Winter, Spring, and Summer Global Courses

Programs (2026)

Czech Republic Nuclear Research Reactor

January 7-21 (Prague, Czech Republic)

January 22-23 (Vienna, Austria)

Info Session: Friday, October 3 (9-10am PT) http://go.miis.edu/elzoom Pass: 1234

Co-led by VCDNP and CNS researchers, Sarah Case Lackner and Noah Mayhew, this program is a “hands on” experience with the VR-1 and VR-2 research reactors and laboratories at the Czech Technical University (CTU) in Prague followed by two days in Vienna meeting with staff at the IAEA and CTBTO. Students learn reactor fundamentals, fuel cycle fundamentals, basic radiation safety and security, and safeguards fundamentals through a series of lectures and hands on experiments led by faculty in the CTU Nuclear Reactors Department.

Conflict Transformation in South Africa

January 8-23, 2026 (Johannesburg, Durban, and Richard’s Bay)

Info Session: Tuesday, September 23 (1-2pm PT)

• In Person in McCone Boardroom

Led by Scott Pulizzi and alumnus, Yuniya Khan, along with staff from Mpilonle and Rivonia Circle-this course will cover South Africa’s post-apartheid journey with applied learning on grassroots solutions and youth empowerment. Students will have 1 week of cultural immersion and professional site visits followed by a 1-week hands-on project management and design training alongside South African development professionals at Mpilonle. Students will complete a project for Mpilonle during the second week of the course. 

Bhutan’s Development Journey: Exploring Gross National Happiness and the SDGs

January 11-21, 2026 (Paro, Thimphu, Khamsum Yulley Chhorten)

Info Session: Thursday, September 30 (6:30-7:30pm PT)

• In Person in McCone Boardroom
• Zoom Option (Password: 1234)

Led by MIIS faculty including Sharad Joshi and Carolyn Meyer along with staff from Royal Thimpu College-this course will cover Bhutan’s unique approach to sustainable development and its guiding philosophy of Gross National Happiness (GNH). Students will explore how GNH shapes the nation’s progress toward the UN Sustainable Development Goals and influences its balance between tradition and modernization. Students will also examine contemporary challenges and how Buddhist principles inform the country’s development.

East Asia Conflict Transformation

March 14-23, 2026 (China and Japan)

Info Session: Tuesday, October 21 (12-1pm PT)

• In Person in McCone Boardroom

This course addresses the heightened geopolitical tensions and complex relationships in East Asia, a region characterized by its economic dynamism, cultural diversity, and significant global impact. It aims to provide a nuanced understanding of how to transform regional conflicts into more constructive dynamics. The curriculum is comprised of three components: a pre-departure phase for research preparation, an immersive field trip to Tokyo and Beijing, and a post-trip research and presentation phase. The course is led by professors Wei Liang, Jinhuei Dai, and Junko Matsuda.

Make Your Own

Want to create your own international program? Do you have an idea for a sustainable international project for you and your peers to tackle? Schedule an advising session with Director of Experiential Learning Carolyn Meyer on Handshake. Review the Experiential Learning and Study Abroad Manual for more information. You can apply for Experiential Learning funding to offset your costs!

Prior Programs

Career Week in Washington, D.C.

Spring Break-March 2025 

The Center for Advising and Career Services will be leading a professional networking and career exploration trip to Washington DC. 

• Who: Open to all students.

Nationalism and the Formation of New States in the Balkans

March 15-23, 2025 (Serbia, Kosovo, and North Macedonia)

Info Session: Thursday, October 10 (12-1pm PT) 

• Zoom (Pass: 2024)
• In Person in McCone Boardroom

Students will visit the fractured former state of Yugoslavia (Serbia, Kosovo, and North Macedonia) with Dr. Phil Murphy. Kosovo and North Macedonia have two majority populations: one Slavic and one Albanian. Students will explore the roles of policy, education, language, and culture to unpack some of the drivers of tensions within each country. Opportunities for primary research by students and site visits throughout several Balkans states will be overseen by faculty. 

Digital Transformation and Resilience in Rwanda

January 12-25, 2025 (Kigali, Akagera National Park, Rwinkwavu)

Info Session: Friday, September 20 (10-11am PT) 

• Zoom (Pass: 2024)
• In Person in McCone Boardroom

Led by Rwandan faculty, Marcienne Umubyeyi, and alumnus, Jessica Massie along with staff from Partners in Health Rwanda-this course will cover project management and how digitalization intersects with almost every development project from public health and education to conservation and agriculture. Students will have 1 week of cultural immersion and professional site visits followed by a 1-week hands-on project management and design training alongside Rwandan development professionals at Partners in Health. Students will complete an innovation project for Partners in Health during the second week of the course. 

UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in Action: Costa Rica

January 8-19, 2025 (San José, Costa Rica and surrounding area)

Info Session: Tuesday, September 24 (12:15-1:30pm PT)

• Zoom (Pass: 2024)
• In Person in McCone Boardroom

Led by Profs. William Arrocha and Marie Butcher in partnership with the University for Peace Executive Education Center in Costa Rica. The course will address peace & security, sustainability and climate change, language and intercultural communication, as well as specific UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Participants will observe first-hand how different organizations are attending to challenges related to specified SDGs during on-site visits with high-level and grassroots speakers.

Water Conflict and Development in Southeast Asia

(1-week in Vietnam followed by 1-week in Thailand)

Led by Profs. Wei Liang and Jessica Teets, students explored local and international forces affecting hydropower projects in Thailand and Vietnam. Students conducted interviews with contacts from the private sector, government, and IGO/NGO organizations as well as interacted with local university students and community members and water advocates. 

Sustainable Development and Ecological Restoration in Rural Colombia

(Bogotá and Libano, Colombia)

Led by MIIS faculty Dr. Lyuba Zarsky, Brett Melone, Gabriel Guillen, and Jaime Gonzalez Canon, and local partner, Quinta Esencia Taller—the course covered sustainability challenges, regenerative agriculture, and sustainable development practices in rural Colombia.

Onsite Perspectives for Education Abroad

(Monterey and San Francisco Bay Area)

Participants connected with education abroad practitioners in the US and at educational institutions abroad in Monterey (virtual meetings) and site visits to higher education institutions in the San Francisco and San Jose areas. 

Summer Peacebuilding Program

(Monterey and Watsonville)

The Summer Peacebuilding Program focused on efforts made to build peace in post-war and post violent societies. Using the gang-violence in Salinas as a case study, the program linked the theory and practice of peacebuilding. 

Team Peru with Andean Alliance for Sustainable Development

(Calca, Peru)

Students worked on a community project with MIIS-alumni founded Andean Alliance for Sustainable Development.

Indigenizing Monitoring, Evaluation and Design for Social Change (á xandei yaan.too át)

(Sitka, Alaska)

This course was offered as a partnership between MIIS and Sitka Tribe of Alaska (STA), a federally recognized tribal government serving 4,400 Tribal Citizens in Sitka, Alaska through its mission to “exercise its sovereign rights and powers, preserve the integrity of Tribal society, and improve the lives of individual Tribal Citizens.” Seminar participants worked with the Sitka Tribe of Alaska staff to develop original monitoring and evaluation designs that allow them to apply critical course concepts to a real-life project, and to support the strengthening and indigenization of STA’s monitoring, evaluation, and federal reporting capacity. 

Cuba’s National Freeway and the Road to Revolution

(Havana, Cuba)

Led by Dr. George Henson, this course focused not only on the historical and geographical roots of the Cuban Revolution, but also its present-day political, economic, diplomatic, and cultural realities, as they relate to education, healthcare, tourism, international relations, and trade. Correlative topics of race, gender, LGBT activism, the arts, and sports will also be treated. 

France International Education Management Abroad Practicum

(Paris, France)

Participants observed and participated in onsite orientation sessions and toured French universities, study abroad program centers, and American universities Paris campuses. Students worked in pairs with a professional partner to complete a project in English or French that addressed a partner organization’s needs.  

Rural Depopulation in Spain

This onsite course is a multidisciplinary immersive program in Northwestern Spain that offers students the opportunity to gain linguistic and cultural skills while they research and explore first-hand the rural depopulation phenomenon in Spain. It is intended for undergraduate and graduate students who are interested in pursuing careers in sustainable development, environmental studies and/or public administration. We will address the causes, effects and possible innovative sustainable solutions to this global challenge. The course will include Spanish language classes as well as experiential learning through real world activities to supplement theoretical knowledge with practical experience. 

China’s Development Challenges

Students conducted research on China, a country that has achieved unprecedented success in growing its national GNP at a record-high rate for three decades and alleviating one billion people out of poverty. Course was led by Profs.  Wei Liang, Yuwei Shi, and Jessica Teets. ]

Immersive Design Bootcamp (DPMI Kenya)

The Aga Khan Foundation (AKF) partnered with MIIS DPMI to offer a Design Bootcamp to train current staff in the Aga Khan Development Network and MIIS students in Human-Centered Design, Appreciative Inquiry, Stakeholder Analysis, and Theory of Change. Students were encouraged to stay in East Africa for a summer internship if available. 

East Asia (Tokyo and Beijing)

Students explored foreign policy, trade, and security in East Asia through a seminar course that included a field research trip to Beijing and Tokyo. By engaging with local experts, students developed their familiarity with this dynamic and diverse region. 

International Development at Partners in Health (Rwanda)

Students learned about international development proposal development and behavior change strategies for public health projects through a course with co-learning alongside professionals from Partners in Health Rwanda. 

International Development, Social Entrepreneurship and Environmental Sustainability (Colombia)

Students learned about international development proposal development, impact measurement, and environmental sustainability with E2E in Medellin. 

IEM Abroad (Spain)

Participants explored onsite management of U.S. Education Abroad programs in Madrid, Spain. Middlebury’s Madrid School Abroad, Sede Prim, served as the primary case  study for the course.  MIIS students engaged with Middlebury staff and undergraduate students to better understand the onsite perspectives of managing education abroad for U.S. college students.  Participants explored a variety of international education models through visits and project work with program providers and  Spanish universities.