Delivery method: Online learning with tutor support. 

1 x 2hr optional in-person field trip to the beaches in Aberystwyth - Saturday 13/12/2025

Britain’s coastlines are dynamic landscapes shaped by time, energy, natural processes and human activity. In today’s climate of extreme weather, environmental degradation and socioeconomic instability, it is increasingly important to consider the factors that create and reshape coastal areas, as well as current pressures, solutions and future possibilities for ‘life on the edge'.

Course Description

Britain’s coastlines are dynamic landscapes shaped by time, energy, natural processes and human activity. In today’s climate of extreme weather, environmental degradation and socioeconomic instability, it is increasingly important to consider the factors that create and reshape coastal areas, as well as current pressures, solutions and future possibilities for ‘life on the edge’.   

 This wide-ranging course will draw upon geographical, historical, sociological and ecological perspectives and will be of interest to learners who wish to develop a deeper understanding of how coastal environments in Wales and the UK have been formed, are managed, and change over time. In ‘Living On The Edge: Processes, Places and Pressures in Coastal Environments’, we will discuss waves and tidal systems; coastal landforms and the processes of erosion and deposition that create them; the social history of Britain’s coastal towns; current challenges facing coastal environments and communities, as well as conservation efforts and sustainability in coastal areas. By the end of this course, learners will have the necessary skills and knowledge to describe and interpret the coastal environments around them and be able to view these familiar places from a new perspective.    

Learners will develop their understanding of the geological factors, biological factors, energy inputs and human influences that shape the interface between land and sea in a series of online lectures to enable students to study at home, at their own pace, and participate in an online community of fellow learners.

Learners will also be able access a virtual online field trip examining the sand dune systems of Ynyslas, as well as an optional in-person field trip to explore the formation of Aberystwyth’s beaches. Alternative online content will be available for students unable to attend the in-person field trip.