Admission requirements
- Only students of the MSc Crisis and Security Management can take this course.
Description
We are in the midst of unprecedented, anthropogenic climate change. Global warming is one of the most pressing global topics facing humans and nonhuman life today because of its ongoing and likely future harms to human and nonhuman life, and related issues of fairness. This course will focus on leading political and ethical issues related to global environmental challenges, especially global warming. How should international organisations, states, NGOs, and individuals address such global environmental challenges? We will consider a number of ways to conceptualise the problem of global warming and other environmental threats because they have implications for how to address the problems. The course will relate environmental challenges to central features and concepts of international relations, such as state sovereignty, international institutions, and human rights. We will consider how to evaluate the tradeoffs in global environmental governance, and who is likely to benefit and be harmed. Given that uncertainty and risk are essential elements of global environmental issues, we will examine why certain groups are put at elevated risk, including future generations, and some impoverished individuals, among others. Scholars have presented alternative proposals for how the burdens of climate change mitigation and adaptation should be distributed, which we will evaluate. Additionally, we will examine whether existing institutions and modes of governing may contribute to ameliorating, or be inadequate for addressing, environmental threats.
Course Objectives
After finalising this course, students are able to:
- Identify, based on advanced knowledge and understanding, key political and ethical challenges of global warming and other environmental problems.
- Analyse, based on advanced knowledge and understanding, how key facets of international relations relate to global environmental challenges.
- Understand, based on advanced knowledge and understanding of the distinctive nature of governance in relation to crisis and security issues, the main ways leaders have tried and are trying to address these challenges, and why they have taken the various positions that they have.
- Understand various ways of categorising risks of global warming to and responsibilities towards different groups of people and assess proposals for how to address them.
- Develop critical thinking skills by improving deductive reasoning, how to analyse an argument, and how to construct a sound argument.
- Draw conclusions, make judgements and/or provide solutions to some aspect of global environmental challenges, based on empirical data and sound and balanced argumentation.
Timetable
On the right side of programme front page of the studyguide you will find links to the website and timetables, uSis and Brightspace.
Mode of Instruction
The course consists of seven meetings and will be taught in a participatory, seminar style format.
Attendance is mandatory. Students are only allowed to miss more than one session if there are special, demonstrable personal circumstances. The Board of Examiners, in consultation with the study advisors, will decide on such an exceptional exemption of mandatory attendance.
Total study load 140 hours:
21 Contact hours
119 Self-study hours: reading, preparing lectures, assignments, etc.
Assessment method
Assessment for this course is based on two assignments:
Paper
50% of final grade
Grade cannot be compensated, a 5.50 is required to pass the course
Resit is possible
Resit will take the same form
Quizzes
25% of final grade
Grade can be compensated in case of a fail (grade < 5.50)
Resit not possible.
Reading Journal
25% of final grade
Grade can be compensated in case of a fail (grade < 5.50)
Resit not possible.
Additional, formative (non-graded) assignments are an obligatory part of the course.
The calculated overall course grade must be at least 5.50 in order to pass the course. If the calculated overall course grade is lower than 5.50, students are also permitted to resit the 50% paper.
In the case of written assessment methods, the examiner can always initiate a follow-up conversation with the student to establish whether the learning objectives have been met.
Transitional arrangement
Please be aware that passed partial grades obtained in academic year 2023-2024 are no longer valid during academic year 2024-2025
Reading list
A selection of books and articles, to be announced on Brightspace.
Registration
Register yourself via MyStudymap for each course, workgroup and exam (not all courses have workgroups and/or exams). Do so on time, before the start of the course; some courses and workgroups have limited spaces. You can view your personal schedule in MyTimetable after logging in.
Registration for this course is possible from t.b.a..
Leiden University uses Brightspace as its online learning management system. After enrolment for the course in MyStudymap you will be automatically enrolled in the Brightspace environment of this course.
More information on registration via MyStudymap can be found on this page.
Contact
dr.mr. Eamon Aloyo e.t.aloyo@fgga.leidenuniv.nl