Sustainable Cities,MSc

Our MSc Sustainable Cities combines social and environmental approaches to understanding and responding to the climate crisis in highly unequal cities. It offers you the opportunity to understand environmental risks, such as floods, droughts, inadequate housing, food insecurity and energy crises, and how their impacts are unevenly distributed across geographies and social demographics such as race, class, religion and gender.

Why choose this course?

• It allows you to build a strong theoretical foundation in urban sustainability and climate change while tailoring your learning through a wide range of option modules that reflect your passions and career goals.
• This interdisciplinary course brings together the unique expertise of staff members working on urban geography, environmental studies, geographic information systems (GIS) and development to explore how environmental and social concerns can inform a strategy towards a more sustainable urban future.
• You will have the opportunity to join an optional, small-group fieldtrip to Dakar, Senegal, where you will conduct independent research and engage with local academics and NGOs to explore globalisation, urbanisation and development in context.
• You can also take advantage of our London location through another optional fieldtrip module centred on the River Thames, offering a unique opportunity to explore the critical infrastructures that underpin the sustainable development of this city.

What you will learn

Modules on this course are taught by academics active in their research and keen to share their insights on political ecology, climate change, environmental sustainability, urban inequality, critical geography, food security and urban governance. You will:

• explore different theoretical approaches in urban sustainability
• apply conceptual tools to distinct challenges engendered by the intersection of climate change and urbanisation
• learn about the limitations and strengths of adaptative solutions, environmental policies and initiatives.

You will also develop valuable transferable skills through conducting your own independent research project on a topic of your choice with the guidance of an experienced, dedicated supervisor.

How you will learn

You will be taught via a combination of lectures and seminars. Lectures are designed to provide you with an outline or overview of the topic, to engage you with the material and direct you to other resources. Seminars are group sessions where you will contribute to discussion or group work around the topic.

This course is available to study full- or part-time and follows an evening timetable.

This course is part of our Birkbeck Flexible Master’s UK, which gives you the choice of how you want to study - on campus, online or via flexible learning, which combines both.

If you require a Student visa to study in the UK, you will only be able to apply for the on-campus study option for this course. Online and flexible options will not be available to you because they may affect the conditions of your visa.