Issues Facing Our World

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.

From glass ceilings to quiet revolutions—how far have we really come? Explore feminist thought through everyday life, resistance, and identity across work, family, media, and education.

Everybody is ‘for’ liberty and freedom, but what exactly does it involve? How might our understanding and appreciation of it changed over time? Is freedom something we ‘have’ or is it something that is contingently exercised? To what extent does the freedom of others affect my own? How might one conceive of a ‘free’ society? In this course, you will be introduced and invited to think critically about the idea of freedom and its conceptualisation in western thought, focusing particularly on the impact of liberalism and how it shaped our understanding of what it means to be free and live in a (un–) free society.

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.

Explore how inclusive policy and leadership can transform the future of work for neurodivergent individuals. Discover practical strategies and real-world case studies for building workplaces where cognitive diversity is valued and supported.

This course explores slavery in an historic and modern context as well as international efforts to eradicate this unethical practice in the Global South as well as the Global North.

Anita holds a MSc from University College London in Global Governance & Ethics, School of Public Policy, also in Construction Economics & Management, Bartlett School of Sustainable Construction. She studied civil engineering and management at Imperial College, as well as art, art history, politics and philosophy at City Lit. Her 30 years’ experience in education, training and senior advisory roles spans the public, private and not-for-profit sectors including an international children’s charity and across UK Government. Anita is involved in developing international standards in sustainable development and presented ‘Global Governance at Risk’ at the 2025 United Nations Association UK Conference. She was interviewed by the BBC and CNBC in relation to handling the risks posed by the Covid-19 global crisis. Her artwork was selected for a World Bank exhibition on climate change. Anita’s approach to teaching is to facilitate sessions in an inclusive and collaborative manner. 

Particularly since the emergence of the Black Lives Matter movement and resonating calls to abolish the police, the prison industrial complex or even fossil fuels, we have seen an unprecedented increase in the language of abolition in public discourse in recent years. But what is it that abolitionists really want? How are we to understand abolitionism as a political project and an emancipatory practice?