THE GLOBAL INTERDEPENDENCE CENTER, based at Penn's International House, is a nonprofit that holds programs to promote "free international trade, monetary transparency, and open dialogue on the challenges and opportunities posed by increasing interdependence." It also "facilitates networking to expand international trade and investment, and undertakes advocacy of a globally-conscious outlook while providing a forum for the communication of the divergent perspectives."

THE PENN INSTITUTE FOR URBAN RESEARCH is an interdisciplinary center that researches "urban challenges in the 21st century." Among its initiatives, it has hosted lectures on topics including "Globalization: Cities, Jobs, and the National Economy," and "The Growing Importance of a City's History in Today's Global Economy."

THE UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA POLITICAL SCIENCE DEPARTMENT

Has a professor who has written on the future conduct of war, the effects of war on the globalized economy, and U.S. foreign policy alternatives.

TEMPLE UNIVERSITY'S HISTORY DEPARTMENT has a scholar who says his latest project is "a study of Starbucks, the making (and distribution of) coffee house culture, and the molding of public culture in the United States and across the globe in the 21st century."