2024/25 Taught Postgraduate Module Catalogue

FOEV5003M City Systems: Energy

15 creditsClass Size: 40

Module manager: Sheridan Few
Email: S.Few@leeds.ac.uk

Taught: 1 Jan to 30 Jun View Timetable

Year running 2024/25

This module is not approved as an Elective

Module summary

Energy systems across the world are changing. Clean technology, public participation, and energy justice are high priority areas demanding action. Energy systems are a complex mix of engineering and technology, but also social practices, economic incentives, and political institutions. Understanding how all these interact is critical to crafting sustainable energy solutions. This module gives students the tools to develop that understanding, and to be able to diagnose and solve real world energy problems in contemporary cities.

Objectives

This module uses a mixed lecture and problem based approach to give participants the tools to understand urban energy systems and design interventions for sustainable change. This module aims to equip students with the knowledge and analytical skills needed to critically engage with debates and practice on urban energy systems. Urban energy systems are the future of smarter, decentralised cities but will also remain within global and national infrastructure and commodity flows. Understanding, critically evaluating, and generating solutions to urban energy issues will all be important skills for future urban sustainability professionals and this module tackles these areas.

Learning outcomes
On completion of this module, students will:
1. understand what constitutes urban energy system; its terminologies & metrics; technologies, institutions and interaction with society,
2. understand the key drivers of energy supply and demand from the perspective of the energy trilemma (energy security, affordability and decarbonisation),
3. identify city specific issues raised in debates on energy systems such as fuel poverty, air quality and economic development
4. Critically evaluate interventions in and options for urban energy systems, and be able to communicate the purpose of urban energy interventions
5. develop in-depth specialist knowledge of techniques relevant to urban energy systems, and demonstrate an advanced understanding of concepts, information and techniques used by energy system planners and stakeholders at the forefront of the discipline.

Skills Learning Outcomes
On successful completion of the module students will have demonstrated the following skills learning outcomes:
1. Acquire new qualitative, quantitative and digital skills in researching and analysis from an action research perspective. 
2. Diagnose and solve real world problems using new data analysis and action research techniques; Take a proactive and self-reflective role in working and to develop professional relationships with others
3. Critically analyse the social, environmental and economic impacts of key topics; Ability to form logical, reasonable conclusions and make sound recommendations based on available data and/or observations.
4. Understand multilevel decision-making across critical systems and how suitability metrics are mobilised to affect decision-making. 
5. Evaluate opportunities to embed innovations in system design, governance and re-production. 

Syllabus

Details of the syllabus will be provided on the Minerva organisation (or equivalent) for the module.

Teaching methods

Delivery type	Number	Length hours	Student hours
Lecture	5	2.00	10.00
Practical	1	6.00	6.00
Seminar	4	2.00	8.00
Independent online learning hours			6.00
Private study hours			120.00
Total Contact hours			24.00
Total hours (100hr per 10 credits)			150.00

Opportunities for Formative Feedback

Students will receive formative feedback from their group work, which will directly inform their summative coursework due in later in the module. This will take the form of both oral feedback at the end of the presentations, written feedback per group, and written/oral feedback to the cohort as a whole.

Methods of assessment

Coursework

Assessment type	Notes	% of formal assessment
Assignment	Coursework	100.00
Total percentage (Assessment Coursework)		100.00

Private study will be undertaken as party of the student’s problem based learning. It will be guided around a specific problem, set by the module leader and contribute to the overall learning outcomes of the module. Students will present initial outcomes of problem based learning in group presentations, which they will build on in individual project reports.

Reading list

The reading list is available from the Library website

Last updated: 23/05/2024 11:53:30

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