Keele University Prospectus Postgraduate | 2016 | Page 30
POLITICS AND INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS
Climate Change
Studies
Overview
Climate change is as much a
political issue as a scientific
one and will remain so for the
foreseeable future. Those able
to understand and address
the social, ethical and political
challenges it poses will be highly
valuable citizens and employees.
This MA draws on both natural
and social sciences to set these
challenges in context. Core
modules cover international
agreements, national
regulation and policy making,
non-governmental organisation
campaigns and grassroots
activism. Formal and informal
responses to climate change
are examined from economic,
business, scientific, governmental
and civil society perspectives.
You will develop an in-depth
understanding of the complex
relationships between climate
politics and related areas
of concern such as peak oil,
resource depletion, biodiversity,
gender, food sovereignty and
environmental security.
Additional information
The course is hosted in the School
of Politics, International Relations
and the Environment (SPIRE)
and primarily taught by members
of the Centre for Environmental
Action and Thought (CREATe),
the UK’s pre-eminent cluster of
environmental politics specialists.
Additional expert input is
drawn from other academic
departments and from experts
outside the university.
The aims of the course are to
enable you to:
• Think, talk and write about
climate change and the ways
in which it is represented, in
a systematic, critical and well
informed way
• Understand, evaluate and
apply a range of theories about
the political consequences of
climate change and appreciate
the theory and empirical
reality of responses to climate
change in their social and
political contexts
• Develop the ability to conduct
and report on your own
research using appropriate
techniques of scholarship in
the social sciences
These research skills are essential
for the dissertation, but also
give a good grounding for future
academic or professional work.
Course type
MA
Mode of study
Full-time or part-time
Entry
requirements
Applicants should hold
a second-class honours
degree or equivalent.
Where English is not
a first language, proof
of English language
competence will be
required (IELTS 6.0
or equivalent, with
6 in each sub-test).
Contact email
[email protected]
Module titles
Completion of the MA requires
180 credits, obtained through
15 credit modules and a 60
credit dissertation of 15,000
words. You will be eligible to
undertake environment related
modules from both the School of
Politic s, International Relations
and the Environment (SPIRE)
and the School of Physical and
Geographical Sciences.
The following is a list of
indicative modules:
• Dimensions of Environmental
Politics (core)
• Environmental Diplomacy
• EU and the Global Commons
• Green Political Theory
• Environmental Decision
Making in the UK
• US Environmental Politics
and Policy
• Environmental Movements
North and South
You will also complete a 15,000
word dissertation on any aspect
of climate change politics, to be
agreed with supervisory staff.
You may also be able to
undertake relevant fieldwork
to research the work of an
organisation working in the
field of climate change.
www.keele.ac.uk/pgtcourses/climatechangestudies
30
Key Information
Good to know
In the 2015
Research Excellence
Framework, 93%
of the research
submitted in Politics
and International
Studies was judged
to be in the top
three categories
of world leading,
internationally
excellent and
internationally
recognised.