Sustainability science I
Explore the challenges of sustainability, together with leading scholars and practitioners. This course lays the foundations of sustainability, presents key debates, and explores ways forward, with a particular emphasis on business and sustainable development.
In this course you will learn from sustainability scientists who are elaborating different aspects and frontiers in sustainability science, including if and how businesses engage in sustainable development . You will also meet guest speakers who are working at the interface of sustainability science and business practice.
You will learn about what sustainability means, the history of this concept and how it has influenced international policy and business practice.
You will explore cases that illuminate key aspects of sustainability and illustrate different theories of how to shift corporate actions towards more sustainable practices.
You will learn about the key debates in sustainability and business and develop a capacity to engage with them and make well-informed arguments.
The course is offered as a part of the Bachelor Program “Business, Ethics and Sustainability”, but can also be taken as a separate course.
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Course structure
Modules
The course consists of two parts:
- The biosphere and humankind, 10 credits
- Corporations and sustainable development in the Anthropocene I, 5 credits
Teaching format
We mix different teaching formats to make the most of your learning experience – including lectures, seminars, exercises and group work.
This is an on campus, full time course and your participation in the learning activities is crucial for reaching the learning goals. Lectures are typically scheduled in the mornings of Tuesdays and Thursdays. Seminars take place in the afternoons of Tuesdays and Thursdays, and Friday mornings or afternoons. Mondays and Wednesdays are set aside for self-studies and group work, to the extent possible.
Assessment
We assess knowledge based on written exams, written reports, and seminar activity.
Examiner
Lisen Schultz
E-mail: lisen.schultz@su.se
Lisen Schultz is a sustainability scientist at the Stockholm Resilience Centre (SRC), and program director for the SRC’s Executive program in resilience thinking, which connects CEOs of influential companies to the frontiers of sustainability science. Lisen has a PhD in natural resource management from Stockholm university.
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Schedule
The schedule will be available no later than one month before the start of the course. We do not recommend print-outs as changes can occur. At the start of the course, your department will advise where you can find your schedule during the course. -
Course literature
Note that the course literature can be changed up to two months before the start of the course.
All reading material will be uploaded to Athena. We provide a rich variety of formats, including academic papers and book chapters, videos and brief reports.
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Course reports
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More information
The core teaching team consists of:
Associate professor Tim Daw, sustainability scientist and principal researcher based at the SRC with long experience in bringing social and ecological understandings of coastal areas together to advance both biodiversity conservation and poverty alleviation, in collaboration with other scientists as well as with governments and international organsiations such as FAO, UNDEP and the WorldFish Centre.
Professor Örjan Bodin, sustainability scientist and principal researcher at the SRC with an MSc in Physics and a PhD in Systems Ecology/Natural Resource Management. Prior to his academic engagement, Bodin was working in the telecommunication and IT industries for nearly a decade. In addition to several theoretically oriented studies, he has engaged in case studies of small-scale fisheries in east Africa, high sea fishery in the Southern Ocean, agriculture in southern Madagascar, and regional land use management in Stockholm, Sweden.
PhD Tiina Häyhä, who has a background in ecological economics, and who has done a lot of research at the SRC focusing on the operationalization of planetary boundaries, for example in the EU, in the textile industry and in the context of a circular economy.
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Contact
Student office- Visiting address
Arrheniuslaboratory, room E315
Svante Arrhenius väg 20C
- Office hours
Mon-Thur: 13.00-15.00
Study counsellor for basic level
- Visiting address
Arrheniuslaboratory, room E315d
Svante Arrhenius väg 20 C
- Office hours
By request
