GLCb1007 Key Concepts in Environmental studies

Faculty of Social Studies
Spring 2023
Extent and Intensity
1/1/0. 5 credit(s). Type of Completion: zk (examination).
Teacher(s)
doc. Mgr. Bohuslav Binka, Ph.D. (lecturer)
Mgr. Mikuláš Černík (lecturer)
Mgr. Eva Fraňková, Ph.D. (lecturer)
Mgr. Tomáš Chabada, Ph.D. (lecturer)
Mgr. Ing. Jan Malý Blažek, Ph.D. (lecturer)
Mgr. Vojtěch Pelikán, Ph.D. (lecturer)
Mgr. et Mgr. Ľuboš Slovák (lecturer)
doc. Mgr. Karel Stibral, Ph.D. (lecturer)
Ing. Zbyněk Ulčák, Ph.D. (lecturer)
RNDr. Naděžda Vlašín Johanisová, Ph.D. (lecturer)
Harald Waxenecker, MA (lecturer)
Guaranteed by
Ing. Zbyněk Ulčák, Ph.D.
Department of Environmental Studies – Faculty of Social Studies
Contact Person: Ing. Zbyněk Ulčák, Ph.D.
Supplier department: Department of Environmental Studies – Faculty of Social Studies
Timetable
Thu 10:00–11:40 U34
Course Enrolment Limitations
The course is only offered to the students of the study fields the course is directly associated with.
fields of study / plans the course is directly associated with
Course objectives
Student is able to understand the multidisiplinary approach of environmental studies. The main objectives are the following:
- making students aware of basic concepts of environmental studies
- enabling students to analyse the origin, development, and diversity of present environmental issues and their possible solutions
- present the basic sources of information in the field of environmental studies
Other information including the full list of literature to be studied is described at greater details in a detailed syllabus that can be found in Study Materials of the IS Information System).
Learning outcomes
After completing the course, a student will be able to:
- appreciate the need to explore environmental problems and their possible solutions in a multidisciplinary way
- demonstrate an understanding of the interlinked nature of environmental issues, particularly as they occur at a variety of levels and through time
- review a wide range of information sources and critically evaluate different approaches to human x environment relation
Syllabus
  • Week 1. Introduction.
  • Week 2. Socio-environmental implications of mainstream economic thinking
  • Week 3. Biophysical realities of planet Earth: ecological economics and social metabolism
  • Week 4. Political vs. individual solutions of environmental problems
  • Week 5. Environmental problems and public opinion: beliefs, attitudes and behaviour
  • Week 6. Adaptation to climate change in human settlements – biophysical, social and economic aspects
  • Week 7. Critical approaches in economics: from marxist to feminist economics
  • Week 8. Anthropocene and the end of nature: post-natural turn in environmentalism
  • Week 9. History of nature conservation and environmental movements
  • Week 10. FSS Day – no class
  • Week 11. Social-ecological network analysis
  • Week 12. Environmental grief - "gestalt" approach and positivism
  • Week 13: Environmental and sustainability education: a long way with no end
Literature
    required literature
  • Environmental psychology : an introduction. Edited by Linda Steg - Judith I. M. de Groot. Second edition. Hoboken, NJ: Wiley, 2019, xxvii, 418. ISBN 9781119241089. info
  • Climate change and society : sociological perspectives. Edited by Riley E. Dunlap - Robert J. Brulle. New York: Oxford University Press, 2015, xvii, 460. ISBN 9780199356102. info
  • MILLER, G. Tyler and Scott SPOOLMAN. Living in the environment. 17th ed. [Pacific Grove, Calif.]: Brooks/Cole, Cengage Learning, 2012, xxiv, 676. ISBN 9780538735353. info
  • GIRARDET, Herbert. Cities people planet : urban development and climate change. 2nd ed. New York: John Wiley & Sons, 2008, 320 p. ISBN 9780470772706. info
  • DOBSON, Andrew. Green political thought. 3rd ed. London: Routledge, 2000, xii, 230. ISBN 0415222044. info
    recommended literature
  • Green utopianism : perspectives, politics and micro-practices. Edited by Karin Bradley - Johan Hedrén. First published. New York: Routledge, Taylor & Francis Group, 2014, viii, 290. ISBN 9780415814447. info
  • KOGER, Susan M. and Deborah Du Nann WINTER. The psychology of environmental problems : psychology for sustainability. 3rd ed. New York: Psychology Press, 2010, xxii, 482. ISBN 9781848728097. info
  • The Roger Scruton reader. Edited by Roger Scruton - Mark Dooley. New York: Continuum, 2009, xxiv, 232. ISBN 9780826420497. info
Teaching methods
Lectures, class discussion, reading.
Assessment methods
The course is finished by an examination. Students receive credits for a test and a final essay. The literature for the subject will be placed in the section “Study materials” in IS. The exact conditions of the point evaluation for the test and essay will be published in the section “Study materials”.
Language of instruction
English
Further Comments
Study Materials
The course is also listed under the following terms Spring 2024, Spring 2025.
  • Enrolment Statistics (Spring 2023, recent)
  • Permalink: https://is.muni.cz/course/fss/spring2023/GLCb1007