Module GEOG3621: HAZARD AND RISK

Department: Geography

GEOG3621: HAZARD AND RISK

Prerequisites

• GEOG2551 (ENVIRONMENTAL PROCESSES AND MANAGEMENT)

Corequisites

• None

Excluded Combination of Modules

• None

Aims

• The core aims of the module are:
• To provide an understanding of the concepts and contexts of hazard, risk and vulnerability
• To introduce students to a range of environmental and technological hazards, the ways in which problems are framed, and the differing institutional and everyday perceptions and responses to risk
• To explore the ways in which risks are shaped by the vulnerabilities and resilience of communities that have to live with them and the range of approaches used to manage and mitigate hazard and risk

Content

• The module will consist of a block of introductory lectures, followed by specific case studies examined from a range of perspectives and approaches:
• HAZARD, RISK AND VULNERABILITY: CONCEPTUAL AND EMPIRICAL FOUNDATIONS
• Physical and social science approaches to hazard, risk and vulnerability
• Sources of hazard, risk, and vulnerability
• Types and typologies of hazard and risk
• Risk perception, framing and knowledge politics
• Social, cultural, and political responses to hazard and risk
• Temporal and spatial scales in hazard and risk
• Assessing hazard, vulnerability, risk, and risk mitigation
• Critical perspectives in hazard and risk
• Governing future and emerging risks
• CASE STUDIES OF HAZARDS AND RISKS (THESE ARE INDICATIVE)
• Landslides and earthquakes
• Floods and storms
• Volcanic eruptions
• Nuclear energy and waste
• Pollution
• Security and terror
• Bio and Nano technologies

Learning Outcomes

• On successful completion of the module students will be able to:
• Describe the nature of hazards and the links between hazard, risk and vulnerability
• Relate wider conceptual debates to a range of specific hazards and case studies
• Appreciate the importance of context, geographical and historical, in understanding hazard and risk
• Understand at a conceptual and practical level effective coping strategies for living with hazards, risk and vulnerability

• On successful completion of the module students will be able to:
• Relate general principles to specific situations including case studies of specific hazards and risks
• Analyse the complex interactions between natural and social systems

• On successful completion of the module students will be able to:
• Demonstrate analytical skills and ability to present logical argument

Modes of Teaching, Learning and Assessment and how these contribute to the learning outcomes of the module

• Lectures, Workshops and Fieldwork
• Lectures will provide the conceptual and empirical foundation for the module in line with the aims set out above and including guidance on relating methods to topics of research. These will be provided by a teaching team of Human and Physical geographers to ensure that the links between the two sides of the subject area are made clear. The workshops will provide students with the opportunity to discuss and develop the material covered in the lectures, drawing on further reading. The one day field trip will provide a 'hands-on' introduction to hazard and risk assessment, allowing students to gain experience of the techniques involved and of the problems associated with these methodologies. The module paper will examine some of the methodological, social and conceptual issues associated with hazard and risk. The written examination will complement the module paper by testing students understanding of basic principles and processes, and their ability to support their argument with appropriate reference to the general literature and case studies

Teaching Methods and Learning Hours

Summative Assessment

Formative Assessment:

Hazard, vulnerability, and risk map of Durham with accompanying 2-page description, with written feedback

■ Attendance at all activities marked with this symbol will be monitored. Students who fail to attend these activities, or to complete the summative or formative assessment specified above, will be subject to the procedures defined in the University's General Regulation V, and may be required to leave the University