Environment and Development

Overview

Attempts to understand and address these interconnected issues need to pay close attention to their contested, political and ideological nature.

That is why our MSc foregrounds society and nature as inherently linked, historical contexts as highly relevant to current debates, and global capitalism as an underlying force of change.

Issues will be explored across a range of geographical scales, seeing the local and global as necessarily inter-related.

It will consider the increasingly diverse set of actors, practices and processes driving environment and development issues, and question the power of these to direct agendas and actions.

The MSc in Environment and Development at The University of Edinburgh has relevance in both the 'Global South' and 'Global North', drawing attention to relationships of inequality and marginalisation as they occur for particular environments and sections of society around the world.

It will provide you with a unique critical perspective, as it draws on expertise from across the University, especially from development geography, social and political sciences, and environmental studies.

You can explore society and environment issues through different theoretical and conceptual lenses, examining the interplay of sociocultural perspectives, economics and governance, development debates and ecological dynamics.

There is much diversity in what you can study and conduct research on, enabling you to develop your interests at an advanced level in an area you are most passionate about.

How will I learn?

Our teaching approach encourages you to reflect upon your own role, as both researchers and as professionals, in transformations towards social and environmental justice, considering the ethics of engagement in an unequal world.

The programme helps you develop:

• critical reflective skills

• strong research and critical analysis capabilities

• professional skills tailored to environment and development sectors

• a deep understanding of society and environment issues

It provides a strong basis for engaged citizenship in the world, enabling you to contribute to world debates and actions for reducing inequalities and working towards social and environmental justice and more sustainable practices.

Career opportunities

As a graduate of the MSc Environment and Development, you can seek roles in a variety of sectors, including:

• international and national development agencies

• state agencies

• think tanks

• non-government organisations (NGOs) and civil society

• environmental and development consultancies

• the private sector

Our students are also well-placed to progress to PhD research and academia.

Recent graduates have, for example, progressed to doctoral studies focusing on marine governance in south-east Asia and on conservation practice in east Africa.

Through this MSc, you will meet a range of environment and development practitioners who offer their perspectives on taught courses, through dedicated postgraduate career activities, and potentially through collaborations during your own dissertation research.