STAR45 - COSTRUIRE LA PACE. CULTURA, DIRITTI, ECONOMIA, SCIENZA

courses

ID:

STAR45

Duration (hours):

48

CFU:

SSD:

STORIA CONTEMPORANEA

Located in:

CHIETI

Url:

Course Details:

BENI ARCHEOLOGICI E STORICO-ARTISTICI/CORSO GENERICO Year: 2

Year:

2025

Course Catalogue:

https://unich.coursecatalogue.cineca.it/af/2025?co...

Date/time interval

Secondo Semestre (01/03/2026 - 31/05/2026)

Course Objectives

In line with the philosophy behind the establishment of the General Courses, the course "Building Peace. Culture, rights, economics, science" is an interdisciplinary course that aims to provide students with transversal skills and to expand their knowledge in areas other than those of their main course of study.
Therefore, the course is open to all students enrolled in bachelor's and master's degree courses and is configured as an elective exam, with a final learning test.
The soft skills promoted by the course include:
problem solving skills, critical thinking, communication and collaboration.
Therefore, the course promotes the acquisition of transversal skills, indicated by the European Union as fundamental for "better preparing people for changes in labour markets and active citizenship in global, more differentiated, mobile and digital societies, and consequently to develop learning at all stages of life", and the possibility of expanding one's knowledge in areas other than those of one's own course of study.
Specifically, the course promotes the following soft skills:
Effective communication: Ability to express oneself clearly, both orally and in writing, and to actively listen to others.
Cooperation: Ability to work in a team, share ideas, and contribute to the achievement of common goals.
Problem solving: Ability to analyze complex situations, identify effective solutions, and make decisions.
Critical Thinking: Ability to evaluate information, formulate well-founded judgments and arguments.
Adaptability: Ability to deal with new and unexpected situations, and to modify one's approach according to needs.
Creativity: Ability to generate new ideas, find original solutions, and think outside the box.
Leadership: Ability to motivate, guide and inspire others.

Course Prerequisites

There are no prerequisites.

Teaching Methods

The course is divided into 48 hours of lectures, divided into multidisciplinary thematic modules. Teaching includes lectures and seminars for the in-depth study of specific topics, also with the participation of experts from outside the university. The lessons are divided into moments of presentation of specific topics through lectures, the use of a dialogical-participatory approach, case studies and simulations.
The multidisciplinary nature of the course is ensured by the collaboration of professors belonging to various departments of the university, for the specific skills required by each thematic module.

Assessment Methods

Assessment methods: oral exam.
The exam will be evaluated in thirtieths, the minimum grade is 18, the maximum grade 30. The final evaluation will also take into account participation in seminar activities and classroom exercises organized by the teachers. The ability to work in a group, the ability to analyze and argue, the clarity of exposition, the critical/problematic approach will therefore be evaluated. The score ranges from 1 to 30 with honors, according to the following: 1-17 insufficient, 18 -21 sufficient, 22-24 fair, 25-27 good, 28-29 very good, 30-30 with excellent honors.

Texts

Handbook of Peace and Conflict Studies, Edited by Charles Webel and Johan Galtung, Routledge 2007, available at: https://www.mkgandhi.org/ebks/handbook-of-peace-and-conflict-studies.pdf

Institutional module (6 CFU):
The course "Building peace" is developed around the four main thematic areas, culture, rights, economy, science, in which the contents of the course will be deepened. In particular, in the first module, "Culture", the following topics will be addressed:
a. Art and Literature of Peace from Ancient to Contemporary in Europe
b. Si vis pacem, para pacem. Pacifying paths in history from ancient to contemporary
c. Cultures of peace in non-European civilizations. Asia, Africa, Americas.
In the second module, "Rights", the following will be explored:
a. Foundations of peace and reasons for conflicts
b. Peace and human rights
c. Diplomacy and mediation.
In the third module, "economics", the following topics will be addressed:

Economy of peace versus economy of war.
Military spending, rearmament Comparing economic models: cooperation vs competition
An economic policy of peace.

In the fourth module, "Science", the following topics will be analysed:

Sciences for peace. From the Einstein-Russell manifesto to scientists for disarmament
Greenhouse effect, war effect. The consequences of conflicts on the environnement, on the climate
Architecture: Building an inclusive and peaceful city
The wounds of war. Medicine in the field.

In summary, by attending the course, participants will be able to acquire basic knowledge according to a multidisciplinary approach related to the main models and paradigms in peace studies; to the history of theories and practices of peace from ancient to contemporary, both in European culture and in non-European culture. The course will propose the knowledge of practices of active nonviolence and disarmament; of the law and of the international organization for peace and human rights; the study of methods of analysis and practices for the nonviolent transformation of conflicts. Attention will also be paid to peace and human security interventions from the field of science; the gender approach in conflict situations and peace and human rights education programmes.

Course Language

Italian

More information

The General Course is a transversal course, open to students of all undergraduate and master's degree courses of the University. It is presented as a free-choice exam of 6 university credits (48 hours), at the end of which there is an exam.