Human conflict has both short and long term effects on the natural world. The environment is directly impacted by pollution and explosions; and can be used as a weapon of war. In the longer term, sustainable environmental management is disrupted when conflict destabilises social systems and people are denied access to natural resources. As resources become scarcer, it might be expected that people come into conflict about access to natural resources.

This course explores three aspects of conflict and resource scarcity, and applies these to explore decision making and negotiation skills.