> OLLI Courses By Topic > Political, Social Sciences & Society

Political, Social Sciences & Society

Challenges to Foreign Policy Today
The course will be a lecture series on the challenges to making foreign policy today and will consist of five talks followed by discussion. The topics may change since they depend, in part, on current events, but they could include: why foreign policy is harder to make today; where ambassadors come from, where they go, and why they still matter; intelligence and foreign policy; the evolution of conflict and the impossibility of effective peacekeeping; the Iran nuclear deal and what it says about how foreign policy is made; and why it is hard to have a treaty with anyone anymore.

Show Description
Instructor: Dennis Jett Fee: $0.00
Dates: 2/3/2023 - 3/3/2023 Days: F Times: 1:00 PM - 2:30 PM Sessions: 5
This class will be held over Zoom
This class will meet on Feb 3, 10, 17, 24 and March 3.

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Climate Change: Facts, Theories, Applications
Climate change is a "hot" topic in science as well as in society. Many feel it is a hoax, while others feel it is the most important topic humanity must fix. This course will lead us into the facts (careful and validated observations of the world), theories (evidence-based explanation of those facts), and applications (what shall we do with what we know, including various solutions, such as technological applications and political solutions). Throughout the course, misinformation and disinformation in the media will be explored and critiqued.

Show Description
Instructor: Timothy Savisky Fee: $0.00
Dates: 3/13/2023 - 4/10/2023 Days: M Times: 1:00 PM - 2:30 PM Sessions: 5
This class will be held over Zoom
This class will meet on March 13, 20, 27; Apr 3 and 10.

Constitutional Rights and the Current U.S. Supreme Court
The U.S. Constitution provides important rights for all Americans. But it is the U.S. Supreme Court that interprets the language of the Constitution and thereby defines the scope of our constitutional rights. In this class we will discuss how the current U.S. Supreme Court has approached this task of interpreting the Constitution. We will focus on recent U.S. Supreme Court cases addressing abortion rights, gun rights, religious rights, and the use of race as a factor in college admissions. No prior knowledge of the Supreme Court or constitutional law is required for this course. The goal of the class is to give students a better understanding of how the Supreme Court goes about making decisions that have a huge impact on our country.

Show Description
Instructor: Tom Allen Fee: $0.00
Dates: 2/2/2023 - 3/2/2023 Days: Th Times: 10:00 AM - 11:40 AM Sessions: 5
This class will be held In-Person
This class will meet on Feb 2, 9, 16, 23 and March 2.

Contemporary Economic Policy Issues
Economics plays a central role in the functioning of every aspect of society. This course will address prominent policy issues where economics is at their core. We will explore their origins as policy matters, the underlying data and evidence and what policy levers are available to deal with them. Lectures will be standalone and taught by subject matter experts – all of whom have a PhD in economics. Potential topics include climate change, healthcare economics, economic inequality and many more. The topics presented will be determined by what is most topical at the time of the course.

Show Description
Instructor: Jon Haveman Fee: $0.00
Dates: 2/1/2023 - 3/1/2023 Days: W Times: 1:00 PM - 2:30 PM Sessions: 5
This class will be held over Zoom
This class will meet on Feb 1, 8, 15, 22 and Mar 1

Election Systems in Comparative Perspective: How the U.S. System Compares to Other Advanced Democracies
The United States election system for Congress is based on a model generally known as the First Past the Post (FPTP) Single-Member District (SMD) System. There are advantages and disadvantages to using such a system to elect legislatures (or even presidents, as the Electoral College is also a FPTP system). This course will introduce members to other models of electoral systems, including Proportional Representation, Mixed-Member Proportional, Alternative Vote, Ranked Choice Voting, and Single Transferable Vote, that are used in other advanced democracies. The course will discuss how different systems result in different outcomes related to the numbers of political parties that win seats, equitable representation of voters, voter turnout rates, and overall voter satisfaction.

Show Description
Instructor: Paul Adams Fee: $0.00
Dates: 1/30/2023 - 2/27/2023 Days: M Times: 1:00 PM - 2:30 PM Sessions: 5
This class will be held over Zoom
This class will meet on Jan 30; Feb 6, 13, 20 and 27.

Getting to Net Zero: The Politics, Prospects and Problems of the Clean Energy Transition
The shift from a fossil fuel-centric energy system to one based on renewables and low-carbon energy sources will have far-reaching impacts. Beyond the many technological and financing challenges, there are important social, institutional and political ones as well. This course will revolve around answering three big questions about the political economy of the ‘net-zero’ transition: Which actors and factors are driving this process forward and which are holding it back? Because energy and national power are intimately linked, will the transition to a net-zero economy become the latest site of geopolitical competition between the United States and China? Will the search for the minerals vital for a net-zero world force hard choices on ‘petro-states’ while generating mineral-dependent and strategically important ‘electro-states’?

Show Description
Instructor: Scott McKnight Fee: $0.00
Dates: 3/13/2023 - 4/10/2023 Days: M Times: 10:00 AM - 11:30 AM Sessions: 5
This class will be held over Zoom
This class will meet on March 13, 20, 27; Apr 3 and 10.

Irish Culture and Traditions
This course is a study of Irish culture in Ireland as well as in the Irish diaspora overseas over the past ten years. Members will explore aspects of Irish culture and traditions still vibrant and thriving today. The course will be conducted in English. Discussions and lectures will be organized around themes from Gaelic games, to music, to Irish language, and will include current cultural changes and advances in Ireland and among its people.

Show Description
Instructor: Marie Young Fee: $0.00
Dates: 1/30/2023 - 2/27/2023 Days: M Times: 1:15 PM - 2:50 PM Sessions: 5
This class will be held In-Person
This class will meet on Jan 30; Feb 6, 13, 20 and 27.

Northern Ireland: 1966 to 1994
In 2012, a former member of the Irish Republican Army and a former Ulster Volunteer Force prisoner met with University of Pittsburgh students in Belfast. The opening of the conversation went like this: Ex-prisoners: "You've been in Belfast for two weeks now and met with many people on both sides of the divide. Do you understand the conflict any better now?" Pitt students: "No. We are more confused now than when we got here." Ex-prisoners: "Good! You've learned something." Contradictory? Confusing? Counter-intuitive? Nonsensical? Intriguing? All the above? If you say, "all the above" then you will find this class "intriguing" because what you will do is move beyond the "inherited histories" of the modern conflict in Ireland.

Show Description
Instructor: Tony Novosel Fee: $0.00
Dates: 3/13/2023 - 4/10/2023 Days: M Times: 1:00 PM - 2:30 PM Sessions: 5
This class will be held over Zoom
This class will meet on March 13, 20, 27; Apr 3 and 10.

Pandemerica TV
Over the last two years, we watched and waited for normalcy to return. But what did we watch while waiting? In this course, we'll explore the television shows that captured our collective attention and examine why these shows kept our eyes locked in during lockdown. We will screen pilot episodes for five popular television shows (“Staged,” “The Queen's Gambit,” “Ted Lasso,” “Mare of Easttown,” and “Only Murders in the Building”) and discuss countless more, investigating how they shaped the pandemic zeitgeist and ushered in a new era of television.

Show Description
Instructor: Megan Kappel Fee: $0.00
Dates: 3/13/2023 - 4/10/2023 Days: M Times: 1:15 PM - 2:50 PM Sessions: 5
This class will be held over In-Person
This class will meet on March 13, 20, 27; Apr 3 and 10.

TED Talks
THIS CLASS IS FULL. Please click the "Add to Waitlist" button below.
Technology, Entertainment, and Design (TED), a nonprofit organization that promotes “ideas worth spreading,” features talks by some of the world’s most engaging speakers on a wide variety of subjects. The TED website features more than 3,900 talks on video. In this class be prepared for discussion! We will discuss, debate, and reflect on a few of these talks each week. Some talks are informational, and some are just plain fun. Group members are encouraged to select talks that inspire or intrigue them to kick off the discussion.

Show Description
Instructor: Kathy Callahan Fee: $0.00
Dates: 2/1/2023 - 3/1/2023 Days: W Times: 1:00 PM - 2:30 PM Sessions: 5
This class will be held over Zoom
This class will meet on Feb 1, 8, 15, 22 and March 1.

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