Courses / Module

Toggle Print

Module GLOBAL ENVIRONMENTAL CHANGE - 2

Module code: EL214
Credits: 5
Semester: 2
Department: ELECTIVES
International: No
Overview Overview
 

“We have forgotten that we ourselves are dust of the earth; our very bodies are made of her elements, we breathe her air and we receive life and refreshment from her waters” (Pope Benedict, On Care for Our Common Home, §2).
There are few aspects of modernity more striking and significant than the changes that people have made to the physical and biotic environment. These are so significant that many natural and social scientists refer to a new geological age, the Anthropocene, a period in which the primary drivers of environmental change are human actions rather than just natural processes. This recognition requires conceptualising and understanding how social and physical processes interact in a complex world. Citizens needs to be informed about environmental science, planetary boundaries and safe operating spaces for humanity while at the same time understanding the economic and political, social and cultural dilemmas of this global order. The requirement for interdisciplinary understanding requires both novelty and urgency in meaningful planetary stewardship. This course will give students a critical introduction to some of the profound responsibilities of modern citizenship in the Anthropocene.

Module Structure
This elective stream is run over two modules. In semester one we will establish the dilemma of global change. We introduce the idea of planetary boundaries: the limits to the change people can impose upon key systems before the Earth System shifts to a state much less hospitable to humankind. In this manner, we will examine the current state of four parts of our common home: climate, freshwater, biodiversity and land use. In each case, we will describe the ways that human activity changes the system. How do we influence climate? In what ways do we deplete freshwater reserves? How have humans altered global species diversity? What is the extent of global deforestation? We then ask the fundamental question: how far have we pushed these systems towards the point at which the changes we have caused now make this a less hospitable planet for us and for future generations? In the second semester, module two will explore in more detail contemporary human responses to the changes in these four parts of our common home, the Earth. We will ask what changes are needed so that we might live in a sustainable, just and equitable Anthropocene.

Format
This module will be delivered through lectures with students submitting online responses to questions raised in lectures and to short texts and videos placed online. Each week there will be a lecture that introduces students to new material and then a second lecture that reflects upon the discussion topics introduced in the previous week. In this way we will give feedback to the class and debate with them the issues and the coursework. As we introduce the main concepts of the course, students will complete and submit online a glossary of some of these key concepts. When we discuss each of our four systems, students will engage with online videos and texts to answer online a set of questions we have prepared. Finally, to bring together the themes of this first module, students will submit a reflective piece about the state of our planetary boundaries. We will offer a range of options for this including a photo-essay, a blog entry, a letter to a relevant stakeholder (such as a politician), etc.

Open Learning Outcomes
 
Open Teaching & Learning methods
 
Open Assessment
 
Open Autumn Supplementals/Resits
 
Open Timetable
 
Back to top Powered by MDAL Framework © 2022
V5.3.3 - Powered by MDAL Framework © 2022