Mark R. Brawley (PhD 1989, UCLA) is a Political Science professor at McGill University in Montreal, specializing in international politics.  Dr. Brawley’s interests concentrate on the politics of trade and monetary policy, and the connection between economic issues and international security.  He is an acclaimed author and has published six academic books and numerous articles.  In 2016, he was awarded the McGill Political Science Students Association’s award for Excellence in Teaching.  Dr. Brawley’s courses cover international politics generally, with more specialized courses on international finance, trade, and American foreign policy.  From 2000-2001, he was a visiting professor at Harvard University.  For the past several years, through McGill’s Summer Programs, he has enjoyed teaching classes in Italy examining how Italian city-states resolved the challenges confronting international trade and payments during the Renaissance.  In 2019, he will teach a course on the politics of labor migration.

Topics for Public Presentations

Currency Wars: Will China’s Yuan Replace the Dollar?
For the past 70 years, the U.S. dollar has been the single most important currency in international transactions. The dollar’s international role has delivered benefits to Americans. Now the Chinese government has suggested it wants its currency to attain the top role — will they succeed? What consequences will such competition trigger?

Presidential Leadership and American Foreign Policy — Three Critical Episodes
When an international crisis erupts, Presidents must rise to the occasion. Tough times may elicit the best in leaders, but it can also expose their worst traits. These examples of presidential leadership can provide lessons beyond the realm of foreign policy.

The Politics of Canada-U.S. Trade: Past, Present, and Uncertain Future
Canada and the United States have an extensive trade relationship, which is currently under attack. To explain this outcome, political scientists employ theories addressing the domestic sources of trade policy. These theories can help us understand past episodes of trouble in this relationship, as well shed light on contemporary issues, and probable outcomes in the future.

Presidents Personalities and the Success of American Foreign Policy
To formulate and execute U.S. foreign policy, presidents must deal with a host of factors. International constraints clearly matter, but domestic forces are also at work. By contrasting the experiences of Woodrow Wilson and Franklin D. Roosevelt, we can gain some insight on what it takes for the Chief Executive to develop and implement an effective foreign policy.

Why International Debt Crises Keep Happening
When the Greek government confronted international lenders with its inability to pay, the situation seemed all too familiar. Similar crises had erupted in the 1990s and the decade before that. Why do these crises keep erupting? Is there a way to prevent them? Answers may be available, but they could be harder to enact than you would think.

The Failed Search for Peace after World War I
World War I was supposed to be the “war to end all wars.” The conflict was so catastrophic, it sparked the development of international relations as an academic endeavour. It also forced policymakers everywhere to pursue policies to avert another conflict. Why did these efforts fail? What can we learn from this frustrating — and ultimately tragic — period of history?

Rethinking How the Cold War Ended
The peaceful end of the Cold War was perhaps the most important political event of the past fifty years. It changed not only international politics, but also challenged our thinking about how international relations works. New theories — created to explain what happened — have shaped recent policy. Do we know which of those theoretical interpretations of this event is most accurate? How has the passage of time informed our understanding of this crucial event? How might that cause us to reconsider how we conduct foreign policy these days?