Course Description

Since the rise of polities, powerful territorial entities have maintained their relationships with weaker allies and partners by providing or withholding gifts. In modern times,powerful nation states continue this in their practice of statecraft by deploying a range of instruments – economic, military, and social – in pursuit of national interests.Estimates of global infrastructure needs over the next three decades range from $20 to $40 trillion. The need is greatest in emerging and frontier economies where the ability to finance those needs is most constrained. Low-income economies are constrained to embrace a mix of sources for their infrastructure needs, including bilateral funders. This course is designed to introduce students to infrastructure financing, construction and ownership as a tool of foreign policy. It will explore the intentions and motivations of both providing and receiving countries. We will examine the interaction of these dynamics within the constraints of the norms and institutions of the international system.The course will serve as a foundation for students who intend topursue careers in international development and foreign policy. It will provide the tools to understand state-led programs like China’s Belt and Road Initiative, Europe’s Global Gateway and the Marshall Plan. Assignments and in-class exercises will help students to develop skills in the design and analysis of large bilateral and multilateral infrastructure programs. While there are no formal prerequisites, the course structure assumes students already have a reasonable level of familiarity with introductory IR theories.

课程简介（无中文大纲，译文参考 Google 翻译）

自政体兴起以来，强大的领土实体通过提供或扣留礼物来维持与较弱盟友和伙伴的关系。在现代，强大的民族国家通过部署一系列经济、军事和社会手段来追求国家利益，在治国实践中延续了这一点。未来三十年全球基础设施需求估计在 20至 40 万亿美元之间。新兴经济体和前沿经济体的需求最大，而这些经济体为这些需求提供资金的能力最受到限制。低收入经济体被迫采用多种来源来满足其基础设施需求，包括双边资助者。本课程旨在向学生介绍基础设施融资、建设和所有权作为外交政策的工具。它将探讨提供国和接收国的意图和动机。我们将在国际体系的规范和机构的约束下研究这些动态的相互作用。该课程将为有意从事国际发展和外交政策职业的学生打下基础。它将提供工具来了解中国的“一带一路”倡议、欧洲的全球门户和马歇尔计划等国家主导的计划。作业和课堂练习将帮助学生培养设计和分析大型双边和多边基础设施项目的技能。虽然没有正式的先决条件，但课程结构假设学生已经对介绍性国际关系理论有一定程度的熟悉。