Durham University
Programme and Module Handbook
This is an archived handbook for a previous year. The current undergraduate and postgraduate handbooks can be viewed using the links above.

Postgraduate Handbook 2012-2013 (archived)

Module BUSI5E415: BUSINESS AND SUSTAINABILITY

Department: Business School (Business)

BUSI5E415: BUSINESS AND SUSTAINABILITY

TypeLevelCreditsAvailabilityModule CapLocation
Tied 4 15 Available in 2012/2013 Durham

Tied To

  • N1KE12: Business and Management (HBOS) (see Postgraduate Handbook 2010-2011 for details)
  • N2KE12: Business and Management (Consortium) (see Postgraduate Handbook 2010-2011 for details)
  • N2KF12: Business and Management (Vertex) (see Postgraduate Handbook 2010-2011 for details)

Pre-requisites

  • None

Corequisites

  • None

Excluded Combinations

  • None.

Aims

  • To provide students with the opportunity to study key topics in business sustainability at an advanced level.

Content

  • Globalisation and the new context of business;
  • new economic models;
  • ecology and sustainable development - Gaia hypothesis and natural ecology, systemic thinking, complexity theory;
  • concepts of sustainable business - environmental auditing and management, product stewardship;
  • political and legal status of organisations;
  • stakeholder capitalism - leadership, governance and accountability;
  • ethical responsibilities of corporations;
  • the post-corporate world;
  • new meanings of work;
  • beyond materialist assumptions;
  • the soul at work.

Learning Outcomes

Subject-specific Knowledge
  • By the end of this module, students will:
  • have gained knowledge of current thinking on sustainable business, new economic approaches, globalisation, human needs in the workplace, diversity and corporate citizenship.
  • be able to participate in the growing world-wide debate on the responsibilities and purposes of business.
Subject-specific Skills
  • By the end of this module, students will:
  • Be able to conduct action experiments in their own workplaces and have developed skills in disciplined action learning.
Key Skills

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

  • The learning outcomes will be met through a combination of lectures, facilitated discussion sessions, group work and guided reading. Extensive use will be made of case studies and business simulations. All sessions have a high participation element, and an emphasis on action-learning.
  • Assessment of this module is by summative assignment, designed to: test the acquisition and articulation of knowledge; test conceptual understanding and skills of application and interpretation within the business context.

Teaching Methods and Learning Hours

ActivityNumberFrequencyDurationTotal HoursAttendance Monitored
Lectures 9 hours in total
Groupwork 9 hours in total Yes
Preparation & Reading 132
Total 150

Summative Assessment

ComponentComponent WeightingElementLength/DurationElement WeightingResit Opportunity
Individual written assignment 100% Individual written assignment 3,000 words (Max.). 100%

Formative Assessment

Feedback on group and individual activities undertaken during contact hours. Feedback on learning set reflections and action points related to this module.


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.