Teaching plan for the course unit

 

 
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General information

 

Course unit name: World Economic Environment

Course unit code: 363975

Academic year: 2025-2026

Coordinator: Gemma Cairķ Céspedes

Department: Department of Economic History, Institutions and Policy and World Economy

Credits: 3

Single program: S

 

 

Estimated learning time

Total number of hours 75

 

Face-to-face and/or online activities

30
 

-  Lecture with practical component

Face-to-face

  

15
 

-  Document study

Face-to-face

  

15

Supervised project

15

Independent learning

30

 

 

Recommendations

 

Students are recommended to acquire the handbook Economia Mundial. Desconstruint el capitalisme global (2020) (2nd ed.) Edicions UB.


Further recommendations

Students are recommended to bring to class an electronic device with internet access (tablet, laptop, phone), since some of the activities are carried out via questionnaires on the Virtual Campus.

 

 

Competences / Learning outcomes to be gained during study

 

   -

Concern for sustainability (capacity to assess the social and environmental impact of actions taken in a particular setting/capacity to adopt integrated and systemic approaches).
   -

To be able to interpret the development and changes in an environment.
   -

To analyse business organizations and their environment to identify key aspects.

Learning objectives

 

Referring to knowledge

  • Understand the laws of operation of the capitalist market economy.
  • Acquire an understanding of the characteristics of national and regional economies (economic blocks), and the historical and structural factors that place them in the core or at the periphery of the global economic system.
  • Learn to identify factors of unsustainability and inequality in the current global economy, and analyse the factors and obstacles relating to normal and subnormal socio-economic development.
  • Acquire an understanding of the productive infrastructure of the global economy, using the relevant indicators and empirical variables to analyse economic sectors and international relations (commercial and financial).

 

Referring to abilities, skills

  • Acquire the capacity to conduct basic research and organize and use information from international statistical sources.
  • Capacity to interpret and draw conclusions from events that currently characterize the global economy, and the ability to explain these events, both orally and in writing.

 

Referring to attitudes, values and norms

  • Acquire the capacity for critical thinking with regard to the global economic reality and issues of poverty, inequality, unsustainability and polarization.

 

 

Teaching blocks

 

Capitalist economy

1. Capitalist structure

2. The dynamics of capitalism

The global economic system

3. The centre–periphery system and the emergence of the semi-periphery

4. The neoliberal phase of capitalism: globalization and financialization

5. The Great Recession and the global financial crisis

Main global problems

6. Demographic structure and dynamics

7. Natural energy and non-energy resources. Energy transition and sustainability

8. Agriculture and global food problems

 

 

Teaching methods and general organization

 

The subject combines two types of activities:

a) Lectures in which the contents of the different blocks are presented.

b) Practical sessions based on activities relating to reading texts, watching videos, etc., in which students must carry out a guided task that is formulated by the lecturer.

The contents of the subject are developed in the subject handbook created by the teaching staff of the Global Economics group and contains the following compulsory reading: Economia Mundial. Desconstruint el capitalisme global, 2nd ed. (2020), Edicions UB. Also available in Spanish.

Continuous assessment consists of regular class attendance and the submission of all the practical activities.

 

 

Official assessment of learning outcomes

 

Continuous assessment includes the following activities:

a) The completion of exercises and assignments set by lecturers in class (40% of the final grade). Class attendance and submission of all activities are compulsory for continuous assessment. Therefore, activities that are not submitted obtain a mark of 0.

b) A final examination on the theory content (60% of the final grade). The exact characteristics of the examination are explained by the teaching staff.

In order that the grade awarded for continuous assessment (a) be weighted with the grade obtained in the final examination, a minimum grade in the final examination (b) of 3.5 (out of 10) is required.

Renouncing continuous assessment: students who do not complete the first two continuous assessment activities are entered for single assessment.

 

Examination-based assessment

Single assessment consists of a final examination on the whole contents of the subject, worth 100% of the final grade.

Repeat assessment

The repeat assessment examination for both continuous and single assessment students covers the same contents and follows the same structure and criteria as the standard single assessment examination.

 

 

Reading and study resources

Check availability in Cercabib

Book

CAIRÓ G., FRANQUESA R., MAESTRO I., MARTÍ X., PALACIOS, J.C. (2020) Economia Mundial. Desconstruint el capitalisme global, 2a. edició, Edicions UB

Catāleg UB  Enllaç
Versiķ en línia (2a ed., 2020)  Enllaç
Catāleg UB. Versiķ en castellā (2020)  Enllaç
Versiķ en línia. Castellā (2a ed., 2020)  Enllaç

ARRIZABALO, X. (2014) Capitalismo y Economía Mundial, IME 

Catāleg UB  Enllaç

HUSSON, M. (2013) El capitalismo en 10 lecciones, Viento Sur y La oveja roja

Catāleg UB  Enllaç

TUGORES, J. (2010) Crisis, lecciones aprendidas... o no, Marcial Pons

Catāleg UB  Enllaç

MARTÍNEZ PEINADO, J. (1999) El capitalismo global, Icaria.

Catāleg UB  Enllaç

DURAND, C. (2021) Tecnofeudalismo. Crítica de la economía digital, La Cebra/Kaxilda

Catāleg UB  Enllaç

LAPAVITSAS, C. (2016) Beneficios sin producción. Como nos explotan las finanzas, Traficantes de Sueños

Catāleg UB  Enllaç

VAROUFAKIS, Y. (2015) Economia sense corbata. Converses amb la meva filla, Fanbooks

Catāleg UB  Enllaç
Catāleg UB. Versiķ en castellā (2015)  Enllaç

WALLERNSTEIN, I. (2015) ¿Tiene futuro el capitalismo?, Siglo XXI

Catāleg UB  Enllaç

MACGILLIS, A. (2022) A l’ombra d’Amazon. Una història del nostre futur, Edicions del Periscopi

Catāleg UB  Enllaç

Electronic text

Articles i altre material que el professorat faciliti al llarg del curs.