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International Environmental Politics
Last Updated: 2026-02-05 15:36:25
Abstract
This course focuses on the conditions under which cooperation in international environmental politics emerges and the conditions under which such cooperation and the respective public policies are effective and/or efficient.
Objective
The objectives of this course are to (1) gain an overview of relevant questions in the area of international environmental politics from a social sciences viewpoint; (2) learn how to identify interesting/innovative questions concerning this policy area and how to answer them in a methodologically sophisticated way; (3) gain an overview of important global and regional environmental problems and how they could be solved.
Content
This course deals with how and why international cooperation in environmental politics emerges, and under what circumstances such cooperation is effective and efficient. Based on theories of international political economy and theories of government regulation various examples of international environmental politics are discussed: the management of international water resources, political responses to global warming, the protection of the stratospheric ozone layer, the reduction of long-range transboundary air pollution in Europe, protection of biodiversity, how to deal with plastic waste, the prevention of pollution of the oceans, etc. The course is open to all ETH students. Participation does not require previous coursework in the social sciences. After passing an end-of-semester test (requirement: grade 4.0 or higher) students will receive 3 ECTS credit points. The workload is around 90 hours (meetings, reading assignments, preparation of test). Visiting students (e.g., from the University of Zurich) are subject to the same conditions. Registration of visiting students in the web-based system of ETH is compulsory. *** DUE TO COVID-RELATED ETH RESTRICTIONS, THIS COURSE WILL BE TOUGHT FULLY ONLINE VIA ZOOM. REGISTERED STUDENTS WILL RECEIVE THE ACCESS INFORMATION A FEW DAYS BEFORE THE COURSE BEGINS.
Resources
Lecture Notes
Assigned reading materials and slides will be available via Moodle. In view of COVID-19 related restrictions this course will take place fully online. For each unit of the course there will be three components:1. A pre-recorded lecture by Prof. Bernauer, available via Moodle2. Reading assignments, available via Moodle3. Online meetings (via Zoom) at regular intervals (Mondays, 17:15 – 18:15) where we discuss your questions concerning the lecture and the reading assignments. The pre-recorded lectures will be available a few days ahead of the online meetings (ca. Thursday for the online meeting on the following Monday). You must watch the lecture and complete the reading assignment for the respective unit ahead of the online meeting on the following Monday. This online meeting will NOT be recorded in order to protect the privacy of the participating students and the professor and allow for open and frank discussion.REGISTERED STUDENTS WILL RECEIVE THE ACCESS INFORMATION A FEW DAYS BEFORE THE COURSE BEGINS.
Literature
In view of COVID-19 related restrictions this course will take place fully online. For each unit of the course there will be three components: 1. A pre-recorded lecture by Prof. Bernauer, available via Moodle 2. Reading assignments, available via Moodle 3. Online meetings (via Zoom) at regular intervals (Mondays, 17:15 – 18:15) where we discuss your questions concerning the lecture and the reading assignments. The pre-recorded lectures will be available a few days ahead of the online meetings (ca. Thursday for the online meeting on the following Monday). You must watch the lecture and complete the reading assignment for the respective unit ahead of the online meeting on the following Monday. This online meeting will NOT be recorded in order to protect the privacy of the participating students and the professor and allow for open and frank discussion.
General Information
- Language
- English
- Levels
- DZ , DS , BSC , SHE , MSC
- Frequency
- Yearly recurring
Examination
- Type
- graded semester performance
Course Components
| Type | Title | Time & Place | Hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| lecture |
International Environmental Politics
The lecturers will communicate the exact lesson times of ONLINE courses.
|
|
2 h weekly |
Offered In
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GESS Science in Perspective (Only the topics listed in this paragraph can be chosen as GESS Science in Perspective. Further below you will find the "type B courses Reflections about subject specific methods and content" as well as the language courses. 6 ECTS need to be acquired during the BA and 2 ECTS during the MA Students who already took a course within their main study program are NOT allowed to take the course again.)
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Type A: Enhancement of Reflection Competence (Suitable for all students. Students who already took a course within their main study program are NOT allowed to take the course again.)
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Type B: Reflection About Subject-Specific Methods and Contents (Subject-specific courses: Recommended for doctoral, master and bachelor students (after first-year examination only). Students who already took a course within their main study program are NOT allowed to take the course again. These course units are also listed under "Type A", which basically means all students can enroll)
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Additional Elective Courses (These Electives may be chosen from the start of the Bachelor Study Programme.)
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Electives (A list with possible electives will be published separately.)
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Educational Science for Teaching Diploma and TC (These are the general course offerings of the programmes Teaching Diploma (TD) - categories Educational Science and Compulsory Elective Courses - and Teaching Certificate (TC) - category Educational Science.)
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