Environmental policy through the prism of systems thinking

How political decisions affect the environment and how the climate crisis is shaping the strategy of states and international organizations in today’s world.

We live in an era that some researchers call the Anthropocene. Humans have become the dominant force changing the Earth’s climate and affecting the biosphere. Depletion of the ozone layer, extinction of species, desertification, forest fires, rising sea levels, and epidemics are all the result of the extensive development of our civilization. Along with these global challenges we can observe local environmental problems: landfills, air and water pollution, and the reduction of green areas. Solving these problems requires coordinating the efforts of a large number of stakeholders, both locally and globally.

We will talk about the role of key players in environmental policy – activists, scientists, NGOs, media, businesses, national governments and international organizations – and try to imagine what an economy and society in which the interests of all parties are taken into account might look like. The tools of systems thinking will help us do this.

The course assumes the active participation of students in the learning process. Large and small group discussions, group work, and business games are waiting for you.