Oxford University’s Department of Politics and International Relations (DPIR) has launched a new Geopolitical Risk Programme, offering an “exclusive Oxford experience” for its attendants this November.
The programme, which will be hosted at Rhodes House, will cost each participant £6,900, which includes accommodation for both nights of the stay as well as catering, a welcome reception, academic sessions, and a tour of the city. The keynote speech on the first evening of the two-night programme will be delivered by the University Chancellor, Lord Hague, who has publicly endorsed the Geopolitical Risk Programme.
On the aims and motivation behind the new Geopolitical Risk Programme, a DPIR spokesperson told Cherwell that the “DPIR felt strongly that it could leverage the excellent and world leading expertise of its broad teaching mission to support organisations that need to anticipate and adapt to global risks.”
Participants will benefit from teaching by leading academics in the department and interactive seminars. A DPIR spokesperson told Cherwell that participants will “gain a deeper understanding of how political, economic, and societal forces interact to create risk and opportunity in today’s interconnected world whilst offering strategic insight into global political risk and uncertainty.”
Places on the programme are limited to 30, and the DPIR will consider mid-to-senior professionals from across all sectors and backgrounds, though this will be on a first-come, first-served basis. The department is planning to host more sessions of the programme next year, though the dates are yet to be announced.
The DPIR describes one of the selling points of the programme as its “immersive intellectual atmosphere”, given Oxford ranks second in the world for Politics, and first in the UK. Among the academics giving seminars are Professor Desmond King and Professor Jane Green, both of Nuffield College, who will deliver seminars on US domestic policies under Trump, and socioeconomic changes in British voting.
The DPIR told Cherwell: “We live in a world that is currently defined by political uncertainty, economic volatility, and geopolitical tensions. DPIR felt strongly that it could leverage the excellent and world leading expertise of its broad teaching mission to support organisations that need to anticipate and adapt to global risks.
“This two and a half day, in-person programme brings together world-leading Oxford academics and leaders in the public and private sector to explore the key geopolitical challenges shaping decision-making across a variety of sectors. Through interactive seminars, participants will gain a deeper understanding of how political, economic, and societal forces interact to create risk and opportunity in today’s interconnected world whilst offering strategic insight into global political risk and uncertainty.”
