Australian National University

The course offers an interdisciplinary overview of politics and security in contemporary Iran. It examines Iran’s geopolitical, geostrategic, and geographical significance in the region and analyzes key domestic security challenges facing the state. Adopting a knowledge-based and experiential approach, the course explores six interconnected divisions shaping Iran and its regional context: social (class divisions), societal (identity-based divisions), national (people–state relations), political (internal divisions within the political system), regional (regional rivalries), and international (great power politics). The course provides an intellectual and analytical framework for understanding the complex issues facing Iran and its ties to regional and global dynamics.

This course examines how nations fight and how others fight back. It covers key academic frameworks used to examine and understand the phenomena of war, as well as looks at several major examples of conflict from the late nineteenth century to the twenty-first century. Through this approach students will gain an understanding of the historical development of war and its impact on society with the idea that by better understanding war we might prevent it from occurring in the future.  

This course examines the fundamentals of climate and climate change science, reviews the history of climate change action internationally and in Australia, and outlines the current and projected state of climate change and climate change action. It explores the impetus and options for climate change action, the intersection of climate change and sustainable global development, and why, despite the increasing urgency, international and domestic climate action is often limited.

This course develops advanced competence in modern Japanese and builds a working knowledge of contemporary issues in Japanese society. Course materials draw from a variety of up-to-date, authentic sources, including television, film, podcasts, websites, and print media. Focusing on listening, speech-making, and presentation skills, the course supports the transition from intermediate to advanced language proficiency by moving beyond textbook-based learning to active engagement with real-world materials.

This course builds on the language skills and cultural knowledge acquired in previous studies. It's is to further develop students' reading, writing, listening and speaking skills in French, and to strengthen the capacity to reflect critically on cross-cultural differences between Francophone cultures and other cultures.

This course examines the key processes that shape Australia's biophysical environment. It explores Australia’s environmental evolution over time and provides foundational knowledge across several environmental science disciplines. The course addresses contemporary environmental issues and highlights the unique challenges facing Australia’s environment in the future. Topics include geology, climate and weather, soils, landscape evolution, water, flora, fauna, and biodiversity, with an emphasis on the interdependence of these systems. The course also investigates current issues in Australian environmental science within the context of the continent’s environmental history.

This course examines international security issues, especially those related to inter-state conflict such as arms races, international law, nuclear weapons, crisis bargaining and cyber warfare. 

This course aims to develop students' capacities in research, data and writing in political science and international relations. Topics may include: critical analysis of sources, critique of data sources, constructing explanatory models, standards of logical demonstration, and organizing and presenting research results.