Policy Labs

Virtually no issue today causes more controversy than the mining of critical minerals. This course takes a 360-degree look at the economic, technological, political, social and environmental issues surrounding mining and critical minerals development in Asia. Students will visit large and small mines, processing sites, activists and mine managers in Indonesia.

Gain hands-on understanding of coastal fisheries as ecological, economic and cultural systems. You will learn about the sustainability of coastal fisheries, the constraints of artisanal production, equity along the value chain and how to set priorities for effective intervention. Field trips include trips to points along the fishery supply chain from the habitat through optional snorkeling or scuba diving, appreciative inquiry with fisher communities, to large fishing ports and processing plants.

This course will review the overall logic of social protection systems and dive into the technical aspects. The class will also conduct field visits in Indonesia to see firsthand how what sounds good in theory does not always work well in practice. Guest lectures by social protection researchers and practitioners from the government, experts from UNICEF and around the globe will give students a 360-degree view of how social policy gets made and assessed.

Asia’s dynamic metropolis must reconcile the colonial legacies of the 19th and 20th centuries with the technical and planning challenges of the 21st century. This course walks students through the core principles of urban planning in Asia, covering urban policy, urban planning, transport economics, service provision and urban environmental management.

Community development is a bottom-up approach to development that centers voice, agency, and participation, particularly for the poor. The course explores how communities are complex, contested, and often constrained by inequality, risk and local power structures. Through case studies, applied exercises and field-based learning—including visits to villages—you will engage directly with community realities, gaining hands-on insight into how local knowledge can shape better development outcomes.

This course examines conflict, peacebuilding and post-conflict recovery through five core propositions. It challenges linear models of development, emphasizing that recovery follows multiple, context-specific pathways grounded in historical and field-based understanding. While macroeconomic approaches may be broadly agreed upon, most reconstruction challenges are complex, iterative problems requiring adaptive problem-solving rather than fixed solutions. The course highlights the importance of rebuilding state–citizen relationships beyond elite bargains, recognizing that lived experiences of conflict and recovery evolve across levels and over time. Ultimately, it shifts focus from prescribing reforms to understanding how to support and sustain reformers across society.

Enhance your understanding of global and regional trade and investment patterns, and the impact of geopolitics on them, from the perspective of the Asia-Pacific region. As a student, you will practice using analytical models of trade and investment agreements, understanding political economy trade-offs and drafting economic policy documents.