Unit Demography and International Population Policies

Course
International relations
Study-unit Code
A001438
Curriculum
Cooperazione internazionale e state building
Teacher
Donatella Lanari
Teachers
  • Donatella Lanari
Hours
  • 36 ore - Donatella Lanari
CFU
6
Course Regulation
Coorte 2023
Offered
2023/24
Learning activities
Affine/integrativa
Area
Attività formative affini o integrative
Academic discipline
SECS-S/04
Type of study-unit
Opzionale (Optional)
Type of learning activities
Attività formativa monodisciplinare
Language of instruction
English Language.
Contents
In the first part of the course students will familiarize with Key concepts of demography: methods and analysis of the growth and structure of populations, including measurement of fertility, mortality, nuptiality and migration patterns. Sources of demographic data: the main national and international surveys. Recent demographic trends: population ageing and low fertility.
The second part of the course aims to explain the changes that involved the demographic patterns over time, the role of populations policies and international migrations.
The history of human poppulation growth and carryng capacity. Demographic transitions. The
populations of the developing countries: trends from the 1950s to 2020. The future scenarios of the world population. International population policies. From he Action Plan of Cairo (1994) to its revision in 2010. International migrations flows. International migrations in the past, trends in recent decades. The recent changes of migratory flows in Europe and Italy.
Reference texts
A Concise History of World Population, 6th Edition, 2017 Wiley-Blackwell

-Selected papers, Lecture notes and documents will be available on the E-learning website
Educational objectives
Students will acquire the appropriate instruments and abilities necessary for a correct interpretation of the different evolutions of populations in rich and poor countries. Knowledge of International population policies and the role of international migrations will be achieved.
By the end of the course, students will be able to identify the interrelations between demographic, economic and social phenomena; they will correctly interpret the data, trends and implications of future demographic grwth of world population.
Prerequisites
Not required
Teaching methods
Face-to-face lectures; seminars
Learning verification modality
The final test consists of an oral examination (20-25 minutes) on all the contents of the course and the topics examined in depth trough recommended texts.
Extended program
The course is divided into three parts

In the first part of the course students will familiarize with Key concepts of demography and demographic growth in developed and developing countries.
Methods and analysis of the growth and age sex composition of populations, including measurement of fertility, mortality, nuptiality and migration patterns. Sources of demographic data: the main national and international surveys. Recent demographic trends in Europe: population ageing and low fertility. The effects of Covid-19 on mortality, nuptiality and fertility plans.
The history of human population growth. The space and strategy of population growth: the isogrowth curves. The demographic growth between choices and constraints. Demographic transitions in developed and developing countries. The cases of India and China. Relationship between demographic and economic growth and emerging limits. The populations of the developing countries: trends from 1950s to 2020.

Second part: The role and impact of population policies. The International Population Conferences: Bucharest (1974), Mexico City (1984) and Cairo (1994). The Action Plan of Cairo (1994) and its revisions. Limits of population policies. Examples of policies on growth, age structures and spatial distributions, fertility, family planning and reproductive health. The Human Development Index. The Human Poverty Index and the Gender Empowerment Measure. The future scenarios of world population. Demographic explosion and demographic decline.

Third part: International migrations: definition, sources, the recent changes in the international migration flows. International migrations in the past, with particular interest to Italian emigration in the last century. Migration and development and the consequences of the economic crisis. Migration flows and policies in Europe. Italy in the new system of international migrations: sources, trends, policies and perspectives.
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