Postgraduate - Area of study International development and environmental analysis

International development is an interdisciplinary area of study focusing broadly on societies, the human development, and the achievement of greater quality of life for humans - particularly those living in poorer countries or regions. It focuses mainly on policies and institutions that emerged after the Second World War to address the needs of communities in former colonies. As such, international development studies encompass, among others, topics such as foreign aid, governance, healthcare, education, poverty reduction, gender equality, disaster preparedness, infrastructure, economics, human rights, environmental degradation and natural resource management.

At Monash University, the study of international development is closely linked to environmental change, as the majority of communities classified as 'underdeveloped' are often highly dependent on land, forest and marine-based resources for their subsistence and livelihoods, and because processes of economic growth, industrialisation and other aspects of modernity often lead to changes in access to and control of resources, overexploitation and degradation of natural resources and environmental conditions. Socially and environmentally sustainable development, therefore, forms a major focus of international development and environmental analysis.