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Unit of Study POLT1002 - World Politics and Global Environmental Challenges (2025)

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Unit Snapshot

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Unit description

This unit examines relationships between international political dynamics and global environmental challenges as a way to understand and engage with current environmental issues. Students will explore how states and non-state actors, such as the United Nations, multinational corporations and non-governmental organisations, interact at an international level. Global issues such as climate change and biodiversity extinction will be explored, as well as the intertwined role of ideologies such as neoliberalism, nationalism, communism, democracy and other systems of governance. The unit provides students with a knowledge of the political dimensions of key environmental issues and the institutional and non-institutional responses that are taking place. Unit content will help students identify what role they can play when dealing with global environmental challenges.  

Unit content

Part 1:

  1. Case studies: climate change and biodiversity extinction
  2. A timeline of international (in)action
  3. International cooperation, power competition and the tragedy of the commons

Part 2:

  1. Green ideology and the political spectrum
  2. Are democracies best suited to resolve environmental problems?
  3. The globalised economy and the environment

Part 3:

  1. Environmental justice
  2. Global issues, local actions

 

Availabilities

Location Domestic International
Gold Coast
Term3
Term3
Online
Term3
N/A

Learning outcomes

Unit Learning Outcomes express learning achievement in terms of what a student should know, understand and be able to do on completion of a unit. These outcomes are aligned with the graduate attributes. The unit learning outcomes and graduate attributes are also the basis of evaluating prior learning.

On completion of this unit, students should be able to:

Demonstrate an understanding of the ideas, concepts and values that underpin political thought in relation to environmental concerns

Demonstrate an understanding of how the structures of the international system shape responses to global environmental challenges

Critically evaluate responses to global environmental challenges

Develop and evaluate possible solutions to major environmental challenges

Prescribed learning resources

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Prescribed Resources/Equipment
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Prescribed Learning Resources may change in future Teaching Periods.