Contemporary Developing Countries: Entrepreneurial Solutions to Intractable Problems (at FAS)

This course will provide a framework (and multiple lenses) through which to think about the salient economic and social problems of the five billion people of the developing world, and to work in a team setting toward identifying entrepreneurial solutions to such problems. Case study discussions will cover challenges and solutions in fields as diverse as health, education, technology, urban planning, and arts and the humanities. The modules themselves will be team-taught by faculty from engineering, the arts, urban design, healthcare, and business. 

The course will embrace a bias toward action by enabling students to understand the potential of individual agency in addressing these problems. All students will participate in the development of a business plan or grant proposal to tackle their chosen problem in a specific developing country/region, emphasizing the importance of contextualizing the entrepreneurial intervention. The student-team will ideally be comprised of students with diverse backgrounds from across the university. 

Prerequisites: None. 

Jointly offered courses: Faculty of Arts and Sciences (FAS) as SW47, Harvard Kennedy School (HKS) as DEV-338, Harvard Graduate School of Design (DES) as SES 5375, and Harvard Law School (HLS) as 2543. 

Location: Sever Hall Rm 113.

 

Open to cross-registration for students from other schools and universities. May accept a limited number of auditors, pending instructor approval.