The Geography & Environmental Studies Department at The Open University has a record of producing innovative research and teaching in both human and environmental geography. Our excellence in research has been recognised in the Research Excellence Framework (REF) 2021, where over 90% of our outputs and 100% of our impact were either "world leading" or "internationally recognised". Our courses cover topics such as sustainability, environmental policy, cities and globalisation.

Our academics

Our discipline shares a longstanding concern with the fundamental geographical concepts of space, place and nature. Stretching across disciplinary and national boundaries, our work forges connections between the many social, environmental, and economic issues, tensions and crises transforming the world around us—from urban politics and changing migration patterns to environmental democracy and making healthy cities. We are always seeking out new ways of engaging wider publics, industries, artists and policymakers to foster social and political change in these turbulent times.

Recent examples of our OU/BBC co-productions include Springwatch, This Fishing Life, Five Billion Pound Super Sewer and Thames Water. Work with education partners includes the Geographical Association and teachers in Cameroon on Global inequality and the climate crisis in school geography and the Voices from the Global South project with the International Geographers Union and the Royal Geographical Society with the Institute of British Geographers.

Our research

Established in 2009, OpenSpace Research Centre sits at our intellectual and operational heart of our research environment. Our research clusters are organised around the themes: space and power; environment and politics; culture and practice. Examples of our recent projects include:

• Decolonising Education for Peace in Africa
• Open City
• Sustainability, Inclusiveness and Governance of Mini-Grids in Africa
• Stories-so-far: the Doreen Massey archive project
• Catalysing transformative food futures for global sustainability
• Urban Bio-Labs: engaging publics with urban heritage through plants

Banner image: South West Images Scotland / Alamy; Inset image: Chris Bull / Alamy