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BA Sustainable Development
About this course
Sustainable development is a field of study that takes seriously one of the defining challenges of our time: how human societies can meet the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet theirs. It draws on environmental science, economics, political science, social science and ethics to examine the complex relationships between economic activity, social wellbeing and the health of natural systems, and to explore what genuine sustainability looks like in practice across different scales and contexts. At the University of the Highlands and Islands this four-year programme is designed to engage deeply with the particular environmental, social and economic conditions of Scotland, the Highlands and the island communities that UHI serves, while also developing the broader analytical frameworks that sustainable development requires. You will study ecological systems and environmental change alongside theories of development, environmental governance, community resilience and the economics of sustainability transition. The combination of local rootedness and global perspective is one of the distinctive qualities of studying sustainable development at an institution so embedded in a region facing real and immediate challenges around land use, energy, community sustainability and climate adaptation. Graduates of sustainable development programmes work across the environmental, policy, community development and business sectors. Roles in environmental consultancy, local and regional government sustainability and planning, community development organisations, NGOs, international development agencies and corporate sustainability functions are among the most common destinations. The field is expanding rapidly as organisations across every sector face pressure to demonstrate genuine environmental and social responsibility rather than token gestures. Some graduates go on to postgraduate study in environmental management, sustainable development, policy or related disciplines, using the undergraduate programme as the foundation for more specialist professional or research roles.
Syllabus & Modules
Typical curriculumStudent Satisfaction
National Student Survey - 15 respondents (65% response rate)
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