A new major in the 91探花 Jackson School of International Studies offers more flexible course options, allows undergraduates focus on a particular geographic region and theme and provides more choices for the capstone experience.

The Jackson School announced a major in August 2021 and it launched that fall. It replaced the application-only International Studies, or general, major. Global and Regional Studies is an open major, meaning there is no application process and students in good academic standing can declare it at any time. This makes it easier for transfer students to join the major immediately upon arriving at the UW.

鈥淐onsidering our focus on diversity, equity and inclusion, we decided that an open enrollment policy was best for our students,鈥� said , professor of international studies and associate director of undergraduate programs.

鈥淚n the new major, we emphasize both the connections between the global and the thematic in international society or countries and regions. This allows us to look at issues such as cybersecurity or conspiracy theories, both in general and in regional contexts.鈥�

Students choose to concentrate on one of five themes: culture, power and religion; environment and health; rights and movements; states and markets; or technology security and diplomacy. They also select a region: Africa; Americas; Arctic; Asia; Europe; Middle East; or Russia/Eastern Europe/Central Asia.

鈥淭hese themes align with our students鈥� interests,鈥� said , director of academic services at the Jackson School. 鈥淭his is the Jackson School responding to the students. We are reflecting on what they want to do and what motivates them. Increasingly, we鈥檙e seeing students who say, 鈥業 see climate change as a global catastrophe. What causes it? What can we do about it?鈥欌��

As part of this focus, the Jackson School hired its first faculty member who is dedicated to researching and teaching environmental justice. will start as an assistant professor of international studies in the fall quarter. Her first course, 鈥淭he University and Climate Justice,鈥� will cover the responsibilities of universities in climate change mitigation and adaptation.

鈥淭his reflects a shift in international studies,鈥� Simon said. 鈥淭hese topics are aligned with what faculty members consider important themes on issues that need to be resolved. Students with these passions and skills are also highly employable.鈥�

The major is highly customizable, Simon said. With 20 fewer required credits than before, students can now select more courses that align with their individual interests and career goals.

Global and Regional Studies also offers expanded options for a capstone experience, the senior-year independent project. One of them is the The Donald C. Hellmann Task Force Program, in which students investigate policy issues and make policy recommendations in a small group setting.

鈥淔or many years, our students considered Task Force the highlight of their major,鈥� Bachman said. 鈥淪tudents receive a policy problem, and we have faculty members supervising but not exercising hands-on instruction. The students organize themselves and come up with a policy paper and background material. Students then submit this to an outside expert who will challenge them on the recommendations and make them defend their conclusions.鈥�

In the new major, students can choose between Task Force and one of two writing-intensive options that offer more individual writing instead of a group project. One of the individual writing seminars focuses on more academic reading and writing about major texts, while the other places a greater emphasis on writing and editing texts for a public audience.

鈥淚t鈥檚 teaching students how to write for the public 鈥� for example a blog or a newspaper 鈥� instead of writing an academic paper,鈥� Simon said. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 a very different communication skill. If students want to develop their voice in speaking to the public, this would be the path for them.鈥�

The International Studies, or general, major is no longer accepting applicants.

For more information, contact Bachman at dbachman@uw.edu and Simon at bsimon@uw.edu.

This 10-part series examines the ongoing impact of the 2016 election on countries and regions worldwide.聽Each week, Jackson School faculty experts聽will explore perspectives from Europe, Asia, Mexico, Russia and the Middle East as well as questions of climate change and historical context in the U.S. presidency.

“” lectures will be held from 4:30 to 6 p.m. Monday afternoons in room 110 of Kane Hall, and all are open to the public. Jackson School Director will be moderator for these events.

The schedule is as follows:

Oct. 2: Trump and the World 鈥� a Historical Perspective, with , assistant professor of international studies
Oct. 9: The Middle East and Israel, with , professor of international studies
Oct. 16: Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the Gulf, with , affiliate professor of international studies
Oct. 23: The US-Mexican Border, with , associate professor and chair of the
Oct. 30: India, with , associate professor, director of the
Nov. 6: China, with , professor of international studies
Nov. 13: The Korean Peninsula, with , professor of international studies
Nov. 20: The International Climate Regime, with , professor of international studies and director of the
Nov. 27: Russia, with , professor of history and international studies.
Dec. 4: Final panel discussion and round table.

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For more information about the series, contact the Jackson School at 206-543-6001 or jsisadv@uw.edu. Interested press may contact Monique Thormann, Jackson School director of communications, at 206-685-0578 or thormm@uw.edu.

Several faculty members in the 91探花 reviewed their areas of expertise 鈥� China, Russia, Europe, the Middle East and immigration 鈥� in light of this new geopolitical reality. Their comments are below.

These faculty members also will participate in a public panel discussion, “Trump and the World” at 7 p.m. Monday, Nov. 28, in Room 210 of Kane Hall. You can learn more .

U.S.-China relations uncertain; promised tariffs could spark trade war

By , Henry M. Jackson Professor of International Studies

Donald Trump’s election creates great uncertainty in U.S.-China relations.聽 If he follows through on campaign statements, and imposes 45 percent tariffs on Chinese imports to the U.S., it will be met with Chinese retaliation and a trade war.聽This will affect Boeing, Costco and the ports of Seattle and Tacoma from a local perspective.

Trump also promises a military buildup and expanded defense spending, but no clear strategy has been provided.聽People said to be his Asia/China advisers are taking a very harsh line toward China, yet Trump and China’s President Xi Jinping seem to have had a cordial phone conversation.聽The likely result of all this is pressure and confrontation on trade and cyber issues and splits between incoming administration officials about China policy.聽Human rights will not figure prominently in Trump’s administration.

Syrian catastrophe breeds nationalism, danger of “major clashes”

By , Jackson School director, Stanley D. Golub Chair of International Studies

A聽liberal, democratic and internationalist order was built in the west in the aftermath of the Second World War under the leadership of the United States. The fall of the Berlin Wall and the emergence of the European Union as a united economic and political unit appeared to be major accomplishments of the rise of such an order.聽It seems, however, that this order failed to protect those who did not have the skills or the resources to benefit from it.

It became increasingly clear also that the U.S. and the EU were powerless in the face of the humanitarian catastrophe in Syria. The instinct to insulate the west from the effects of such conflicts and the anger of those who were marginalized are combining to create a powerful wave of extreme nationalism and xenophobia in country after country. Trump’s victory is the latest example of this trend.

Effective and inclusive policies will have to be put in place to protect, retrain and integrate those who are cast aside by globalization. Only with such policies can liberal internationalism regain its upper hand.

Otherwise, liberalism will find itself pushed further away from power for a very long time. In its place a world consisting of mutually antagonistic and competitive states will arise. 聽Such a scenario will eventually lead to major clashes that will聽be catastrophic for humanity.

Deportations could extract tragic cost

By , associate professor

If president-elect Donald Trump imprisons or deports up to 3 million undocumented immigrants, as he has pledged to do upon taking office, he will be busting up hardworking, taxpaying families.

If he kills DACA (Deferred Action to Childhood Arrivals), an executive action that provides temporary work permits and relief from deportation to about 800,000 young adults who were brought to the U.S. as children and who grew up American, he will be shattering the futures of our students.

Instead, the majority of Americans want to see the government provide a path to legalization, and are pledging to protect and provide sanctuary for our neighbors and friends.

Clean foreign policy slate, but U.S., Russia may yet clash

By , associate professor, director of

Trump is as close to a clean slate on foreign policy as one can imagine a new U.S. president could be. Perhaps the area on which Trump shed the most light in his thinking is Russia. Trump and Putin were unusually complimentary of one another during the election, and we can presume Trump will seek some kind of accommodation with Russia on issues like Ukraine and sanctions.

However, the Kremlin should be careful what it wishes for.聽Trump will find it hard to radically reorient U.S. foreign policy and sever聽longstanding commitments to American allies. At some point, U.S. and Russian interests may openly diverge, and Putin and Trump could engage in a clash of Alpha males for dominance in the relationship. Needless聽to say, this could lead to disaster for both countries.

Europeans worry over NATO defense, unraveling of relations with west

By , associate professor, director of the

November 9 holds special meaning for Europeans, and Germans in particular. On November 9, 1938, Nazi gangs started a coordinated wave of deadly anti-Jewish attacks across Germany and Austria. On November 9, 1989, the Wall fell in Berlin and ushered in the end of the Cold War.

Now, after November 9, 2016, Europeans worry that they witness the unraveling of transatlantic relations and “the end of the West,” as a large tabloid put it. They hear President-elect Trump question the NATO defense shield over Europe. They see U.S. commitment to the Paris climate agreement vanish. And democratic parties fear that “Trumpism” will bolster rightwing populist sentiments across Europe.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel employed memorable language on November 9, 2016: “Germany and America are bound by common values 鈥� democracy, freedom, as well as respect for the rule of law and the dignity of each and every person, regardless of their origin, skin color, creed, gender, sexual orientation, or political views. It is based on these values that I wish to offer close cooperation, both with me personally and between our countries’ governments.”

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For more information, contact Monique Thormann, Jackson School director of communications, at 206-685-0578 or thormann@uw.edu.