This class explores how communities can design effective and equitable social policies. The course opens by addressing several common misconceptions about the welfare state, including the connection between economic competition and social protection, the relationship between social spending and inequality, and the role of the state. The second part of the course examines the politics of reform in three broad areas: Old people (pensions and health care), young people (housing and labour markets), and identity (gender and immigration). The course concludes by exploring new approaches to social protection, including non-state alternatives. By the end of the course, students should be able to develop a politically feasible, economically competitive strategy to reform social policy in a community of interest.