Systems and Processes: Sources of energy in hot desert environments: insolation, winds, runoff Sediment sources, cells and budgets Geomorphic processes: weathering, mass movement, erosion, transportation, deposition Origin and development of landforms in mid and low latitude deserts: aeolian - deflation hollows, desert pavements, ventifacts, yardangs, zeugans, barchans and sief dunes; water - wadis, bahadas, pediments, playas and inselbergs Distinctively arid geomorphic processes: weathering (thermal fracture, exfoliation, chemical weathering, block + granular disintegration The role of wind: erosion (deflation + abrasion), transportation, suspension, saltation, surface creep, deposition Sources of water: exogenous, endoreic + ephemeral, the episodic role of water, sheet flooding and channel flash flooding

The Concept of a Hazard in a Geographical Context: Nature, forms and potential impacts of a natural hazards Hazard perception and its economic + cultural determinants Characteristic human responses and their response to a hazard incidence, intensity, magnitude, distribution and level of development The Park model of human response to hazards The Hazard Management Cycle

Plate Tectonics: Earth structure and internal energy sources Plate tectonic theory of crustal evolution: tectonic plates, plate movement, gravitational sliding, ridge push, slab pull, convection currents, sea-floor spreading Destructive, constructive and conservative plate margins Characteristic processes: seismicity and vulcanicity Associated landforms: young fold mountains, rift valleys, ocean ridges, deep sea trenches, island arcs and volcanoes Magma plumes and their relationship to plate movement

Desertification: The changing extent and distribution of hot deserts over the last 10,000 years The causes of desertification: climate change, human impact, animals Distribution of areas at risk Impact on ecosystems, landscapes and populations Predicted climate change and its impacts Alternative possible futures for local populations

Seismic Hazards: The nature of seismicity and its relation to plate tectonics Forms of seismic hazard: earthquakes, shockwaves, tsunamis, liquefaction, landslides Spatial distribution, randomness, magnitude, frequency, regularity, predictability of hazard events Impacts: primary/secondary, environmental, economic, social, political Short and long term responses: risk management to reduce the impacts of hazard through preparedness, mitigation, prevention and adaptation

Deserts as Natural Systems: Systems in physical geography: systems concepts and their application to the development of desert landscapes Inputs, outputs, energy, stores/components, flows/transfers, positive/negative feedbacks and dynamic equilibrium The concepts of landform and landscape, and how related landforms combine to form characteristic landscapes The global distribution of mid + low latitude deserts and their margins (arid and semi-arid) Characteristics of hot desert environments and their margins: climate, soils, vegetation (and their interaction) Water balance and aridity index The causes of aridity: atmospheric processes relating to pressure, winds, continentality, relief and cold ocean currents

Population Change: Factors in natural population change: the demographic transition model, key vital rates, age-sex composition; cultural controls Models of natural population change and their application in contrasting physical and human settings Concept of the Demographic Dividend International migration: refugees, asylum seekers and economic migrants - environmental and socio-economic causes, processes Demographic, environmental, social, economic, health and political implications of migration

Global Population Futures: Health impacts of global environmental change: ozone depletion - skin cancer, cataracts; climate change - thermal stress, emergent and changing distribution of vector borne diseases, agricultural productivity and nutritional standards Prospects for the global population Projected distributions Critical appraisal of future population-environment relationships

Environment and Population: Global and regional patterns of food production and consumption Agricultural systems and agricultural productivity Relationship with key physical environmental variables: climate and soils Characteristics and distribution of two major climatic types to exemplify relationships between climate and human activities and numbers Climate change and its affect on agriculture Characteristics and distribution of two key zonal soils to exemplify the relationship between soils and human activities, especially agriculture Strategies to ensure food security

Critical appraisal of the developing governance of Antarctica Madrid Protocol Whaling Moratorium (ICW) The UN Environmental Programme (UNEP) The International Whaling Commission (IWC) The Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources The Antarctic Treaty Agreement The Antarctic Treaty System **The Role of NGO’s in monitoring threats and enhancing protection of Antarctica *** Scientific Committee on Antarctic Research (SCAR) Antarctic and Southern Ocean Coalition (ASOC) World Park Antarctica: Greenpeace

Volcanic Hazards: The nature of vulcanicity and its relation to plate tectonics Forms of volcanic hazard: nuées ardentes, lava flows, mudflows, pyroclastic flows, ash fallout, gases/acid rain, tephra Spatial distribution, magnitude, frequency, regularity and predictability of hazard events Impacts: primary/secondary, environmental, economic, social, political Short and long term responses: risk management designed to reduce the impacts of the hazard through preparedness, mitigation, prevention and adaptation

Fires in Nature: Nature of wildfires Conditions favouring intense wildfires: vegetation type, fuel characteristics, climate and recent weather and fire behaviour Causes of fires: natural and human agency Impacts: primary/secondary, environmental, social, economic, political Short and long term responses: risk management designed to reduce the impacts of the hazard through preparedness, mitigation, prevention and adaptation

Arid Landscape Development in Contrasting Settings The relationship between process, time, landforms and landscapes in mid and low latitude desert settings: characteristic desert landscapes

Quantitative and Qualitative Skills: Students must engage with a range of quantitative and relevant qualitative skills, within the theme landscape systems These should include: observation skills, measurement and geospatial mapping skills and data manipulation and statistical skills applied to field measurements

Introduction: The environmental context for human population characteristics and change Key elements in the physical environment: climate, soils, resource distributions including water supply Key population parameters: distribution, density, numbers, change Key role of development processes Global patterns of population numbers, densities and change rates

Environment, Health and Wellbeing: Global patterns of health, mortality and morbidity Economic and social development and the epidemiological transition The relationship between environment variables (climate, topography + drainage) and incidence of disease Air quality and health Water quality and health Management and mitigation strategies Role of international agencies and NGO’s in promoting health and combating disease at the global scale

Principles of Population Ecology and their Application to Human Populations: Population growth dynamics Concepts of overpopulation, underpopulation and optimum population Implications of population size and structure for the balance between population and resources The concepts of ‘carrying capacity’ and ‘ecological footprint’ and their implication Population, resources and pollution model: positive and negative feedback Contrasting perspectives on population growth and its implications; Malthusian, neo-Malthusian and alternatives such as associated with Boserup and Simon

Storm Hazards: The nature of tropical storms and their underlying causes Forms of hazard: high winds, storm surges, coastal flooding, river flooding and landslides Spatial distribution, magnitude, frequency, regularity, predictability of hazard events Impacts: primary/secondary, environmental, social, economic, political Short and long term responses: risk management designed to reduce the impacts of the hazard through preparedness, mitigation, prevention and adaptation