5.2 External Environment 2: Economics

5.2.1: International Economics:

Objectives: The students will get familiar with the importance of International and global economic relations and analyse their theoretical approaches when structuring the complexity of the global environment and forms of regional integration. They will get to know data, statistics and economic policies, work out specifics of the developed, emerging and developing countries as well as reasons and outcome of regional (global) crises.

Content:

International Microeconomics:

• International Trade Theories, e.g. Mercantilism, Absolute Cost Advantage (Adam Smith), Principle of Comparative Cost Advantage (David Ricardo), Theory of Factor Endowments, Product Cycle Theory, Imperfect Competition etc.

• International Trade Policy, e.g. Global Trade and Trade Liberalisation, structures and stages of Regional Integration, Basis Theory of Regional Integration, World Wide Integration Projects.

International Macroeconomics:

• International Monetary Economics, e.g. Macroeconomic Links between Countries and International Monetary Systems

• Global Economy

• Development, Emerging and Developing Countries

• Transition Countries and European Enlargement

• International Institutions

• Regional Crisis in the World

• Challenges in the Global Economy

5.2.2 Sustainability Economics:

Objectives: Students should be prepared and enabled to understand futures questions and societal global challenges and their consequences on companies, consumer, civil society (NGOs), governments, countries and their interconnections. They get to know the different dimensions of sustainable development. Focus on microeconomic level is the theoretical approach of economic analysis of environmental; on macroeconomic level an extended economic system with measures of sustainable growth, incl. social, economic and ecological measures. In addition, the students get to know different types of sustainable management systems such as biodiversity, water, energy, mobility etc. (incl. Institutions, politics) considering developed, emerging and developing context and how to value natural resources.

Content:

• Global Challenges and Importance of CSR and NGOs

• Natural Resources, Social Equity and Sustainable Development

• Economic Analysis of Environmental Issues (Microeconomics

• Sustainable Management, Institutions and Policies (Case Studies)

• Standard and Extended Economic Systems

• Economic Growth and Sustainable Development (Macroeconomics)

• Project Evaluation (Valuing Natural Resources)