MSc, Postgraduate Diploma/Certificate in Sustainable Development
Structure
and Syllabus
Part
I - Compulsory Modules
Ecological
science and management [C100]
This module provides
a comprehensive understanding of temporal and spatial dynamics of
interacting components of natural and seminatural environments for
their management. It deals with the theoretical and mechanistic framework
for understanding ecology, and the study of interactions of organisms
with each other and with their environments. It introduces key concepts
in ecological theory and the functioning of natural environments,
referring to the dynamics of populations and communities and the interaction
of organisms with their environment at local, landscape and regional/global
scales. It examines ecological theory underlying models of sustainability
and conservation and explains spatial and temporal patterns observed
in natural and perturbed environments. It goes on to explore ecological
processes occurring over regional and global scales, as these are
essential to the functioning of both natural and human-dominated ecosystems,
focusing specifically on the practice of ecology in applied contexts
through issues such as biodiversity conservation, human demography,
land degradation and agriculture: four interrelated topics that are
central to human culture and welfare and are the focus of much debate
and controversy.
Socioeconomics
of sustainable development [C102]
This module introduces
key problems in sustainable development and related analytical concepts
and techniques from economics and political economy. Issues covered
will include: global processes of economic development and underdevelopment;
poverty reduction, including national and international policies;
challenges to sustainability from current patterns of resource use
and technologies; and analysis of the policy options and national
and international levels.
Sustainable
development: approaches and indicators [C101]
Although sustainability
of human livelihood and enterprise is an old phenomenon, synonymous
with the emergence of Homo sapiens, the modern notion of ‘sustainable
development' arose in the last quarter of the 20th century in response
to growing international recognition of two related phenomena. First,
the failure of attempts to reproduce the development achieved in the
high income, industrialised nations of the world among less industrialised,
low income countries; and, second, the negative environmental impacts
produced by conventional high consumption and through-put approaches
to industrial development.
This module reviews
the concept of sustainable development in terms of environmental sustainability
and sustainable growth, and addresses a number of the sociopolitical
approaches and indicators for sustainable development. In particular,
it addresses the following sociopolitical dimensions of sustainable
development: the state, civil society, local knowledge and resource
management, knowledge management, property rights, forums for policy-making,
economic globalisation and trade, and indicators. It is complemented
by courses on ecosystem approaches, socioeconomics and design and
innovation related to sustainable development.
Sustainable development: design and innovation [C103]
Introduces knowledge
of scientific, economic and political background to ‘sustainable
development', and experiences in using its concepts and techniques
to influence engineering design or management of engineering enterprises;
Explores ability of multi-disciplinary teams to address sustainable
development issues during project scoping; Uses and refines design
appraisal techniques to test for sustainability; Enables definition
of wider systems issues associated with project to understand how
unsustainable projects can come about, identify relevant sustainable
development indicators, assemble sustainable development `scorecards',
apply life-cycle analysis critique, and to build in options that increase
longevity.
Part II: Specialisms
Rural
development [C130]
Gives an economics
perspective on issues and methods in rural development, the role of
rural development in poverty reduction, roles of agricultural and
non-agricultural sectors and of markets and governments in development,
impacts of new technology, agricultural research and extension policy
and methods, and rural financial markets.
Agricultural
trade and policy [C10]
Introduces neoclassical
trade theory and examines trade theory as it applies to a range of
interventions in trade, in particular, agricultural trade. The course
also introduces standard agricultural policy analysis tools, a review
of current issues affecting international trade in agriculture, and
analysis of the major environmental influences on trade and policy.
Agrifood marketing in developing countries [C138]
Explores the importance
of the marketing of agricultural and food products in developing countries.
Introduces the key concepts of marketing management and is concerned
with identifying and analysing the performance of the marketing functions
within the food chain from a business perspective.
Society,
gender and development [C140]
Develops an analytical
framework within which to think critically about development planning
and practice from a social perspective. The scope of conceptual tools
is reviewed, together with an understanding of the interrelations
between gender relations and development.
Socioeconomics
of rural livelihoods [C35]
Analyses the decisions
facing smallholder farmers in managing their activities and resources.
The course examines the circumstances and objectives of peasants and
socioeconomic theories that describe their livelihood strategies,
and policy implications arising from this analysis.
Information
and communication technologies for development [C104]
This module introduces
and discusses the subject of Information and Communication Technology
(ICT) and its relevance to Development. It outlines and explores some
of the underlying themes relating information, knowledge and communication
to development, and investigates how existing theory related to these
themes contributes to an understanding of ICT which is a multi-faceted
subject. The range of technologies that are classified as ICTs and
their relevance to development is explored, and the relevance of ICT
for development planning, policymaking and project design is discussed.
Particular reference is made to linking ICT with the poverty alleviation
agenda; addressing issues associated with the digital divide; and
to the use of ICT within sectors such as rural development, environment
and education.
Management
in rural development [C131]
Considers the management
and organisation of interventions to promote rural development. The
course examines the scope and demands of rural development management,
dimensions of rural development, the relevance of management theories
of organisations and management, and the changing roles of the state,
the private sector and civil society in rural development.
NGO
management [C132]
Reflects the fact that
NGOs play an increasingly important role in all aspects of development.
They are key actors in the worlds of politics, industry and commerce,
influencing both development agendas and policy implementation. This
course sets out to explain the key processes that encompass the management
of NGOs, and covers issues such as strategic management and decision
making, structures and systems (including monitoring and financial
management), the generation of financial resources, and improving
overall organisational performance.
Project
planning and management [C134]
Covers the planning
and management of public and private investment in the agricultural
sector. Students learn economic concepts for project identification,
preparation, appraisal, monitoring and evaluation, and the methods
of logical framework, financial and economic cost benefit analysis,
and social and environmental assessment.
Applying
economics in business and development [C06]
Introduces concepts
relating to orthodox views of market behaviour, supply and demand,
competition, and monopoly. With an emphasis on case-study material,
the course also provides an introduction to international trade, macroeconomics
and alternative schools of economic thought.
Entrepreneurship
for the agrifood industry [C112]
We trace the rediscovery
of the entrepreneur in the modern, super-competitive world and consider
what qualities an entrepreneur must have and the vision that entrepreneurs
must find and transmit to their staff and customers. University see
how this can form the basis for a Business Plan. Further explain the
principles of management and what an entrepreneurial approach to management
means. Lastly consider strategy and strategic planning in the context
of the entrepreneurial firm. Examples focus on agriculture and
the food industry, particularly small and medium sized enterprises.
Supply chain management [C111]
The course is about
the linkages between firms in the chain of supply from farm to final
consumer. Look at both strategic and operational aspects of supply
chain management. Explore the importance for farmers of understanding
chains and the case for them to join in partnership with powerful
processing and retail firms. Also consider the ways in which changes
in consumer demand are transmitted through supply chains. This course
trying to take a balanced academic stance and objectively assess arguments
both in favour and against the development of supply chains.
Introduction
to biodiversity conservation and management [C117]
This course provides
a broad introduction to the conservation of biological diversity with
an emphasis on conservation within ecosystems. It provides an outline
of the major elements of global biodiversity: evolution and distribution,
and examines the threats to biodiversity and the imperative to conserve.
It explains some of the fundamental principles of genetic, species
and ecosystem diversity, providing an overview of the techniques available
to conserve biodiversity both in situ and ex situ. A further theme
is the role of protected areas for conservation and management of
biodiversity and the issue of conservation outside protected areas.
Social, ethical and policy issues surrounding biodiversity conservation
are reviewed at appropriate points in the course.
Assessing
and understanding biological diversity [C191]
Presents the backbones
of conservation genetics, approaches to assessing and measuring biological
diversity, and applied taxonomy. It explains the general principles
of genetic diversity, outlining the main theories of population genetics,
quantitative genetics and cytogenetics. Methods of measuring genetic,
species and ecosystem diversity are discussed. An overview of the
variety of life forms is provided, and the main elements of taxonomy
are outlined. The major types of classification and means of identifying
biological diversity are reviewed.
Biodiversity
utilisation [C198]
Describes and assesses
how biodiversity is utilised. The main thrust of the course is the
use of biodiversity for agricultural purposes. However, other ways
of utilisation are also considered, for example, the assessment of
total economic value of genetic resources for their direct use, optional
use and existence values. The course opens with a treatment of the
ways in which conservation and utilisation are linked and a discussion
of the benefits from maintaining animal and plant resources together.
Part I also deals with the sustainable use of wild species for different
purposes, and the emerging methodologies for the use of environmental
economic tools to value different components of biodiversity. Parts
II and III are concerned with the sustainable utilisation of plant
and animal genetic resources respectively.
Conservation
and society [C118]
This module is designed
to take a cross-disciplinary look at some of the key challenges that
face societies in trying to achieve effective biodiversity conservation
and management. The module deals with the following themes: biodiversity
conservation legislation and the Convention for Biological Diversity,
sustainable utilisation of biological resources, the importance of
local and indigenous knowledge, particularly in relation to management
of biodiversity and sustainable livelihoods, genetic resource ownership,
genetic engineering and genetically modified organisms (GMOs), bioprospecting
and biopiracy, the policy options available for enabling environmental
diversity , and the needs, challenges and alternatives for the future.
Environmental
impact assessment [C107]
Explains the EIA process
and surveys its application through case studies. Shows how impacts
and their mitigation can be incorporated into the process. Considers
how EIA can be used in a strategic role, and as a tool for achieving
sustainable development.
Corporate
environmental management [C67]
Centres on the development
of Environmental Management Systems responding to the ISO 14000 series
of standards, and legislation for the protection of the environment.
The content of Courses C65, C66 and C67 has been prepared by staff
members of the Institute of Environmental Assessment.
Environmental
auditing [C108]
Describes how the environmental
performance of a company or organisation can be assessed, with appropriate
case studies. Explains how much of the cost of improvements can be
offset by energy saving and waste minimisation.
International
environmental law [C114]
Outlines the international
legal processes through which international environmental issues are
addressed, and the underlying and guiding principles and various techniques
for implementing these. The course considers the success of the international
legal instruments and processes under consideration in achieving their
objectives and how they might be improved.
Economic
principles [C02]
A rigorous introduction
to microeconomic theory covering theories and applications of individual
and market demand, as well as production economics. The final part
focuses on welfare economics and its application to imperfect competition
and factor markets.
Economics
of environmental policy [C121]
A wide-ranging, theoretically
rigorous coverage of the economic concepts and principles of environmental
policy. This course provides the knowledge and analytical tools to
design and evaluate public policies towards the environment.
Environmental
valuation: [C22]
Develops the theory
and techniques of the valuation of non-market goods. The course focuses
on the techniques and methods for putting monetary values on the environment
and shows how these can be incorporated in economic decision making
at both the macro and project level.
Natural
resource economics [C105]
Examines a number of
economic models of natural resource allocation and demonstrates their
application to policy making and natural resource management to provide
useful insights to both policy makers and managers. The second part
considers the economic dimension of sustainable economic growth and
development.
Introduction
to environmental economics and policy [C170]
Reviews economic theories
of pollution, natural resource economics and the green macroeconomy.
It examines the impact of macroeconomic policies on the environment
and the making of international agreements on such issues as transboundary
pollution.
Environmental
monitoring [C71]
Describes the techniques
commonly used in chemical and biological monitoring of the environment.
It indicates why monitoring of the environment is important, and describes
sampling and analytical methodologies while emphasising good working
practice in terms of quality assurance and safety procedures.
Sustainable
forest management [C85]
Addresses the concerns
that forests are disappearing in the tropics and are threatened with
pollution in many temperate regions. Yet forests are increasingly
important sources of beneficial products and services. Well-managed
forest resources with appropriate conservation measures can deliver
what the world needs in a sustainable way. Understanding what the
issues are, and their consequences, and Applying knowledge to achieve
sound, robust management are at the heart of this course.
Water
resource management [C126]
Applies economics to
the evaluation of water resource policy. Topics include key economic
concepts, the management and sustainability of irrigation and water
supply, user participation, and environmental, social and political
dimensions of water use.
Part III: Research modules (MSc only)
Research
methods [C106]
This module aims to
provide an introduction to research methods for environmental studies
and covers methods appropriate to environmental science and technology
and social science. The principal objectives are to provide: an understanding
of how to identify research problems and formulate research questions;
an understanding of the various types of data; an understanding of
how to review literature; knowledge of how to choose an appropriate
experimental or survey design; familiarity with a number of quantitative
and qualitative data collection methods; familiarity with methods
of data collation and storage; an understanding of the most important
uses of statistics in you own field; the ability to appropriately
choose basic statistical methods and apply them; basic familiarity
with the operation of a spreadsheet package and the ability to use
it to do statistics; basic familiarity with the operation of one software
package for statistical analysis; understanding of how to interpret
statistics from environmental studies; competency in writing-up the
results; knowledge of how to write a research proposal.
Research
report [R01]
this comprises two compulsory elements; by distance
mode
