the problem of socio-political inequity. Prerequisite: junior standing. Spring semester, alternate years. Cross listed with RELS 347.

PEAC 348 Environmental Politics
Examines the social and political trends that have contributed to the environmental hazards we now face. Various theoretical approaches that discuss human relations with the environment will be examined in the context of critical issues such as global warming, siting of toxic waste facilities and the pollution of the Fox River. Prerequisite: POLI 130. Fall semester, alternate years. Cross listed with POLI 348.

PEAC 350 Environmental Economics
The study of the economic aspects of environmental issues such as water and air pollution, global warming and deforestation, in a microeconomic framework. Possible consequences of economic activity on the environment. Design of policies meant to foster economic development along with environmental protection. Benefit-cost analysis. Optimal use of natural resources. Prerequisite: ECON 102. Cross listed with ECON 350.

PEAC 355 International Organizations
This course examines the role of international organizations in world politics. It focuses on the historical development of inter-governmental organizations (IGOs) and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and their increasing impact on a wide range of global issues, including peacekeeping, human rights, the world economy, the environment, etc. This course also provides students with the theoretical tools and concepts they need to understand the dynamics of the institutional structures and political processes of international organizations in an increasingly interdependent world. Prerequisite: INTL/POLI 150. Spring semester, alternate years. Cross listed with POLI 355.

PEAC 357 Economics of Globalization
This course is an introduction to the economics behind globalization, and is designed for non-economics majors. The course explores the historical development of international trade and finance. Examination of data will lead to the establishment of various economic theories to explain trade patterns, and will cover theories ranging from those brought forth by Ricardo to those brought forth by new trade theorists such as Paul Krugman. The course will explore many of the contentious issues related to international trade and international finance, and will consider the forces that drive increased economic integration. Not open to Economics, Business Administration majors. Fulfills General Eduaction Area 11- Global Society See General Education Extended Course Description. Cross listed with ECON 357.

Peac 360 Feminist Theory
This course takes a sociology of knowledge approach to the development of feminist theory from the 18th century to the present. The variety of modern and postmodern feminist theories are placed in social, political, and historical context. Primary source examples of each school of thought are read, applied, and evaluated. Because feminist thought has been a response to the conditions of women throughout history, women's oppression at various points in history will be covered. Crosslisted with WMGS 360 & SOCI 360. Offered alternate years. Prerequisite: Consent of instructor.

PEAC 362 North-South Relations in the Contemporary World
This course examines the historical origins of the North- South conflict and the dynamics of this asymmetrical relationship in the post-World War II period. The course also addresses the complexity of the political, economic and social issues that developed and developing nations face in an increasingly interdependent world. Fulfills General Eduaction Area 11- Global Society See Extended General Education Course Description. Cross listed with POLI 362.

PEAC 363 Poverty and Social Justice
Designed for the general student, this course provides an introduction to the multifaceted and complex phenomenon of poverty and exploration of its relationship to social justice. Topics addressed include definitions of poverty and justice, the roots of poverty, its historical manifestations and structural influences, how it may be measured, and ways that it may be alleviated. Poverty is pervasive, affecting the human population on every continent and in every country throughout history. We ask why this is so and what we ought to do about it. We investigate past approaches, assess their effectiveness, and consider future options for reducing, and hopefully eliminating, poverty in the Third Millennium. Fulfills General Education Area 11 - Global Society Requirement. See General Education Expanded Course Description. Cross listed with IDIS 363.

PEAC 375 Growth and Development
Characteristics of developing countries. Theories of economic growth: neoclassical and structuralist models, endogenous growth. Importance of physical and human capital. Export-led growth vs. import substitution. Fiscal, monetary and exchange-rate policies. Regional and global trade agreements. Country studies. Prerequisites: ECON 101 and ECON 102. Cross listed with ECON 375.

PEAC 389 Special Topics
An interdisciplinary course allowing faculty and students to explore together a topic of special interest. Topics may include peacemaking, conflict resolution, social injustices, terrorism, human rights issues, restorative justice, environmental justice and other issues. The course may be taken more than once if the topic differs. Prerequisites: PEAC 200.

PEAC 400 Capstone in Peace and Justice
This course will be offered each year for senior Peace and Justice minors in their senior year.  Through lectures and selected readings, the early portion of the class will serve to integrate the different areas of the minor:  economic and environmental justice, the cultural dimensions of justice, and peace and conflict issues.  Throughout the semester, students will pursue senior project papers which will be the focus of the latter portion of the course.  These researched and reflective papers will be presented as a part of the class format and will integrate the experiential component of the minor. Students will also be encouraged to present their papers at the Student Conference of the Wisconsin Institute for Peace and Conflict Studies held each April on different campuses around the state.

PEAC 418 International Inequalities
This course focuses upon the broad theme of social inequalities by examining cases of prejudice and discrimination occurring outside of the United States. The roots and nature of prejudice, and the discrimination which typically follows it, will be examined through case studies drawn from Africa, India and the Middle East which explore biases based upon ethnicity, gender, race, and religion. The case studies which will be used to explore social inequalities internationally are the 1994 genocide in Rwanda, the massacres of Armenians by Turks which occurred around the turn of the twentieth century, violence against women in Africa as expressed through female circumcision, and popular stereotypes and scholarly representations of India in the West. First semester, annually. Fulfills General Education Area 12 - Senior Colloquium Requirement. See General Education Extended Course Description. Cross listed with GENS 418.

PEAC 490 Independent Study
Individual study of an approved topic in peace and justice under the direction of a P & I Minor faculty member, allowing collaborative exploration of a special or personal interest. Reading and tutorial discussion are required. Written work may be submitted to state or national P & I conferences.

PEAC 494 Internship
This course is an action/ reflection course that provides experience for those seeking to work in justice and peace. Placements may be local or international (study abroad). Students will meet weekly with a faculty member to explore praxis as it applies to justice and peace. Prerequisites: PEAC 200.

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