Module GEOL1161: Environment and Sustainability

Department: Earth Sciences

GEOL1161: Environment and Sustainability

Type	Level	Credits	Availability	Module Cap	Location
Open	1	20	Available in 2026/2027		Durham

Pre-requisites

None

Corequisites

None

Excluded Combinations

None

Aims

To understand the Earth’s water cycle in terms of both quantity and quality.
To understand the composition and materials of the Earth.
To understand the mode of formation, distribution and extraction of the Earth’s resources and energy.
To introduce global issues and concepts around environmental sustainability in the context of climate change.

Content

Introduction to hydrology.
Introduction to oceanography.
Resources for a net zero world and the energy transition.
Introduction to our natural and anthropogenic environments in the context of a changing climate.
United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.

Learning Outcomes

Subject-specific Knowledge

Will have acquired subject knowledge and understanding of the Earth’s water cycle and our natural and anthropogenic environments.
Will have acquired subject knowledge and understanding in ecological, biological and geochemical processes and their role in shaping the Earth and environment, in the context of sustainability and climate change.
To explain the generation and responsible development of natural resources and the energy transition.
Will have acquired subject knowledge and understanding in the role of the geologist and environmental scientist in society with regard to economic development and environmental sustainability.

Subject-specific Skills

Will have acquired intellectual and practical skills in order to apply geological and environmental principles and methodologies to the solution of familiar and unfamiliar problems.
Will have acquired intellectual and practical skills to synthesise information/data from a variety of sources.
Will have acquired intellectual and practical skills to analyse, evaluate/interpret geological and environmental data.

Key Skills

Critical analysis
Research capability
Scholarship and literacy
Practical competency
Independent learning
Numeracy
IT skills
Innovation and creativity
Time management
Continuing personal development
Commercial and environmental awareness

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

The module is delivered through a mix of one-hour lectures and two-hour practicals, supported by online material and other resources held on Blackboard
The practicals form an important component of the module allowing hands-on learning and experience of tackling and solving graphical-based problems that help re-enforce key concepts introduced during lectures.
Summative assessment comprising of a task-based analytical exercise and an end of year examination.
Formative assessment is provided in practicals and revision sessions, including a preparation for the end of year examination.

Teaching Methods and Learning Hours

Activity	Number	Frequency	Duration	Total Hours	Attendance Monitored
Lectures	20	1 per week	1 hour	20	Yes
Practicals	20	1 per week	2 hours	40	Yes
Preparation and Reading				140
Total				200

Summative Assessment

Component	Component Weighting	Element	Length/Duration	Element Weighting	Resit Opportunity
Continual Assessment	30%	Exercise		100%
Examination	70%	On Campus Written Examination	2 hours	100%

Formative Assessment

Formative assessments delivered through practical sessions, to include a formative preparation for the unseen examination.

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.