Global Health This course provides an introductory survey of the basic issues and initiatives in contemporary global public health, demonstrating the inextricability of public health problems from the social, cultural, economic, political, and environmental issues that exist in an era of globalization.  Examining these connections will enable us to critically evaluate the goals and strategies of public health interventions, and discuss factors impacting their success or failure.  To do this, we must also examine the lens through which the West views public health problems as they relate to our cultural beliefs, biomedical views of health, sense of justice, and strategic interests.  (Not open to students who have taken INTD 0257 or SOAN 0267)

Public Health of Disasters Both natural and man-made disasters, including the release of weapons of mass destruction, reveal a community’s preexisting vulnerabilities.  The emergency response, and the nature of the disaster itself, combine to affect the short- and long-term health of the disaster-struck community.  We will examine public health components of disasters, including emergency preparedness and response, relief efforts, health surveillance, and the ethical considerations of these activities.  With case studies and readings, we will employ a public health perspective to understand the community impact of natural and man-made disasters in both developed and developing countries.

Health, Food, and Poverty: Critical Frameworks for Social Change Concerns around food, health, and poverty often intersect around the world, and pose shared challenges for countries in how to address them. What frameworks might maximize social impact in addressing such complicated global concerns?  In this capstone course for students interested in privilege and poverty, global health, and food studies, we will critically examine a variety of frameworks for social impact, including solidarity, responsibility, development, aid, and entrepreneurship. Our examination of these frameworks will necessarily involve critical comparisons among the countries in which they have been employed. We will identify goals, strategies, and assumptions within each framework, as well as our role in social transformation in conjunction with other actors. Students will engage in interdisciplinary theoretical analysis and employ one or more frameworks to develop a proposal for a project on social change.  (By approval only.) 3 hrs. Sem (Comparative Politics)/

Pam Berenbaum

Reviews and ratings for Pam Berenbaum at Middlebury College.Pam Berenbaum teaches Global Health, Public Health of Disasters, Critical Frames Social Changes and more.  Explore top rated instructors and find the best for you.Is Pam Berenbaum good ? Find out on MiddCourses.

I love Pam and loved her intro to global health course. But I was just not engaged in this class. There is way too much reading, but it's also too easy to do none of the reading––there is barely partipication, just lecutres.

This was one of the most enriching classes I took at Midd. Pam is a really fun and engaging lecturer, and her passion for global health really comes through. The class is also effort-based, which helped me focus more on the material and less on the grade.

This is an incredible class to dive into social change. Pam is so passionate about what she teaches and the class covers a wide range of topics that analyze many different aspects of social change. The course includes a major social change project where each student in the class conducted a semester long project that made an impact in our community. 