**Title:**
Global Advocacy and Policy Solutions for Women’s Rights and Air Pollution
**Attendance:**
– No students were mentioned as absent.
**Topics Covered:**
– International Advocacy for Women’s Rights:
– Positive impacts of international support for women’s movements in Iran.
– Role of social media and activism in promoting women’s rights.
– The potential role of the United Nations and international pressure on Iran’s human rights issues.
– Discussion on the use of internet and hacker interventions during government censorship.
– Policy Development and Analysis:
– Students presented topics for their essays, including Afghan girls’ education post-Taliban takeover and barriers faced by girls in education.
– Discussion on formulating policy solutions and the importance of specificity in policy proposals.
– Empirical Evidence and Writing Effective Op-Eds:
– Examination of a sample policy brief op-ed, focusing on the structure and inclusion of empirical evidence.
– Importance of topic sentences in defining the content of paragraphs.
– Discussion on justifying policy solutions with empirical data.
– Review of the structure and purpose of body paragraphs in op-eds.
**Actionable Items:**
– Students to consider counterarguments and refutations for their essay topics.
– Reminder for students to join the Telegram group for course materials.
– Encouragement for students to think critically about empirical evidence supporting their essay claims.
**Homework:**
– Students to work on their policy brief op-ed essays, due Sunday night (Bishkek time).
– They should include empirical evidence to support their claims and consider counterarguments in their writing.
– Students should ensure their essays are concise, around three to three and a half pages, and follow the discussed structure.