BSc Environment and Sustainable Development with Economics

This degree provides a thorough grounding in environmental change and sustainable development, combined with rigorous economics training.

The teaching goes far beyond pure academic theory – you’ll learn why policy issues matter and see first-hand the impact of our research on the real world. There’s also an opportunity to participate in an international field trip.

You’ll be taught by leading experts who are influencing national government and international policy debates.

When you graduate, you’ll be well prepared for a career in the third sector, banking, consulting or many international organisations.

This is a major/minor programme – with a 75/25 split between geography and economics.

Environment

• N Castree Making Sense of Nature (Routledge, 2013).
• S Chant and C McIlwaine Geographies of Development in the 21st Century: an introduction to the Global South (Edward Elgar, 2009)
• J Elliot An Introduction to Sustainable Development (4th edition, Routledge, 2012)
• J P Evans Environmental Governance (Routledge, 2012)
• A S Goudie The Human Impact on the Natural World: past, present and future (7th edition, Wiley-Blackwell, 2013)
• N Klein This Changes Everything: capitalism vs. the climate (Simon & Schuster, 2014)
• D Pearce and B Barbier Blueprint for a Sustainable Economy (Earthscan, 2000)
• D Simpson, M Toman and R U Ayres Scarcity and Growth Revisited (Resources for the Future, 2005)
• M Whitehead Environmental Transformations: a geography of the anthropocene (Routledge, 2014)

Economics

• A V Banerjee and E Duflo Poor Economics: barefoot hedge-fund managers, DIY doctors and the surprising truth about life on less than $1 a day (Penguin, 2012)
• T Harford The Undercover Economist (Abacus, 2007)
• T Harford The Logic of Life (Little Brown, 2009)
• P Krugman End This Depression Now! (W W Norton, 2012)
• S D Levitt and S J Dubner Freakonomics (Penguin, 2007)
• S D Levitt and S J Dubner Superfreakonomics(Penguin, 2010)

The UK launch of these books was held at LSE and there are podcasts of these authors speaking in the Old Theatre. Listen to the podcasts of these and other talks.

You might also want to have a look at one or more economics textbooks, to have a clear idea of what the serious university study of the subject involves, which will differ from these popular presentations. Although the texts and editions listed below are currently recommended for the first year, other editions of these books and other university-level textbooks are also entirely valid for this first investigation.

• N G Mankiw Macroeconomics (7th edition, Worth Publishers, 2010)
• W Morgan, M L Katz and H Rosen Microeconomics (2nd edition, McGraw-Hill, 2009)

Your first year provides a grounding in environmental change and sustainable development, combined with training in economics and mathematical methods.

You’ll take courses on environmental change and sustainable development, as well as microeconomics and macroeconomics. Additionally, you will take two half-unit quantitative methods courses and LSE100.

Your second year includes two compulsory environmental courses, economics courses, and one option (worth one unit) – which could be a course from outside the department.

You can take part in a field trip (normally overseas) as part of the option course Field Methods in Geography and Environment (see the Fees and Funding for details of the costs).

You’ll choose courses from a range of geography and environment options (worth two units). You’ll also take courses (worth two units) from a list of economics and geography options. This can include a dissertation.

Our department is highly regarded both nationally and internationally – ranked second for Geography in the QS World University Rankings 2024.

Here at LSE, we offer a unique opportunity to study geography in a university with a worldwide reputation in the social sciences. We specialise in economic, urban and development geography, environmental social science and climate change, all with a strong emphasis on real-world applications.

Many of our academics are internationally renowned in their fields. You’ll find a good balance of experienced and younger academics in the department. Within the team, we’ve had three holders of the highly prestigious Philip Leverhulme Prize Fellowships for researchers under the age of 36.

Our research is interdisciplinary and international in its scope and we work closely with academics from several other departments at LSE. Teaching staff are active within the following research centres:

• Cañada Blanch Centre for Contemporary Spanish Studies
• Centre for Climate Change Economics and Policy
• Centre for Economic Performance
• Grantham Research Institute on Climate Change and the Environment
• LSE London
• Middle East Centre
• Saw Swee Hock Southeast Asia Centre
• Transition Pathway Initiative Centre
• What Works Centre for Local Economic Growth

Based in the heart of London opposite Lincoln’s Inn Fields, the department offers a lively, welcoming and supportive community for students and staff.
Learn more about our undergraduate, postgraduate and PhD study opportunities, as well as our research.

Department of Geography and Environment

We consider each application carefully, taking into account all the details you’ve included on your UCAS form, such as:

• academic achievement, including predicted and achieved grades (also see specific information about this programme in the "entry requirements" above)
• subjects and subject combinations (also see specific information about this programme in the "entry requirements" above)
• your personal statement
• your teacher’s reference
• educational circumstances

You may also have to provide evidence of your English proficiency, although this is not needed at the application stage. See our English language requirements page.

We’re looking for students who demonstrate:

• strong mathematical abilities and quantitative skills
• an ability and desire to contribute to the environmental debate
• an interest in the significance and impact of policy at all levels
• an ability to evaluate and challenge conventional views
• an ability to follow complex lines of reasoning and analyse data
• intellectual curiosity
• independent thinking and initiative
• excellent time-management skills
• self-motivation and a willingness to work hard
• a proportionate interest in the environment and economics.

This is the 2025/26 tuition fee. The home student undergraduate fee may rise in line with inflation in subsequent years.

You should expect to pay a contribution of approximately £500 towards your fieldtrip if you choose the second year option course Field Methods in Geography. There are fieldtrip bursaries available from the department for students who can document financial need. An alternative field exercise will be undertaken by students who are unable to participate in the above one-week residential fieldtrip.

This is the 2025/26 tuition fee for international students. The overseas tuition fee will remain at the same amount for each subsequent year of your full-time study regardless of the length of your programme. This information applies to new overseas undergraduate entrants starting their studies from 2025/26 onwards.

You should expect to pay a contribution of approximately £500 towards your fieldtrip if you choose the second year option course Field Methods in Geography. There are fieldtrip bursaries available from the Department for students who can document financial need. An alternative field exercise will be undertaken by students who are unable to participate in the above one-week residential fieldtrip.

Formative coursework

All taught courses include formative coursework, which is not assessed. This helps prepare you for summative assessment. We use a wide range of formative assessment methods, such as essays, case studies, reports, quizzes and mock exams. Feedback on coursework is an essential part of the learning experience. Feedback is normally provided within three weeks – provided you’ve submitted your work on time.

Summative assessment

This assessment counts towards your final course mark and degree award.

• Most full units are assessed through coursework and/or Summer Term exams.
• Autumn Term half units are mostly (but not exclusively) assessed through coursework.
• Winter Term half units are mostly assessed through either coursework or Summer Term exams.

You’ll also receive feedback on summative coursework. For assessments set during the Autumn or Winter Terms, individual feedback is normally provided within four weeks. For dissertations, you’ll receive feedback within four weeks of the start of the next term (School holidays excluded).

Please note: assessment methods vary by course and the above details are for general guidance only. You’ll find details of formative coursework and summative assessments for each course in the relevant course guide.

Find out more about LSE’s teaching and assessment methods.

Recent graduates have gone on to work in all areas of environmental policy and economics at the local, national and international level, whether in the public sector for government departments and agencies, in the private sector for industry and environmental/management consultancies, or in the NGO sector for pressure groups and think tanks. A number of recent graduates have also gone on to further study at graduate level.

Further information on graduate destinations for this programme

From CV workshops through to careers fairs, LSE offers lots of information and support to help you make that all-important step from education into work.

Many of the UK’s top employers give careers presentations at the School during the year and there are numerous workshops covering topics such as job hunting, managing interviews, writing a cover letter and using LinkedIn.

See LSE Careers for further details.