Issues Facing Our World
In times of uncertainty, knowledge can help us understand what’s going on around us. City Lit’s range of History, Politics and Science courses explore a number of contemporary issues facing the world right now. A few of the questions we’re currently asking are:
- Can history help us navigate modern issues and crises?
- How can we safeguard democracies around the world including our own?
- Are there other ways of organising our economy?
- What is the impact of climate change on our lives?
Taught by experts in their field, our courses give you the opportunity to explore current affairs, historical issues, and global challenges. Join us as we discuss, debate, and dissect the answers.
32 courses available
The legacies of the Troubles in Ireland and Northern Ireland todayAn exploration of the sectarian violence that engulfed Northern Ireland, and how the conflict still shapes politics, memory, community relations, and identity across both Ireland and Northern Ireland today.
Full fee £189.00 Senior fee £151.00 Concession £123.00- Political leadership in modern UK politics
Explore the history of key general elections in recent British history, including Thatcher’s 1979 victory, the rise of New Labour, and the success and downfall of the Conservatives in the 21st century. Discover how the outcome of elections is shaped by party leadership, communications, policy, the media, and more.
Keeley Street
Thu 22 Oct 2026Ian McGarvieFull fee £139.00 Senior fee £111.00 Concession £90.00 - Global politics for beginners: a short introductionThis one-day introductory course on Global Politics for Beginners is designed to provide participants with a foundational understanding of key political concepts, global power dynamics, and contemporary international issues.Full fee £79.00 Senior fee £63.00 Concession £51.00
- Corruption and colonialism: how the past affects the presentIn large parts of the Global South, corruption is rampant but that was not always the case. By upending local values and customs and forcibly replacing indigenous institutions with Westerns structures, colonialism introduced systemic corruption on a grand scale that continues to this day.
Keeley Street
Sat 31 Oct 2026Tariq HassanFull fee £79.00 Senior fee £63.00 Concession £51.00 - Historical memory in UkraineExplore how Ukraine’s past is remembered and contested. This study day examines key historical events and symbols—including the Cossacks, the Holodomor Famine, and Chernobyl—and how memory shapes Ukrainian identity, politics, and global narratives in the 21st century.
Keeley Street
Sat 7 Nov 2026Olivia DurandFull fee £79.00 Senior fee £63.00 Concession £51.00 - Two and a half years in: how is the government faring?
The course will assess the performance of the Labour government in the eighteen months since its landslide victory in July 2024. This course will assess the government performance in key policy areas and will also assess potential developments in the future. It will also assess the government’s responses to developing issues.
Keeley Street
Thu 19 Nov 2026Ian McGarvieFull fee £139.00 Senior fee £111.00 Concession £90.00 - Historical memory in RussiaLearn how Russia’s past is remembered, contested, and rewritten in the present day. This study day explores Soviet and imperial legacies, historical narratives, and how memory is instrumentalised to shape national identity, politics, and contemporary conflicts.
Keeley Street
Sat 21 Nov 2026Olivia DurandFull fee £79.00 Senior fee £63.00 Concession £51.00 - How America replaced Britain in the Middle East 1945-2003This course charts the post 1945 entrance of the United States into the Middle East and the power struggle which ensued with Britain as a consequence. The course pierces the official discourse on the transatlantic relationship and provides a different perspective on how to understand and explain the volatile politics of the region.Full fee £79.00 Senior fee £63.00 Concession £51.00
- Payback time: historical injustices and reparationsWhat does a society owe to the descendants of people colonised, brutalised or otherwise exploited? The issue of financial compensation - reparations - to make amends for past horrors and their continuing harm remains complex and contentious.
Keeley Street
Sat 5 Dec 2026Tariq HassanFull fee £79.00 Senior fee £63.00 Concession £51.00 - Earth's six major mass extinctions: an introduction
An introductory course on a long-term perspective of extinction events throughout earth’s history, reminding us of the fragility of the planet's ecosystems. Looking back over the last 450 million years of earth’s history we will go beyond the extinction of the dinosaurs to mass extinctions that were even more devastating.
Keeley Street
Sat 5 Dec 2026Gary RetallickFull fee £79.00 Senior fee £63.00 Concession £51.00 - Digital Archaeology: AI and the Preservation of the Past
Explore how AI and digital tools are reshaping archaeology and heritage. Reflect on the ethics, power and promise of preserving the past in a data-driven world. Discuss why heritage still matters.
Full fee £79.00 Senior fee £63.00 Concession £51.00 - Climate justice: creating a more equal world
The unfettered exploitation of natural resources by the Global North has led to an environmental catastrophe faced most severely and immediately by the Global South. Climate justice aims to deal with the inherent unfairness in the approaches to mitigate climate change and to help Global South adapt to its impacts.
Keeley Street
Sat 9 Jan 2027Tariq HassanFull fee £79.00 Senior fee £63.00 Concession £51.00 - AI, Power and Politics: Who Controls the Future?
Who controls the future of AI? Explore the politics, power and global inequalities behind artificial intelligence and debate what’s at stake for democracy, human rights and society in a rapidly changing world.
Full fee £79.00 Senior fee £63.00 Concession £51.00 - Unfinished Stories: Memory and the Legacy of European Colonialism
The legacies of European colonial empires continue to define global politics, economies, and identities. This course explores how former colonies and imperial powers remember, contest, and live with their shared imperial pasts.
Keeley Street
Thu 28 Jan 2027Olivia DurandFull fee £189.00 Senior fee £189.00 Concession £123.00 - Foreign aid: panacea or poison?
Debating foreign aid: who gives it, why it’s given, and whether it helps or harms development-from the Global South to US-China rivalry
Keeley Street
Sat 6 Feb 2027Tariq HassanFull fee £79.00 Senior fee £63.00 Concession £51.00
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