Teaching
Local Cultures and Global Commodities

Local Cultures and Global Commodities

Course Overview

This course builds upon methodological and theoretical approaches to language and culture to explore how pressing global issues are experienced through local cultural systems and social dynamics. The course focuses on three key global issues and examines how they are experienced on the ground through cultural and linguistic lives of the people that encounter them.

Program: BSc Global Responsibility and Leadership
Level: Undergraduate
Credits: 5 ECTS
Semester: 2a (Spring)
Language: English
Hours per week: 4

Learning Outcomes

Upon successful completion of this course, students will be able to:

  1. Identify and theorize the role of culture in global networks and commodity chains
  2. Understand the role of language in the global flow of people, ideas, and commodities
  3. Develop an understanding and appreciation of social and cultural diversity
  4. Reflect upon the ethnographic method as a unique and crucial perspective on human behavior
  5. Apply the anthropological approach to issues of urgent geopolitical importance
  6. Write rigorous academic essays that critically examine anthropological theories
  7. Discuss ideas with peers and engage with others’ ideas in a critical but constructive manner

Course Structure

The course is organized around three major global issues:

Mining (Weeks 2-4)

We read ethnographic descriptions of mining from Mongolia to Papua New Guinea to Wyoming to understand how these practices and their environmental impacts are experienced at a day-to-day level. We focus particularly on how participation in mining economies amplifies or challenges social inequalities based on gender, religion, and class, and consider the linguistic relations that emerge in multilingual mining societies.

The Global Cocaine Trade (Weeks 5-6)

We trace the commodity chain of cocaine from the Andean region through Central America, Mexico, and the Caribbean to consumers globally. Through ethnographic accounts, we examine the varied cultural worlds in which cocaine is implicated, paying particular attention to how language becomes relevant in contexts ranging from coca rituals to narco-corrido songs that establish smugglers’ notoriety.

Waste (Weeks 7-9)

We offer an anthropological view of how everyday lives are tangled up in global flows of trash. We examine cultural classification systems defining “waste,” the concept of re-use, and the daily lives of trash workers worldwide. We conclude by examining decision-making about the disposal of radioactive nuclear material to reflect on ethical, environmental, and deep-time planetary concerns.

Assessment

  • Active participation in discussions
  • Written paper assignments
  • Final research assignment

Teaching Philosophy

I believe in using specific case studies to illuminate broader theoretical and methodological questions about culture and language. By focusing on how global issues manifest in local contexts, students develop a nuanced understanding of complex problems and the importance of on-the-ground ethnographic knowledge in complementing policy approaches.