Unit name | The Politics of (Un)sustainability |
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Unit code | POLIM0028 |
Credit points | 20 |
Level of study | M/7 |
Teaching block(s) |
Teaching Block 2 (weeks 13 - 24) |
Unit director | Dr. Parrott |
Open unit status | Not open |
Pre-requisites |
None |
Co-requisites |
None |
School/department | School of Sociology, Politics and International Studies |
Faculty | Faculty of Social Sciences and Law |
This unit introduces students to the ‘politics of (un)sustainability’, through critical evaluation of the gradual emergence of sustainability politics and practice over the last 50 years. The ‘true’ state of the environmental crisis and the implications of this for long term human and non-human flourishing are considered, and the relationship between capitalism, accumulation and (un)sustainability is critically assessed. Through case study examples from the global North and South, key concepts (such as ‘the tragedy of the commons’, ‘limits to growth’, ‘ecological footprints’, the ‘steady state economy’, ‘resilience’ and ‘ecological citizenship’), are evaluated and critiqued from a range of theoretical and philosophical perspectives. Particular emphasis is placed upon the importance of how we understand nature and the environment as a determinant of the actions and agendas undertaken to solve environmental ills, and the intersections between global environmental degradation, social inequality, political representation and participation, and economic development/growth are highlighted and explored throughout the unit.
This unit aims to:
On successful completion of the unit, students will be able to:
3. Identify, critique and defend different stakeholder positions with regard to the politics of (un)sustainability.
Individual meetings with the unit convener (e.g. office hours)
One Policy Brief (formative assessment), one assessed 4,000 word essay (100% of unit mark).
The Policy Brief will allow students to engage with an environmental issue that is of particular interest to them. The Policy Brief assesses LOs 1 and 3, and may also assess LO 2.
The essay will facilitate additional research, enabling students to indulge their curiosity in a particular aspect of the politics of unsustainability to a far greater extent. Furthermore, the essay will afford students the opportunity to display the depth and breadth of their comprehension of the major themes of the course. The essay assesses LOs 1, 2 and 3.
Naguib Pellow, David (2014) Total Liberation, London; Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press.