This course will examine the changing role of social movements in bringing about change in a globalising world. From the 1960s so-called 'new social movements', including women's, lesbian and gay and environmental movements, transformed the social and political landscape of western societies. These movements promoted new forms of organisation, tactics and ideas such as the politics of oppression, identity and culture, empowerment and post-materialism. More recently, an increasingly global civil society has emerged with a variety of indigenous, third-world, anti-corporate globalisation, international trade union and social justice movements. The course will examine these developments in the light of current research and analysis.

After successful completion of this course, students should:

• Understand the nature of extra-institutional forms of politics including social movements.
• Demonstrate knowledge of the historical role of social movements particularly since the 1960s.
• Demonstrate knowledge of major ‘new social movements' and their distinctive issues, forms of organisation, strategies, tactics and ideology.
• Demonstrate knowledge of globalisation and anti-globalisation movements.
• Continue to develop strong oral presentation, research, writing and analytical skills.

Essay (45%), second assignment (45%) and tutorial work (10%).

Students will be expected to spend an average of seven hours per week in addition to three contact hours (two hours of lectures, one hour tutorial) in order to prepare for tutorials, conduct research and write the written assignments as well as to prepare for the final examination.

Two first-year courses in Political Science, or History, or Sociology, or with the permission of the lecturer.

Burgmann, V., Power, Profit and Protest: Australian social movements and globalisation (Allen & Unwin, 2003).