IR104: Environment and Society: Science, Policy and Action

Behind every headline about climate change, loss of biodiversity or pollution lies a complex network of science, debate and decision-making. This course equips you to understand the science behind major environmental challenges – and to analyse how that knowledge is constructed, contested, and translated into real-world policy and action. We will first interrogate the scientific foundations for environmental concerns – how and why physical environmental systems change – before developing a social-science perspective on that science: how evidence is produced, communicated and mobilised in governance, and how uncertainty, interests and institutions shape “what counts” as truth.

Building on this dual foundation, we examine the relationship between science, policy and society. You’ll explore how different knowledge traditions – the scientific method, post-positivist science, Indigenous and local knowledges, citizen science, and the knowledge-industrial complex – converge or collide in real policy arenas. We focus on translation and impact: how evidence informs legislation, markets and multilateral agreements; how scientists and communities communicate more effectively with policymakers; and how non-expert knowledge can reframe agendas. Learning is interactive, combining lectures, class discussions and practical activities so you can critique “truth” claims and better understand evidence-informed action.

In addition to lectures and classes, you will:

• Conduct citizen science on air pollution using personal exposure monitors and reflect on the value and limits of ‘civic science’
• Join a guided “pollution walk” with a local authority, connecting monitoring to regulation and enforcement
• Learn from a guest practitioner session (a senior scientist at the United Nations Environment Programme) on multilateral environmental governance.

Indicative case studies include:

• Global climate change, mitigation, adaptation, and geoengineering
• Stratospheric ozone depletion and the Montreal Protocol
• Transboundary air pollution and attribution politics
• Deforestation, land degradation and the REDD+ programme
• Indigenous fire management and carbon accounting schemes
• Disaster risk management, hazard and vulnerability
• The role of UNEP in agenda setting

Prerequisites: There are no prerequisites for this course. 

Level: 100 level. Read more information on levels in our FAQs

Fees: Please see Fees and payments

Lectures: 36 hours

Classes: 18 hours

Assessment: One project-based essay assignment (50%) and one written examination (50%)

Typical credit: 3-4 credits (US) 7.5 ECTS points (EU)

Please note: Assessment is optional but may be required for credit by your home institution. Your home institution will be able to advise how you can meet their credit requirements. For more information on exams and credit, read Teaching and assessment

This course is designed for those interested in bridging environmental science with real policy actions and impact. It is ideal for students and professionals in international relations, environmental studies, economics, geography, public policy, public health policy, and government. You’ll gain skills valued in government and city authorities, international organisations (e.g., UN agencies), environmental NGOs, consulting and think tanks, journalism and communications, ESG and sustainability roles, and data-driven policy labs. No advanced technical background required – just curiosity, critical thinking, and a keen interest in evidence-informed action.

• Identify and assess key conceptual approaches to the understanding of environmental science, environmental politics and environmental risk
• Describe different forms of knowledge production and explain how knowledge producers are (dis)engaged with environmental policy making.
• Discuss and develop opinions on the relationships between science and environmentalism
• Understand key environmental processes relating to geohazards, natural disasters, pollution, land-use change, climate change, and ozone depletion
• Evaluate the use and influence of scientific (as well as what may be considered non-scientific and unscientific) information in international, national, and regional environmental decision-making.

The design of this course is guided by LSE faculty, as well as industry experts, who will share their experience and in-depth knowledge with you throughout the course.