1: Arctic and Nordic Perspectives on Sustainable Development (5 ECTS)

Content

This course explores sustainable development and its different dimensions (economic, social, environmental) in the Nordic countries in the Arctic utilizing multidisciplinary approaches. The focus is on communicative and collaborative learning through a combination of lectures, discussions, group work and studying of research literature.

Learning outcomes

Upon completion of the course, students will be able to identify and explain special issues concerning sustainable development in Arctic and Nordic contexts from different viewpoints. Students will be able to apply key concepts and critically evaluate the interrelated and contradictory dimensions of Arctic and Nordic sustainable development. Students will have developed their argumentation, presentation, and collaboration skills.

Study Methods

Lecture participation, a learning diary and group work

Teaching Methods

Contact teaching.

Primary Teaching Language

English

Person in charge

Tanja Riekkinen

Marja Sivonen

2: Global Citizenship Education (5 ECTS)

Contents:

During the course, students will be introduced to the concepts of Global Citizenship Education (GCE) by exploring the different dimensions and philosophies of GCE. Besides discussing the theory of GCE, students will also take a closer look at practical examples of GCE in different countries around the world.

Learning Outcomes:

Students will be able to:

• Discuss global citizenship education (GCE) and understand how it relates to other educational areas such as development education, intercultural education, sustainability etc.

• Identify different definitions and approaches of GCE and their underlying philosophies and ideas.

• Evaluate different practical examples of GCE assessment and GCE lesson plans.

• Explore different critiques of GCE practices.

Teaching method:

Because the course will have many students with different backgrounds, it will use a very student-centred approach based on reflection and collaborative learning. Besides the lectures, students will have plenty of opportunities to share their perspectives and questions and learn from each other’s different backgrounds and experiences.

Primary Teaching Language

English

Person in charge

Andreas Rogler

3: (Eco)critical Sustainability (2 ECTS)

Contents:

• What does it mean to think critically about sustainability?

• What assumptions underlie environmental, social & economic sustainable development?

• How human-centred are current sustainability narratives?

• What might genuinely transformative sustainability education look like?

These are just some of the questions we will explore in this course, where participants will be introduced to posthuman, multispecies and more-than-human approaches and how they can be applied to sustainability. Participants will also distinguish power relations within sustainability narratives and reflect on their own positionality. Topics for discussion will include comparing anthropocentric with ecocentric approaches; whether there is a need to decolonise sustainability thinking; and what ecocritical sustainability might mean in practice.

The course contents will include:

• A brief introduction to critical thinking & how it applies to sustainability.

• The three pillars of sustainability (environment, social & economic): critical tensions and assumptions.

• Anthropocentrism in sustainability: ecocritical, multispecies, relational and more-than-human approaches to sustainability narratives and human-nature discourses.

• Western modernity & decolonising sustainability: decolonial critiques of sustainability and the reproduction of power inequalities in sustainability discourses.

• Transformative/critical sustainability: putting transformative sustainability ideas into practice; transformative sustainability education.

Learning Outcomes:

On completion, participants will have:

• Critically examined the concepts of sustainability and sustainable development and underlying assumptions.

• Contrasted and compared anthropocentric and ecocentric approaches to sustainability.

• Reflected on their own positionality, and how that relates to and affects their approaches to sustainability.

• Developed their criticality, argumentation and presentation skills in this area.

• Collaborated critically with students from diverse backgrounds on a group project on critical sustainability.

Teaching method:

The course is participatory and student-centred. Teaching will be in-person and activity- and discussion-based.

Primary Teaching Language

English

Person in charge

Joffy Conolly