Sunder Ramaswamy
Distinguished College Professor of International Economics, Director of International and Global Studies
- Office
- Robert A. Jones House 113
- Tel
- (802) 443-5442
- Sunder.Ramaswamy@middlebury.edu
- Office Hours
- Tuesdays and Fridays 11:00 AM-12:00 PM Fridays; or by appointment.
Sunder Ramaswamy is a professional economist, an educator, and an academic administrator with extensive experience both in India and the United States. He has been a faculty & administrator at Middlebury since 1990, and has had sabbaticals at the World Bank, Vanderbilt University, IFMR, & the Madras School of Economics in India(including 2 stints as Director). He was the founding Vice Chancellor of Krea University, an exciting new university initiative, set up in Sri City, India (2017-2021). From 2009 – 2015, he was the President of the Middlebury Institute of International Studies at Monterey, California (MIIS); He has co- authored and co-edited 4 books, written scores of articles, and delivered over 175 lectures all over the world on Globalization, Economic Development, Indian Economic Reforms and Economic Literacy; His research has been supported by Ford Foundation, SW Davis Foundation and USAID. He has also been a consultant to UNCTAD, UNIDO, UNU and the World Bank. He has had extensive Board service at a number of non profit organizations and most recently was appointed Chairman Emeritus of The Asia Foundation.
He has been featured in over 60 international media stories. His passion for teaching, his academic work, and his administrative accomplishments have been recognized with numerous honors and awards both in India and in the United States.
He is currently the Program Director of the International & Global Studies at Middlebury College and also serves on the President’s Task Force on “Middlebury’s approach to AI”. He is also currently working on a co-authored book manuscript on “Data Democracy and Development in India”.
Courses Taught
ECON 0155
Intro Microeconomics
Course Description
Introductory Microeconomics
An introduction to the analysis of such microeconomic problems as price formation (the forces behind demand and supply), market structures from competitive to oligopolistic, distribution of income, and public policy options bearing on these problems. 3 hrs. lect.
Terms Taught
Requirements
ECON 0425
Economic Development Seminar
Course Description
Seminar on Economic Development
Much of the world still faces the daily pain of poverty. Developing countries have to accelerate their growth rates, eradicate poverty, reduce inequalities, address environmental concerns, and create productive employment. We examine the major analytic and policy issues raised by these challenges and study the need for a productive balance between market forces and positive state action. With the help of case studies from Asia, Latin America, and Africa, we focus on different development strategies adopted, the choice of policy instruments, and methods of implementation. (ECON 0250 or IPEC 0240 [formerly ECON 0240] or ECON 0255) 3 hrs. sem.
Terms Taught
ECON 0444
International Trade
Course Description
International Trade
Since March 2020 when the world economies went into cascading lockdowns, global trade has been severely impacted. As the global economy slowly opens up, we will answer some age old and some new questions - First, what factors determine flow of international goods and services? Second, how are the gains and losses from international trade distributed amongst nations? Do all benefit, or are some countries made better off at the expense of others? Third, how does trade affect the internal allocation of resources and distribution of income within a country? Fourth, why do national governments try and influence or control international trade flows? Finally, how does international trade affect the low- and middle-income countries in today's global economy especially in the post Covid world? (ECON 0255 or ECON 0344 or IPEC 0240 [formerly ECON 0240]) 3 hrs. lect.
Terms Taught
ECON 0500
Upcoming
Individual Special Project
Course Description
Individual Special Project
If you choose to pursue an area that we do not offer or go in depth in an area already covered, we recommend the Individual Special Project option. These ECON 0500 proposals MUST be passed by the entire department and are to be submitted to the chair by the first Friday of fall and spring semester, respectively. The proposals should contain a specific description of the course contents, its goals, and the mechanisms by which goals are to be realized. It should also include a bibliography. According to the College Handbook, ECON 0500 projects are a privilege open to those students with advanced preparation and superior records in their fields. A student needs to have a 3.5 or higher G.P.A. in Economics courses taken at Middlebury in order to pursue an Individual Special Project. ECON 0500 does not count towards the major or minor requirements.
Terms Taught
FYSE 1576
Upcoming
Great Ideas in Economics
Course Description
Great Ideas in Economics
The current 4th industrial revolution is changing lives in mundane and profound ways. The set of cooperative and competing interactions among humans, machines, and nature will shape lives in ways that we have just begun to comprehend. There has been “production, buying, selling, and trading” of goods and services since time immemorial –- why then does the formal study of “economics” as a discipline start only from around the 17th century with the onset of the 1st Industrial Revolution? This course introduces students to our most influential economists, their ideas, and their impact upon economics, policy, and intellectual history. We will engage in serious thinking, writing, and discussion about the great economics questions of our age. 3 hrs. sem.
Terms Taught
Requirements
IGST 0231
Upcoming
Pol Econ of Contemporary India
Course Description
Political Economy of Contemporary India
Since gaining independence from the British in 1947, and three decades since the launch of the most ambitious set of economic reforms, India has changed dramatically over the years; but what does all this change really mean for the lives of ordinary citizens? This course will explore the political economy context of India’s development, and in particular, the changing texture of democracy, economic transition from the state to the market, gender relations, environmental challenges, India's economic globalization, and a changing world view from the time of India's independence to the present. The course will also capture the tensions inherent in such a multifaceted process of change. We will make use of historical texts and visual sources to map out how local and national economic, socio-political and cultural factors interweave with the global movement of people and ideas in the continued evolution of contemporary India.
Terms Taught
Requirements
IGST 0414
Development as Freedom
Course Description
Economic Development: Development /as/ Freedom
Much of the world still faces the daily pain of poverty and inequality. Developing countries have to accelerate their growth rates, eradicate poverty, reduce inequalities, create productive employment, and address pressing environmental concerns. We will examine the major analytic and policy issues raised by these challenges and study the need for a productive balance between market forces and positive state action. We will pursue this against the backdrop of Nobel Laureate Amartya Sen’s path breaking work, “Development as Freedom” and bring in case studies from Asia, Latin America and Africa. We will focus on different development strategies adopted, choice of policy instruments, methods of implementation, all the while asking if development is indeed an integrated process of expansion of substantive human freedoms that connect with one another for a higher purpose. (ECON 150 or ECON 155, or by permission) 3 hrs. lecture and discussion.
Terms Taught
IPEC 0700
Current
Upcoming
Intl.Pol.&Economics SR. Thesis
Course Description
Senior Thesis
(Approval Required)
Terms Taught