SOAS (School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London) has launched new postgraduate distance learning module in Climate Change and Development that will be available to students and professionals from February 2010. The first unit of this, Climate Change and Development Challenges, is now available free on the web as a fully functional ‘taster’ from http://www.soas.ac.uk/courseunits/C124.html , together with wider information about the module.

Web access to the first unit of the module will enable people interested in studying with us to get a taste of this new module. It is also hoped that it will be more widely useful to others who may not be interested in or able to study with us, but who are nevertheless interested in an introduction to this major global issue. The whole unit can be worked through, and the key readings for this unit are also freely available on the internet.

This module is being developed and released at a time of unprecedented scientific, political and popular interest in this critical and major topic. New scientific research is constantly bringing new evidence to bear on the issue. At the same time the process and outcome of the Copenhagen conference in December (and of prior negotiations) will have profound and far reaching effects on the earth's climate, ecosystems and inhabitants. To enable the module to be as up to date as possible in reflecting particularly the outcomes of the COP15 meeting in Copenhagen, this module will exceptionally be shipped to students in two parts: the module textbooks and the CD and associated readings for the first five units will be shipped in time for the February start of the programme; the CD and readings for the remaining five units will be shipped to students by May.

The module may be taken as a short stand alone module or as part of a wider MSc degree, Postgraduate diploma, or Postgraduate certificate in our Sustainable Development, Poverty Reduction, Environmental Management or other programmes.