Dr Michael Lerner

This course is available on the MSc in Political Science (Conflict Studies and Comparative Politics), MSc in Political Science (Global Politics), MSc in Political Science (Political Science and Political Economy), MSc in Public Policy and Administration and MSc in Regulation. This course is not available as an outside option to students on other programmes. This course uses controlled access as part of the course selection process. For information on controlled access courses, including eligibility, application processes, deadlines, and departmental contact details, please refer to the Controlled Access Courses webpage.

How to apply: To apply for a place on this course, please submit a short statement of no more than 200 words via LfY. Your statement should outline your reasons for applying and explain how the course will support your academic and/or career goals. If applicable, you should also demonstrate how you meet any pre-requisites listed in the course guide. If the course is compulsory for your programme, no written statement is required.

Priority for places on Government (GV) courses will be given first to students for whom the course is compulsory. Where applicable, priority will then be given to students on the Department of Government programmes listed in the ‘Availability’ section of the course guide, followed by students on other programmes listed in that section. Students on all other programmes will be considered next, where a course is available as an outside option. You should ensure that you meet any pre-requisites listed in the course guide before applying. Places on capped courses cannot be guaranteed. Where a course is oversubscribed, places will be allocated based on programme priority and the written statement.

Deadline for applications: The deadline for applications is 12:00 noon on Friday 25 September 2026. You can expect to be informed of the outcome of your application by 12:00 noon on Monday 28 September 2026. Any places remaining after this date will be allocated based on priority and written statement - up until course selection closes.

For queries contact: gov.msc@lse.ac.uk.

This course has a limited number of places (it is controlled access) and demand is typically very high. This course is capped at 1 group.

It is recommended, but not required, to have a basic understanding of the physical science of climate change.

This course introduces students to the policy interventions and underlying political dynamics that shape the pace and direction of efforts to mitigate climate change and improve sustainability. Students unpack the conceptual foundations of climate politics, assess climate and sustainability problems across a variety of practical cases, and learn to prescribe and justify policy interventions to accelerate sustainability transitions.

A unifying theme of the course is its frequent attention to the political economy of climate (in)action. Specific topics include carbon lock-in; climate activism and obstruction; environmental authoritarianism; national climate institutions; corporate climate governance; just transition agreements; energy subsidies and carbon pricing; and geoengineering. The case studies in this course focus primarily, but not exclusively, on domestic environmental politics in advanced industrialized democracies.

LSE is currently evaluating the use of edit tracking tools for AI-resilient assessment. This course might use edit tracking tools for assessments.

10 hours of lectures and 15 hours of seminars in the Winter Term.

This course has a reading week in Week 6 of Winter Term.

Video.

Essay plan.

Students will be expected to submit formative assessment in the WT.

• Carter, Neil. The Politics of the Environment: Ideas, Activism, Policy. Cambridge University Press (2018).
• Seto, Karen C., et al. “Carbon lock-in: Types, causes, and policy implications.” Annual Review of Environment and Resources 41 (2016): 425-452.
• Colgan, Jeff D., Jessica F. Green, and Thomas N Hale. “Asset revaluation and the existential politics of climate change.” International Organization 75.2 (2021): 586–610.
• Vormedal, Irja and Jonas Meckling. “How foes become allies: The shifting role of business in climate politics.” Policy Sciences 57 (2024): 101–124.
• Breetz, Hanna, Matto Mildenberger, and Leah Stokes. “The political logics of clean energy transitions.” Business and Politics 20.4 (2018): 492-522.
• Hochstetler, Kathryn (2021). Political Economies of Energy Transition: Wind and Solar Power in Brazil and South Africa. Cambridge University Press. Chapter 1.

Video (15%) in Spring Term Week 2.

Policy paper / report (85%, 3000 words) in Spring Term Week 2.

Students will create up to two 4–6 minute video blog posts interpreting a recent event through the lens of course material (one must be uploaded in the first half of term, and one in the second half of term), of which one will be submitted for assessment.

The assessed policy report will have a word limit of 3,000 words.