Prerequisite(s): POLS 202. The course will introduce students to the politics of global environmental issues. Students will begin by studying the key actors, concepts, forms of governance and debates that are central to the field. The course then will address important questions in international relations such as the relationship between environmental protection and trade, the achievement of sustainable development, the connection between environmental change and security, and differing perspectives on the environment among different types of states and social groups. The last section will involve case studies which highlight the state and human security consequences of particular environmental problems and explore the forms of governance designed to address them.