Global challenges in environment and development

The planet and humankind face major current environment-development challenges, including climate change, losses of natural habitats and biodiversity, poverty, and non-sustainable food production systems. Using selected problems and cases at the environment-development nexus, the purpose of this course is to create a solid foundation for understanding how knowledge is generated and used in both the social and natural sciences. This includes (i) giving students a well-grounded understanding of key theoretical, conceptual, and practical debates and issues, and (ii) allowing them to experience interdisciplinary approaches to research and problem solving through active participation in discussions, group work, and individual essay writing. The course thus centers on selected global challenges and introduces students to tools and frameworks which can be used to think and generate knowledge across disciplines.
This interdisciplinary course is mandatory and fundamental for the MSc Programme in Environment and Development and the MSc Programme in Global Environment and Development. It places particular focus on countries in the Global South.

Knowledge:
· Understand relationships between theory and practice at the environment-development nexus;
· Be acquainted with current debates on environment-development issues, including in relation to agriculture and environmental products;
· Be familar with challenges at the intersections of economic growth, social development, and environmental conservation;

Skills:
· Evaluate and differentiate approaches to environment-development questions from a variety of perspectives;
· Analyse the value (validity and reliability) of data in the academic and policy literature;
· Explore and challenge own disciplinary boundaries by cooperating with fellow students on solving problems using different data sources for environment-development challenges.

Competences:
Towards the end of the course, students should be able to (i) critically reflect on and discuss approaches to global challenges at the environment-development nexus, (ii) reflect on the benefits and challenges related to interdisciplinary approaches, and (iii) demonstrate the values of scholarship: inquiry, reflection, integrity, open-mindedness, evidence-based thinking, and collegiality.