Politics, International Studies and Global Sustainable Development

First-year core GSD modules consider different perspectives that might be taken on global issues, corresponding to the United Nations’ three pillars of Sustainable Development – Economic, Social andEnvironmental. You’ll also complete a group project on a controversial, local, topical problem that poses significant sustainable development questions.

In your second year, you have a choice of GSD modules. You can take either Bodies, Health and Sustainable Development, which examines issues surrounding health and the representation of bodies in contemporary culture, or Food Security which will examine the relationship betweenfood and sustainability using theories and methods from the sciences, social sciences and humanities.You will also choose a module from a range of options available across the University which has a focus on sustainability. Alternatively, after the first term at Warwick studying Bodies, Health and Sustainable Development or Food Security you may choose to travel to one our overseas partners, where you’ll continue taking relevant modules in Global Sustainable Development and your joint degree subject.

In your final year, you’ll be able to choose to study topics that raise global sustainable development issues from a range of options offered by the GSD Department (such as ‘Work’ and ‘Energy’) as well as from around the University. You’ll also bring together your knowledge, ideas and conclusions in a dissertation focusing on a GSD issue.

During your first year of the Politics course element, core modules introduce the main issues, theoretical perspectives, processes and core concepts in the study of politics. You’ll also gain an overview of international politics and the theoretical and empirical study of international relations. Second-year core modules examine the political philosophy of some of the most important European writers from 1640 onwards. A final-year core module on Issues of Political Theory analyses and assesses opposing arguments in political philosophy and relates those arguments to contemporary political and social issues. In your second and third years, you’ll also be able to choose from a variety of optional PAIS modules. For current students these include: International Security, Politics and Religion, and Gender and Development – enabling you to examine specialised topics in depth.