Development and Environment in Southeast Asia

This module focuses on the intersection between development and environment in Southeast Asia. Utilising a range of conceptual lenses from sustainable development to political ecology, the lectures and readings will interrogate the varied environmental impacts and ramifications of development of the region. The module will pay particular attention to the ways in which environmental change affects ordinary people and everyday lives, taking a case study approach. Case studies will include issues such as upland living and forest peoples, trans-boundary environmental issues, and the role and place of Buddhism as an eco-centric religion. The module with encourage a critical view of the trade-offs between economic growth (development) and environmental protection.