Prime Ministers of Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia, 2024:
Baltic Prime Ministers, May 6, 2024: Ingrida Šimonytė (Lithuania), Kaja Kallas (Estonia); Evika Siliņa (Latvia)*
*please note that this photo posted a few months ago is no longer current.
Details in the printed syllabus also must be updated as events develop in the Baltic. Please check the Modules section for the most recent information
Scand 455 / JSIS A 455, Autumn Quarter 2024.
Class meets Tuesdays and Thursdays 12:30-2:20 pm, Smith Hall Room 307
Taught by Guntis Šmidchens, guntiss@uw.edu
Baltic Politics and Society Today
Who are the people of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania today, and what role do they play in current North European and global political and economic affairs?
The class will monitor breaking news and and learn about Baltic government institutions while following and analyzing results of...
- Lithuania's national elections, October 13, 2024;
- North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) Summit, July 9-11, 2024.
- European Union (EU) Europarliament elections, June 6-9, 2024;
Course Objectives
- Learn skills useful for a job in international studies (foreign service, international business, public administration, world health, etc.):
- Research and write reports about current developments in Baltic politics, military security, economy, and society.
- Quickly find government documents.
- Navigate the web resources of the European Union, NATO, United Nations, and other international agencies.
- Follow breaking news... even when the news is in languages you do not speak, in countries you may have never studied before!
- Present your research effectively. Your portfolio of work done for this class will be evidence of your skills as an international studies researcher and analyst.
Grades
(students must pass all five components to pass the course):
- 30% Three reports (3-5 pages) on current issues in Baltic politics, economics, societies, and security.
- 20% One report expanded to a research paper (15 pages).
- 20% Oral presentations and peer reviews of classmates' work.
- 15% in-class and online discussion of assigned readings.
- 15% in-class and online discussion of current news.
Reading
- Government websites and online public news portals in Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania.
- Daunis Auers, Comparative Politics and Government of the Baltic States: Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania in the 21st Century (Palgrave, March 2015); available as an e-book through the UW Library website (Links to an external site.).
- Other articles and resources, available on this website.
Note on Religious Accommodations:
Religious Accommodations Washington state law requires that UW develop a policy for accommodation of student absences or significant hardship due to reasons of faith or conscience, or for organized religious activities. The UW’s policy, including more information about how to request an accommodation, is available at Religious Accommodations Policy (https://registrar.washington.edu/staffandfaculty/religious-accommodations-policy/). Accommodations must be requested within the first two weeks of this course using the Religious Accommodations Request form (https://registrar.washington.edu/students/religious-accommodationsrequest)