Climate disaster is here – what is to be done? This module engages with critical theories to shed light on the climate crisis from multiple intersecting perspectives. Key questions that guide the seminar discussions are: How can we make sense of the climate crisis intersectionally? Where should we start in addressing the climate crisis? How might a climate just world look like? How might we bring about the change we want to see in the world?
The critical lenses the module examines include feminist, decolonial, Indigenous and Marxist approaches to the climate crisis, which are woven throughout the readings and discussions. Collectively, the insights arising from this module highlight that critical thought is not merely developed in opposition—nor is it just an alternative—to what is considered the mainstream in the study of just climate futures. The module introduces a wide variety of visions towards climate just futures and offers pathways to imagining other ways of being, centring theory as well as politically engaged action.
The assessments of this module invite students to reflect critically on the consequences of a variety of political commitments and objectives. They challenge students to critically analyze the power dynamics that affect the institutionalization, theorization, and practice of climate politics.