University of Minnesota

Social Problems
In this course, we investigate how social conditions become defined as social problems. We won’t take for granted that an issue in our society is an objective problem (e.g. crime or terrorism), but instead, we’ll focus on the process through which a social issue becomes identified as a societal concern. We will ask questions such as: What tools and tactics do claims-makers use to identify, define and articulate a problem and solutions? How are these claims articulated to a public to mobilize them for change? What are moral panics? How do social problems change through space and time? How do different professions discuss the same problem differently?

Introduction to Sociology
This course is designed to introduce you to the study of society and what sociologists call the “sociological imagination”: a way of viewing the events, relationships and social phenomena that shape our individual lives and much of our collective experience. Through the course we will examine some of the central concepts and problems that have preoccupied both classical and contemporary sociologists and gain a sense of how the sociological imagination can illuminate the social forces that have a concrete impact on our everyday lives. Throughout the course you will be asked to consider the ways in which society affects your life, and how you, in turn, affect society.

Minority Rights Group International

Minority Rights and Advocacy Training
This is a training for human rights activists on minority rights advocacy to support their organizations in becoming more effective and accountable. In this course, you will learn about the basic concepts and instruments about minority rights. This course focuses on what it means to be a minority, and the different rights they enjoy under the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Persons Belonging to National or Ethnic, Religious and Linguistic Minorities (UNDM).

“Very open with speaking on controversial subjects. Engaged in our thoughts and stories.”




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