Ateneo - UPO

The integrated course jointly addresses the main economic, institutional, and operational dimensions of crisis and disaster management. It combines perspectives from economic policy, applied economics, and quantitative analysis, providing students with a broad and multidisciplinary understanding. Topics include: economic growth models and inequalities; economic and humanitarian policies; property rights and pharmaceutical innovation; international trade and cooperation in response to global shocks; computational modeling of crisis dynamics; disaster risk and insurance, humanitarian programs, and poverty reduction strategies.

Lecture notes, instructors’ materials, and selected references including: Macroeconomics textbooks, Law and Economics (Cooter & Ulen), International Trade (Krugman, Obstfeld, Melitz), Computational Modeling (Wilensky & Rand, Dawid & Delli Gatti), Disaster insurance and risk, Humanitarian program handbooks (OCHA, UNHCR, Sphere Handbook), Poverty studies (Banerjee & Duflo, Haughton & Khandker).

The aim of the course is to provide students with theoretical, analytical, and practical tools to understand, assess, and contribute to the design of effective policies and strategies in response to disasters and health crises. Students will develop skills to: analyze economic disparities and inequality-reducing policies; interpret the role of property rights and global trade policies; use computational models to simulate complex scenarios; understand insurance markets and humanitarian programs; evaluate poverty reduction strategies.

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The course combines lectures, interactive discussions, case study analyses, seminars, and applied activities using computational and statistical tools. It includes both in-person and online teaching.

Attendance is strongly suggested. Students with physical disabilities, Learning Disabilities or Special Education Needs can request specific services and tools via the Staff Sviluppo e Coordinamento Carriere e Servizi alle Studentesse e agli Studenti, consulting the University webpage: https://www.uniupo.it/en/services/services-students-physical-or-learning-disabilities Students with disabilities, learning disabilities or special education needs, once they have contacted the University Staff, can refer to the tutor in charge of the course to define the examination modalities, concerning academic aspects.

The exam is written and consists of multiple-choice questions and applied exercises. The final grade is expressed in thirtieths, with a minimum of 18/30 required to pass.

Section A — Economic policy of disasters and humanitarian crises (SECS-P/02) • A1. Purpose and method of economics applied to crises; economic problems, scarcity and trade-offs. • A2. GDP and living standards; welfare measurement and limits of traditional indicators. • A3. Economic growth model and cross-country development gaps; growth in developing countries. • A4. Policies to reduce inequalities: taxation, transfers, education, social protection. • A5. Triple Nexus (humanitarian–development–peace): coordination, actors, financial flows and accountability. • A6. Health and peace: the “Global Health and Peace” initiative, health diplomacy and policy implications. • A7. Seminars with humanitarian professionals; case studies; exercises and group work. Section B — Applied economic perspectives and policy in disasters and health crises (SECS-P/06) • B1. Economic analysis of law: efficiency, externalities, property rights and remedies. • B2. Intellectual property and pharmaceutical innovation: innovation incentives, access to treatments, compulsory licensing in emergencies. • B3. International trade: comparative advantage, global value chains and exposure to shocks. • B4. Trade policy: tariffs, non-tariff barriers, safeguards; tariff wars and cooperation (WTO/plurilateral agreements). • B5. Agent-based modeling (ABM) for crises and disasters: microfoundations, decision rules, interactions and networks. • B6. Building, calibrating and analyzing ABMs; computational experiments, sensitivity and scenario analysis; introductory lab with NetLogo. • B7. Ethics, validation and the use of models for policy design under uncertainty. Section C — Economics of disasters and health crises (SECS-P/03) • C1. Disaster definitions; data sources and quality; risk metrics (hazard, exposure, vulnerability). • C2. Information as a public good; risk literacy and risk communication. • C3. Catastrophe insurance: demand (uncertainty, risk aversion, underinsurance) and determinants. • C4. Supply and market functioning: adverse selection, moral hazard; risk finance instruments (reinsurance, cat bonds, public–private pools). • C5. Data exercises: STATA mini-course (4 tutorials) and live practical session. • C6. Humanitarian system architecture and principles (OCHA, clusters); Humanitarian Programme Cycle (HPC). • C7. Needs assessment, response planning, humanitarian logistics and supply chain; monitoring and evaluation (M&E). • C8. Leadership in health emergencies; preparedness; WHO/ERF frameworks; ethical dilemmas and humanitarian principles. • C9. Poverty: concepts and measurement (lines, indices, multidimensionality) and links with disaster vulnerability. • C10. Ethics of poverty reduction; experimental evidence (RCTs); policies: cash transfers, social protection, education. • C11. Integrated policy implications across economics, finance and supply chain for disaster resilience.

Students will develop critical analysis skills, independent judgment, and applied competences on economic policies, global dynamics, quantitative tools, and humanitarian management. They will be able to propose and evaluate interventions in complex scenarios.