Module manager: Dr Matthew Woolgar
Email: m.woolgar@leeds.ac.uk
Taught: Semester 1 (Sep to Jan) View Timetable
Year running 2026/27
This module is not approved as a discovery module
Humanity’s relationship with its natural environment has been a crucial but often fraught aspect of history. In this module you will explore how societies have viewed the environment and efforts they have made to live more harmoniously with the natural world. Taking an approach that is global in scope, you will address important developments in the twentieth and twenty-first centuries. You will consider how the environment has been addressed through lenses including politics, social movements, culture, and scientific enquiry. In doing so, you will examine how societies have grappled with key environmental challenges, such as biodiversity loss, natural resource exploitation, pollution, and climate change. Please note this is an optional module and runs subject to enrolments. If a low number of students choose this module, then the module may not run and you may be asked to choose another module.
This module aims to develop your understanding the global history of environmentalism, considering key challenges in human-environment relations and how societies have tried to address these. Lectures and set texts will introduce you to important themes, issues and arguments. In the seminars you will engage with a range of primary and secondary sources to explore varied perspectives on environmentalism. The module encourages critical reflection on the historical roots of contemporary environmental concerns, and develops your skills in analysing diverse forms of evidence and constructing informed arguments.
On successful completion of the module students will have demonstrated the following learning outcomes relevant to the subject:
1. Critically evaluate the development of environmentalism since 1900.
2. Analyse how environmentalism has manifested in fields of activity such as politics, social movements, culture and science.
3. Evaluate efforts to address issues such as biodiversity loss, natural resource use, pollution and climate change.
Skills Learning Outcomes
On successful completion of the module you will have demonstrated the following skills learning outcomes:
4. Critically analyse scholars’ arguments and interpretations.
5. Evaluate and contextualise relevant primary sources.
6. Construct historical arguments supported by appropriate evidence.
Details of the syllabus will be provided on the Minerva organisation (or equivalent) for the module.
| Delivery type | Number | Length hours | Student hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| Supervision | 2 | 0.2 | 0.4 |
| Lectures | 10 | 1 | 10 |
| Seminars | 10 | 1 | 10 |
| Private study hours | 179.6 | ||
| Total Contact hours | 20.4 | ||
| Total hours (100hr per 10 credits) | 200 | ||
In preparation for the primary source commentary, students will have the opportunity to discuss a plan in an individual meeting with their tutor.
In preparation for the essay, students have the opportunity to discuss an essay plan in an individual meeting with their tutor.
| Assessment type | Notes | % of formal assessment |
|---|---|---|
| Source Analysis | Primary source commentary | 40 |
| Coursework | Essay | 60 |
| Total percentage (Assessment Coursework) | 100 | |
Normally resits will be assessed by the same methodology as the first attempt, unless otherwise stated
Check the module area in Minerva for your reading list
Last updated: 30/04/2026
Errors, omissions, failed links etc should be notified to the Catalogue Team