This is an archived handbook for a previous year. The current undergraduate and postgraduate handbooks can be viewed using the links above.
Undergraduate Handbook 2005-2006 (archived)
Module ENSS3431: FOOD RESOURCES, WELL BEING AND SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT
Department: Geography (Environmental Sciences)
ENSS3431: FOOD RESOURCES, WELL BEING AND SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT
| Type | Level | Credits | Availability | Module Cap | Location |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Open | 3 | 20 | Available in 2005/2006 | 35. | Durham |
Pre-requisites
- Completion of level 2 Environment and Development or Level 2 Geography, Environment & Development, or level 2 BA Geography.
Corequisites
- None.
Excluded Combinations
- None.
Aims
- To provide an analysis of current issues in sustainable development
- To encourage students to apply the substantive and methodological knowledge that they have accumulated over their degree programme to the analysis of events and issues relating to sustainable development
- To provide an awareness of the different positions held by different stakeholders and actors in tehse debates
- To examine the socio-economic and physical characteristics of the agri-food systems of low income and industrialised economies.
- To explore the way in which these systems are integrated through the world economy and the implications of such links.
- To provide an analysis of current issues in sustainable development
- To encourage students to apply the substantive and methodological knowledge that they have accumulated over their degree programme to the analysis of events and issues relating to sustainable development
- To provide an awareness of the different positions held by different stakeholders and actors in these debates
Content
- Defining and moving towards sustainable development
- GM Technology
- Renewable energy: a new energy future?
- Sustainable waste management
- Sustainable transport
- Congestion charging Issues of sustainability in industrial economies Sustainable industrial districts
- Sustainable agriculture
- Patterns of production and consumption, global food regimes.
- The social, economic and political contexts of change. I
- mplications of technological change in the food system: farming systems technology, biotechnology???s, infrastructure, communication and transportation, manufacturing and preservation technologies. Institutional change:
- Agribusiness and global corporations; the organisation of international markets, futures and contracting, international government and non-governmental organisations, GATT and the WTO, patents, plant breeder???s rights and the implications for agri-food trade and aid.
- The socio-economic and political consequences of change for individual actors and groups
Learning Outcomes
Subject-specific Knowledge
- On completion of this module, students should be able to:
- Demonstrate familiarity with current debates relating to sustainability
- Appreciate the institutional, political, social and scientific aspects of theses issues and the inter-relationships between these different spheres of influence
- Describe the organisation and structure of the international food system
- Understand the implication for various actors of integration in the global food economy
- Identify and analyse the institutional and technical factors affecting the production, exchange and consumption of food.
- Demonstrate familiarity with current debates relating to sustainability.
- Understand these and be able to contribute to them.
- Appreciate the institutional, political, social and scientific aspects of these issues and the inter-relationships between these different spheres of influence.
Subject-specific Skills
Key Skills
Modes of Teaching, Learning and Assessment and how these contribute to the learning outcomes of the module
- .
Teaching Methods and Learning Hours
| Activity | Number | Frequency | Duration | Total Hours | Attendance Monitored |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lectures | 21 | 1 Per Week | 1.5 Hours | 32 | |
| Seminars & workshops | 21 | 1 Per Week | 1 Hours | 21 | |
| Preparation and Reading | 147 | ||||
| Total | 200 |
Summative Assessment
| Component | Component Weighting | Element | Length/Duration | Element Weighting | Resit Opportunity |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0% | 0% |
Formative Assessment
Foramtive 1500 word essay and substantial essay plan, both with written feedback
Students who do not attend monitored activities shown under Teaching Methods
and Learning Hours, or who fail to complete the summative or formative
assessment(s) specified above, may be subject to the Academic Progress
procedures defined in the University's General Regulation V, and may be
required to leave the University.