Module and Programme Catalogue

Search site

Find information on

This module is discontinued in the selected year. The information shown below is for the academic year that the module was last running in, prior to the year selected.

2017/18 Undergraduate Module Catalogue

SOEE3770 Sustainable Futures

20 creditsClass Size: 80

Module manager: Dr Milena Buchs
Email: M.M.Buchs@leeds.ac.uk

Taught: Semesters 1 & 2 (Sep to Jun) View Timetable

Year running 2017/18

Pre-requisite qualifications

Candidates should have completed either GEOG1065 or SOEE1110

Pre-requisites

GEOG1065Nature, Society and Environment
SOEE1110Sustainable Development

This module is approved as a discovery module

Module summary

This module acts as a culmination of the three years of the degree programme, and gets students to bring together ideas and approaches from across all three years of their studies, to see how they fit together. It also gets students to look forwards, to see what sustainability challenges might be emerging in coming years, how they might be solved, particularly how the issues covered in their degree might help tackle such challenges.

Objectives

-To outline the general challenges for creating sustainable futures
-To explore the complexities and interdisciplinary challenges to sustainability in several key areas
-To present current cutting edge research and outline upcoming challenges in sustainability in future years and decades

Learning outcomes
By the end of this module, students will be able to
-Understand the key challenges to creating sustainable societies at a range of spatial and temporal scales
-Have a synoptic view of the challenges within sustainability, and how these can be approached from a variety of disciplinary perspectives, and how they might interact
-Have a knowledge of cutting edge research in sustainability
-Critically analyse forthcoming issues in sustainability
-Critically analyse academic literature in an advanced manner

Skills outcomes
Advanced independent critical thought


Syllabus

Part one of this module covers the broad general challenges to creating sustainable societies, such as the need for interdisciplinary thinking, complexity and wicked problems, challenges of working across spatial and temporal scales. Part two explores challenges to sustainability in particular themed areas, such as agriculture, cities. Part three draws on current research conducted within the school to explore current and future challenges in depth. In addition, students will be encouraged to engage with broader research related activities taking place within the school, such as departmental seminars. Overall, the module encourages students to think across their three years of study, and to engage with current research and future issues.

Teaching methods

Delivery typeNumberLength hoursStudent hours
Lecture182.0036.00
Seminar32.006.00
Private study hours158.00
Total Contact hours42.00
Total hours (100hr per 10 credits)200.00

Private study

Students will be expected to conduct their own reading, both following the reading list and independently.
In addition, students will be expected to form their own tutorial discussion groups to discuss the issues raised within classes. Staff will facilitate this by providing VLE resources to help groups form, and by providing questions for discussion within groups at the end of each lecture. Given that there are few such discussion tutorials within SOEE, the first 3 will be timetabled and the discussion will be facilitated by a teaching assistant.
Students will be encouraged to attend departmental seminars as part of the module.

Methods of assessment


Coursework
Assessment typeNotes% of formal assessment
Essay2,000 words40.00
Total percentage (Assessment Coursework)40.00

Normally resits will be assessed by the same methodology as the first attempt, unless otherwise stated


Exams
Exam typeExam duration% of formal assessment
Standard exam (closed essays, MCQs etc)3 hr 00 mins60.00
Total percentage (Assessment Exams)60.00

Students will be presented with a list of 6 questions, of which they have to answer 2. Students will have 3 hours. The questions will be broad in nature, encouraging students to think across their degree course, and to write 2 structured essays. In writing these essays, they will be expected to draw upon ideas and readings from this module, and from across the 3 years of study.

Reading list

There is no reading list for this module

Last updated: 15/05/2017

Disclaimer

Browse Other Catalogues

Errors, omissions, failed links etc should be notified to the Catalogue Team.PROD

© Copyright Leeds 2019