The Climate Crisis Action Lab
Place yourself in the shoes of an environmental rights investigator or campaigner and work in multi-disciplinary student groups to tackle a climate-related unlawful government policy or failure to act.
In this exciting new module, you will be placed in the position of strategic environmental rights investigators and campaigners. Working with students from other disciplines, your team will work together on an issue presented by an external agency (such as a non-governmental organisation) to understand a climate crisis issue at a strategic level.
For example, you might be asked to explore how to affect change at a national level in relation to the dumping of raw sewage into the UK’s rivers. To do this you will need to investigate the scientific evidence and background, the impact on local communities, and the possible legal or political solutions as well as any obstacles in the way of achieving a solution.
Find out more about this module
Work as environmental rights investigators
Research a climate crisis strategy issue and investigate possible legal and political solutions
Team up with students from other disciplines
Bring knowledge from your own discipline to the team and work together to solve a climate crisis issue
Use chemistry, law and geography to solve an issue
Understand how different disciplines are used to understand and resolve a climate change issue
A module for everyone
The module is open to students from all subject backgrounds
An interdisciplinary module
The Climate Crisis Action Lab is part of our suite of York Interdisciplinary Modules (YIMs) and is available to choose as an elective module in 2024/25. Students from all Departments/Schools across the University have an opportunity to take part (subject to timetabling availability/department constraints).
The Climate Crisis Action Lab is a collaboration between the Departments of Chemistry, and Environment and Geography, and the York Law School.
Issues you might tackle
The Climate Crisis Action Lab allows you to work on a specific strategy issue relating to the climate crisis. Have a look below at some example issues that you might work on.
An unlawful government policy
A failure by the government to meet its obligations under international law to reduce carbon emissions
A decision with consequences
A decision to permit the opening of a new mine
A failure to act
A refusal to take steps to compel water companies to stop discharging raw sewage into a river
How to register
The Climate Crisis Action Lab is part of our suite of sustainability-related York Interdisciplinary Modules (YIMs) available in 2024/25. This module is available for 3rd Year undergraduate students, and will run in semester 2.
Students should apply to take YIMs using the usual electives process in their Department/ School. Students should contact the module conveners listed on the module catalogue with any questions about the module and esay@york.ac.uk with any questions about the process.
We also note that it may not always be possible to grant your request to undertake an elective module because of timetabling or other constraints.