Catastrophe and collapse: exploring societal failures, extinction and existential risk

Throughout the course we will cultivate a critical understanding of the current tools used for forecasting future global catastrophes and understanding risk.

Learning outcomes

1. A critical understanding of different approaches to understanding human extinction and societal collapse;
2. An appreciation of how history can (and can’t) inform our understanding of future catastrophes;
3. A basic comprehension of the different tools used to forecast future global catastrophes, including their benefits and limitations;
4. A developed capacity for understanding how political structures and institutions contribute to catastrophe and their prevention.