HEN621 Science and practice (foreign experiences)

Faculty of Social Studies
Spring 2013
Extent and Intensity
2/0. 4 credit(s). Type of Completion: z (credit).
Teacher(s)
doc. Mgr. Bohuslav Binka, Ph.D. (lecturer)
Michal Sedlačko, Ph.D. (assistant)
Guaranteed by
doc. Mgr. Bohuslav Binka, Ph.D.
Department of Environmental Studies – Faculty of Social Studies
Contact Person: Dana Pantůčková
Supplier department: Department of Environmental Studies – Faculty of Social Studies
Timetable
Mon 6. 5. 10:00–13:30 U53, Tue 7. 5. 8:00–9:40 U34, 18:00–19:40 M117, Thu 9. 5. 16:00–19:30 U33, Fri 10. 5. 12:00–15:40 U53
Course Enrolment Limitations
The course is also offered to the students of the fields other than those the course is directly associated with.
The capacity limit for the course is 20 student(s).
Current registration and enrolment status: enrolled: 0/20, only registered: 0/20, only registered with preference (fields directly associated with the programme): 0/20
fields of study / plans the course is directly associated with
Course objectives
The course will attempt to link science and practice to examine and better understand the social and environmental impacts of consumption and to enable a more qualified and responsible intervention in consumption practices. The course will take theories of social practice as a unifying theoretical account enabling to understand a multiple facets of human activities, with the focus on consumption practices. It will provide analytical tools to examine social reality and provide an account of how innovations become appropriated in different contexts, and how different practices spread through the society. Also, the course will shed light on the ‘messiness’ of the real world and social change and on the implications and controversies of sustainable consumption discourses, exploring as well the variety of suggested solutions to addressing economic and social crises through consumption.

The ‘science’ in the title of the course reflects on the one hand the study of the outcomes of science and research on sustainability (i.e. what do results of science and research do good and bad for sustainability), and on the other hand a scientific-analytical approach to studying consumption practices. The ‘practice’ in the title points to three dimensions – first, approaching sustainable consumption from the perspective of theories of social practice; second, focusing on what is going on ‘in practice’, in the real world; and third, intervening in this real world, i.e. what can we practically do to make consumption more sustainable. The question mark in the title refers to our honest exploration of the stated question throughout the course, as well as to the contingency and uncertainty of real-world processes.

After completing the course the students will have a higher understanding of how social change can be explained, and they will be aware of the means and channels through which sustainability could become incorporated in broader social practices, particularly consumption practices. The course will offer them analytical tools to better fulfil future roles of environmentally and socially responsible policy, business, media or non-governmental representatives as they will be able to more precisely design and target their activities. They will have the opportunity to develop critical thinking, research and presentation/communication skills and they will have the opportunity to benefit from and improve on the basis of extensive feedback by the course instructor and their peers.
Syllabus
  • Session 1 (6 May 2013): Introduction to consumption and its social and economic implications
  • Session 2 (6 May 2013): Varieties of sustainable consumption
  • Session 3 (7 May 2013): Theories of social practice as a lens for studying consumption
  • Session 4 (7 May 2013): Socio-technical systems and sustainability transitions
  • Session 5 (9 May 2013): Strategies for sustainable consumption I: product and infrastructure design
  • Session 6 (9 May 2013): Strategies for sustainable consumption II: meanings and lifestyles
  • Session 7 (10 May 2013): Student presentations pt. I
  • Session 8 (10 May 2013): Student presentations pt. II
Assessment methods
Assessment:

25% class preparation and participation, including peer-review of in-class presentation 25% in-class presentation (prepared in groups of 4 to 5 students) 50% seminar paper (to be handed in by the end of semester)
Language of instruction
English
Further comments (probably available only in Czech)
Study Materials
The course is taught annually.
The course is also listed under the following terms Spring 2014.
  • Enrolment Statistics (Spring 2013, recent)
  • Permalink: https://is.muni.cz/course/fss/spring2013/HEN621