The Global Environmental Change and Policy course focuses on 4 key questions:
- What are the nature and causes of global environmental change (GEC)?
- What do we know and not know about GEC - and why?
- What are the biological, physico-chemical and human implications of GEC?
- What can and should be done about mitigating and adapting to GEC?
Students can arrange internships as part of their thesis term.
Further information
By addressing those four questions the overall aim of the course is to provide students with a comprehensive and broad understating of the scientific, legal and policy concerns informing the GECP field, and to guide students towards applying independently the necessary tools to address GECP questions analytically and critically. This is done through studies arranged into four main strands:
Strand I - Climate Change Science, Environmental and Health Impacts and Adaptation
This strand explores the analysis and prediction of change in the earth's physical and chemical systems and their impact based on scientific evidence. Sessions include analysis, prediction and impact of changes such as climate change and acidification in the atmosphere, oceans, the water cycle and global land cover and use. In light of the projections of scientific bodies such as the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), students become acquainted with different global warming scenarios and their likely impact on water management, vegetation, soil, health and other relevant sectors, and the correlated adaptation policies required in different parts of the globe in order to manage environmental change. It also addresses specific adaptation policies necessary in areas that are most likely to be affected by climate change, such as in Africa.
Strand II – Climate Change Mitigation, Business Strategies and Innovation
This strand focuses on climate change mitigation and related business strategies and the development of technologies in the transition towards a low-carbon economy. A number of green house gas mitigation and alternative energy policies – including renewable energy deployment and Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) - are selected for analysis. It examines the social and economic causes of the environmental changes with respect to population, urbanisation, energy policy, and pollution and addresses the policy options to mitigate climate change. In addition, this strand assesses the broader question of quantifying the costs and benefits of mitigation and adaptation in light of the developmental priorities of different regions of the globe, as well as possible business solutions towards low carbon economic growth.
Strand III – Biodiversity, Land Use Change and Forestry, and Conservation Strategies
This strand explores biodiversity loss, conservation strategies, the monitoring and prediction of change in the earth's ecosystems and their response to a range of environmental changes including climate change, and the impact of these changes on humans and the management of natural resources. The different mechanisms proposed or already applied to protect biodiversity in areas of high carbon stocks are thus covered in this part of the course. It assesses mitigation policies applicable to the agricultural sector and the role of land use change in climate change mitigation. In that connection, it looks into the challenges in achieving sustainability in agriculture and to establish relevant criteria for sustainability of biofuels as cleaner sources of energy.
Strand IV – Law and Governance
The role of international law and policy in developing innovative solutions for global environmental problems, such as climate change and biodiversity loss, is emphasised. It addresses the law and politics behind the negotiation of some multilateral environemental agreements, the international framework for climate change and environmental governance, and draws attention to the role of compliance, monitoring and enforcement at the international level.