Course coordinator
Dr Martin Weber
Course overview
- Study period
- Semester 2, 2024 (22/07/2024 - 18/11/2024)
- Study level
- Postgraduate Coursework
- Location
- St Lucia
- Attendance mode
- In Person
- Units
- 2
- Administrative campus
- St Lucia
- Coordinating unit
- Politic Sc & Internat Studies
Contemporary environmental problems have undeniably taken on crisis characteristics, which register in immediate local contexts, regionally, internationally, and globally. Scientists and many in the general public agree that political responses to the challenges entailed in this are inadequate, too slow, and too incoherent at present. In this course, we explore a) why this is the case; b) how ecological concerns are nevertheless beginning to reshape political and policy processes; c) what this means for received and entrenched understandings of political thought, political economy, development, and public policy; and how political analysts may or should respond. From climate change to global biodiversity, if you want to find out about 'making rules' for a better future, this course is for you.
This course is intended to cover environmental and ecological change as both, ﾠa practical and an analytical political challenge: Not only are we faced with massive transformative pressures as contemporary practices of economic and social development begin to reveal themselves as unsustainable; we are also confronted by a crisis of 'meaning-making', where many routine assumptions about political organization, development and progress turn out to be misleading, and where the categories we have come to rely on to explain our world to us reveal themselves as deeply problematic. To explore this, the course develops and applies three distinct analytical lenses, or 'approaches', discusses case examples through these, and introduces ways of apprehending political possibilities and alternatives.
Course requirements
Assumed background
Politics of Environmental Change is a specialist course at postgraduate level, and the assumption is that participants have good working knowledge of theoretical and methodological approaches in social and political science. Students enrolled in the 2-year duration Masters program should complete all 8 units of their Foundational Courses before enrolling in POLS7115.
Recommended prerequisites
We recommend completing the following courses before enrolling in this one:
8 units of compulsory courses in program
Course contact
Course staff
Timetable
The timetable for this course is available on the UQ Public Timetable.
Additional timetable information
This course comprises 12 sessions starting in week one. Note that the semester has 13 scheduled teaching weeks. The penultimate week is earmarked as 'Reading' and we will not have a lecture/seminar. This is to allow you maximum time to concentrate on your major essay, which is due in the final week of the course.
Aims and outcomes
The overarching aim of the course is to introduce learners comprehensively to the unique challenges posed by global and local anthropogenous ecological change for political organization, and for the conceptual and practical resources on which contemporary political institutions continue to rely.
Learning outcomes
After successfully completing this course you should be able to:
LO1.
Survey contemporary environmental problems and understand how they are embedded in broader social, political, and economic domains.
LO2.
Understand the political institutions and governance mechanisms developed around environmental and ecological change, and appreciate the differential implications of competing approaches.
LO3.
Understand and evaluate the connections between political discourse(s) of environmental change and debates in political theory, political economy, development, and public policy.
Assessment
Assessment summary
| Category | Assessment task | Weight | Due date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Reflection | Reflection-1 (800-1000 words) | 25% |
30/08/2024 1:45 pm |
| Reflection | Reflection-2 (800-1000 words) | 25% |
20/09/2024 1:45 pm |
| Essay/ Critique | Long Essay (3000 words) | 50% |
25/10/2024 1:45 pm |
Assessment details
Reflection-1 (800-1000 words)
- Mode
- Written
- Category
- Reflection
- Weight
- 25%
- Due date
30/08/2024 1:45 pm
- Learning outcomes
- L01, L02, L03
Task description
The Reflection Assignments in Politics of Environmental Change are primarily aimed at providing you with an opportunity to record your experiences, insights gained, and questions raised during two phases of the course.
Think about whether the lectures and seminars provided you with new or surprising insights, or whether issues, materials and literatures discussed rather confirmed or consolidated things you already knew, or perhaps expected.
Think also about what practical and organizational problems come into view, and how these affect attempts to devise, project, and implement political solutions to anthropogenic ecological problems.
A very good way to organize your reflections is to identify problems, formulate questions about these, and sketch potential pathways and strategies towards answering or addressing them. As you do this, make sure that you focus on what was particularly important for you. Rather than provide lengthy, generic summaries for what was raised in the lectures, or during the seminars, you should concentrate on recording what was particularly worthwhile, intriguing, or challenging from your perspective. Identifying questions that the sessions, readings or discussions have raised for you is an excellent way to conclude your reflection, and to help you achieve the ‘learning-feedback-loop' we are aiming for: Doing this exercise by producing a well-written and coherent text will not only attract 'a good mark' ( :-) ), but will also leave you with a document that helps you recall and process the learning experiences from the course.
Assessment tasks are intended to evaluate a student’s abilities, skills, and knowledge. Unless explicitly stated otherwise in the assessment instructions, assessments are to be completed without the aid of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Translation (MT). Failure to comply with this direction may constitute student misconduct under the Student Code of Conduct.
Submission guidelines
Please submit via the dedicated Turnitin Portal ("REFLECTION 1") under the 'Assessment'-tab on the Blackboard Site for POLS7115.
Submission:
Assignments for this course will be submitted electronically via Blackboard and using Turnitin.
In uploading an assignment via Turnitin you are certifying that it is your original work, that it has not been copied in whole or part from another person or source except where this is properly acknowledged, and that it has not in whole or part been previously submitted for assessment in any other course at this or any other university.
When you successfully submit your assessment to Turnitin after previewing the uploaded document (to make sure that you have chosen the correct file), you should see the “Submission Complete!” message. After this, a downloadable Digital Receipt will display on your Assignment Dashboard. It is your responsibility to download the Digital Receipt as proof of submission. Turnitin will not send this receipt to you automatically.
If you don’t see the downloadable receipt on your assignment dashboard, you should regard your submission as unsuccessful.
If the submission was not successful:
- Note the error message (preferably take a screenshot).
- Go to your assignment page and see if it is possible to submit again.
- If you cannot submit again, then email your course coordinator immediately.
Deferral or extension
You may be able to apply for an extension.
Please avoid late submission by applying for extensions in a timely manner (i.e. always before the deadline). Late submissions without legitimate extensions attract a penalty (10% off the total possible score per calendar day).
Late submission
A penalty of 10% of the maximum possible mark will be deducted per 24 hours from time submission is due for up to 7 days. After 7 days, you will receive a mark of 0.
Unless an extension is granted, penalties for late submission apply. Students are penalised 10% of the maximum possible mark allocated for the assessment item for every calendar day that an assessment item is late.
Marks will be deducted each day for up to 7 calendar days, at which point the submitted item will not receive any marks unless an extension has been approved. Each 24-hour block is triggered from the time the submission is due.
Reflection-2 (800-1000 words)
- Mode
- Written
- Category
- Reflection
- Weight
- 25%
- Due date
20/09/2024 1:45 pm
- Learning outcomes
- L01, L02, L03
Task description
The Reflection Assignments in Politics of Environmental Change are primarily aimed at providing you with an opportunity to record your experiences, insights gained, and questions raised during two phases of the course.
Think about whether the lectures and seminars provided you with new or surprising insights, or whether issues, materials and literatures discussed rather confirmed or consolidated things you already knew, or perhaps expected.
Think also about what practical and organizational problems come into view, and how these affect attempts to devise, project, and implement political solutions to anthropogenic ecological problems.
A very good way to organize your reflections is to identify problems, formulate questions about these, and sketch potential pathways and strategies towards answering or addressing them. As you do this, make sure that you focus on what was particularly important for you. Rather than provide lengthy, generic summaries for what was raised in the lectures, or during the seminars, you should concentrate on recording what was particularly worthwhile, intriguing, or challenging from your perspective. Identifying questions that the sessions, readings or discussions have raised for you is an excellent way to conclude your reflection, and to help you achieve the ‘learning-feedback-loop' we are aiming for: Doing this exercise by producing a well-written and coherent text will not only attract 'a good mark' ( :-) ), but will also leave you with a document that helps you recall and process the learning experiences from the course.
Assessment tasks are intended to evaluate a student’s abilities, skills, and knowledge. Unless explicitly stated otherwise in the assessment instructions, assessments are to be completed without the aid of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Translation (MT). Failure to comply with this direction may constitute student misconduct under the Student Code of Conduct.
Submission guidelines
Please submit via the dedicated Turnitin Portal ("REFLECTION 2") under the 'Assessment'-tab on the Blackboard Site for POLS7115.
Submission:
Assignments for this course will be submitted electronically via Blackboard and using Turnitin.
In uploading an assignment via Turnitin you are certifying that it is your original work, that it has not been copied in whole or part from another person or source except where this is properly acknowledged, and that it has not in whole or part been previously submitted for assessment in any other course at this or any other university.
When you successfully submit your assessment to Turnitin after previewing the uploaded document (to make sure that you have chosen the correct file), you should see the “Submission Complete!” message. After this, a downloadable Digital Receipt will display on your Assignment Dashboard. It is your responsibility to download the Digital Receipt as proof of submission. Turnitin will not send this receipt to you automatically.
If you don’t see the downloadable receipt on your assignment dashboard, you should regard your submission as unsuccessful.
If the submission was not successful:
- Note the error message (preferably take a screenshot).
- Go to your assignment page and see if it is possible to submit again.
- If you cannot submit again, then email your course coordinator immediately.
Deferral or extension
You may be able to apply for an extension.
Please avoid late submission by applying for extensions in a timely manner (i.e. always before the deadline). Late submissions without legitimate extensions attract a penalty (10% off the total possible score per calendar day).
Late submission
A penalty of 10% of the maximum possible mark will be deducted per 24 hours from time submission is due for up to 7 days. After 7 days, you will receive a mark of 0.
Unless an extension is granted, penalties for late submission apply. Students are penalised 10% of the maximum possible mark allocated for the assessment item for every calendar day that an assessment item is late.
Marks will be deducted each day for up to 7 calendar days, at which point the submitted item will not receive any marks unless an extension has been approved. Each 24-hour block is triggered from the time the submission is due.
Long Essay (3000 words)
- Mode
- Written
- Category
- Essay/ Critique
- Weight
- 50%
- Due date
25/10/2024 1:45 pm
- Learning outcomes
- L01, L02, L03
Task description
You will write a 3000 word argumentative research essay on one question you choose from the list of topics (available from Week 8 via Blackboard).
More information and advice available on the Blackboard site for the course (under the "Assessments" tab).
Assessment tasks are intended to evaluate a student’s abilities, skills, and knowledge. Unless explicitly stated otherwise in the assessment instructions, assessments are to be completed without the aid of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Translation (MT). Failure to comply with this direction may constitute student misconduct under the Student Code of Conduct.
Submission guidelines
Submission:
Assignments for this course will be submitted electronically via Blackboard and using Turnitin.
In uploading an assignment via Turnitin you are certifying that it is your original work, that it has not been copied in whole or part from another person or source except where this is properly acknowledged, and that it has not in whole or part been previously submitted for assessment in any other course at this or any other university.
When you successfully submit your assessment to Turnitin after previewing the uploaded document (to make sure that you have chosen the correct file), you should see the “Submission Complete!” message. After this, a downloadable Digital Receipt will display on your Assignment Dashboard. It is your responsibility to download the Digital Receipt as proof of submission. Turnitin will not send this receipt to you automatically.
If you don’t see the downloadable receipt on your assignment dashboard, you should regard your submission as unsuccessful.
If the submission was not successful:
- Note the error message (preferably take a screenshot).
- Go to your assignment page and see if it is possible to submit again.
- If you cannot submit again, then email your course coordinator immediately.
Deferral or extension
You may be able to apply for an extension.
Please avoid late submission by applying for extensions in a timely manner (i.e. always before the deadline). Late submissions without legitimate extensions attract a penalty (10% off the total possible score per calendar day).
Late submission
A penalty of 10% of the maximum possible mark will be deducted per 24 hours from time submission is due for up to 7 days. After 7 days, you will receive a mark of 0.
Unless an extension is granted, penalties for late submission apply. Students are penalised 10% of the maximum possible mark allocated for the assessment item for every calendar day that an assessment item is late.
Marks will be deducted each day for up to 7 calendar days, at which point the submitted item will not receive any marks unless an extension has been approved. Each 24-hour block is triggered from the time the submission is due.
Course grading
Full criteria for each grade is available in the Assessment Procedure.
| Grade | Description |
|---|---|
| 1 (Low Fail) |
Absence of evidence of achievement of course learning outcomes. Course grade description: The student does not address the question, shows no evidence of reading and minimal comprehension of the issues at hand. |
| 2 (Fail) |
Minimal evidence of achievement of course learning outcomes. Course grade description: The student addresses the question poorly and shows very little evidence of reading. |
| 3 (Marginal Fail) |
Demonstrated evidence of developing achievement of course learning outcomes Course grade description: The student makes an effort to establish a single major argument for the essay and employs some research which is correlated with the argument. Makes a visible effort to achieve adequate grammar, spelling and punctuation. Evidence of attempting to achieve a recognisable narrative flow appears throughout the assignment. The student addresses the question and shows evidence of required research and a basic grasp of the issues at hand. However, falls short of satisfying all basic requirements for a Pass. |
| 4 (Pass) |
Demonstrated evidence of functional achievement of course learning outcomes. Course grade description: The student makes an effort to establish a single major argument for the essay and employs some research which is correlated with the argument. Makes a visible effort to achieve adequate grammar, spelling and punctuation. Evidence of attempting to achieve a recognisable narrative flow appears throughout the assignment. The student addresses the question and shows evidence of required research and a basic grasp of the issues at hand. However, falls short of satisfying all basic requirements for a Pass. |
| 5 (Credit) |
Demonstrated evidence of proficient achievement of course learning outcomes. Course grade description: The student provides suitable evidence to support an argument and employs a comprehensive research base that directly relates to the topic, though it may not completely support the argument. Achieves decent levels of competence in grammar, spelling, punctuation and narrative flow. The student answers the question in a direct, well supported fashion and shows evidence of some wide reading and a reasonable understanding of the issues at hand. |
| 6 (Distinction) |
Demonstrated evidence of advanced achievement of course learning outcomes. Course grade description: The student demonstrates a very good grasp of the chosen topic and provides a considerable amount of evidence to support a clearly stated argument. The student employs a reasonably extensive and well-organised research base to structure evidence in support of the argument and achieves a high level of competence in grammar, spelling, punctuation and narrative flow. The student answers the question in a direct, reasonably sophisticated fashion, employs wide research and shows a sound understanding of the issues at hand. |
| 7 (High Distinction) |
Demonstrated evidence of exceptional achievement of course learning outcomes. Course grade description: The student demonstrates a highly sophisticated grasp of the topic and succeeds in addressing the question by providing a high level of evidence to support a clearly stated argument. The student employs an extensive and well organised research base to structure evidence in support of the argument and achieves impeccable levels of grammar, spelling, punctuation and narrative flow. The student answers the question in a direct and elegant fashion, employs significant research and shows a deep understanding of the issues at hand. |
Additional course grading information
Grades will be awarded on the following basis:
1. Fail 1 - 19%
2. Fail 20 - 44%
3. Fail 45 – 49%
4. Pass 50 - 64 %
5. Credit 65 - 74 %
6. Distinction 75 - 84 %
7. High Distinction 85 - 100 %
Supplementary assessment
Supplementary assessment is available for this course.
Additional assessment information
Word Length Penalty
Unless otherwise indicated, in the case of written submissions with a specified word count, you are given a +10% leeway on the upper word limit. If your written submission is over this leeway limit, it will attract a 10 percentage point penalty. For example, if your essay is 1,500 words, you may write up to 1,650 before attracting a word count penalty. If your essay exceeds the upper word limit, it will attract a 10% word count penalty. Therefore, if your essay is worth 40 marks, you will lose 4 marks from your allotted grade. Unless specified, penalties only apply to exceeding the word length, not for failure to write a sufficient amount.
Students should note:
• The Author-date in-text referencing system will count toward the word length;
• References in the Footnote referencing system will not count toward the word length. If you are using footnotes, any content included in footnotes beyond the specific text reference will count towards the word length.
Marking Criteria/Rubric
Marking criteria and/or marking rubrics are available in the ‘Assessment’ folder in Blackboard for this course.
Learning resources
You'll need the following resources to successfully complete the course. We've indicated below if you need a personal copy of the reading materials or your own item.
Library resources
Find the required and recommended resources for this course on the UQ Library website.
Additional learning resources information
Essay Guide
The School of Political Science and International Studies Essay Guide can be downloaded from the School’s Student Support webpage.
The Guide sets out guidelines you should follow in preparing written assignments.
Essay Writing Assistance
The School of Political Science and International Studies schedules regular “drop-in” sessions designed to provide one-on-one advice and assistance in essay planning and writing.
There is no need to make an appointment and you are encouraged to bring your essay with you.
The day and time of these sessions will be finalized at the beginning of each semester and published on the Student Support webpage.
Student Services
Student services offer a variety of short courses during the semester which will help you improve your study, research and writing skills and thus your academic performance in this course.
Library Resources
UQ Library offers training in software, assignment writing, research skills, and publishing and research management.
The University’s library holdings for Political Science and International Studies are primarily located in the Central Library.
There is a help desk in the Library. Students are also welcome to contact the BEL/HASS Librarians for assistance.
Email: librarians@library.uq.edu.au
Learning activities
The learning activities for this course are outlined below. Learn more about the learning outcomes that apply to this course.
Filter activity type by
Please select
| Learning period | Activity type | Topic |
|---|---|---|
Week 1 (22 Jul - 28 Jul) |
Seminar |
Opening and Survey of Ecological Challenges Climate change, Soil loss, Insectageddon, Biodiversity Loss, Pollution (Plastic Oceans, Atmospheric ), Fresh water decline/shortages, Declining Cryosphere Learning outcomes: L01, L03 |
Week 2 (29 Jul - 04 Aug) |
Seminar |
Approach I: Global problems, transnational solution We look at contemporary attempts to make sense of transnational (including global) efforts to address issues related to environmental degradation. International diplomatic activities and institution-building are the focus of research projects such as the Earth Systems Governance (ESG) network. The lecture explores this as one instance of attempts to get to grips with normative and analytical challenges posited by the politics of environmental change in international and global settings. Learning outcomes: L01, L02, L03 |
Week 3 (05 Aug - 11 Aug) |
Seminar |
Approach II: Political Ecology the bottom-up This lecture introduces and develops the Political Ecology approach as counter-balance to globally scoped theoretical and practical conceptions of environmental politics such as ESG. Political Ecology emerged from human geography and has been concerned with studying and understanding the impacts and implications of the framing of environmental politics at levels above the biomes and landscapes inhabited by human communities. This complements approaches like ESG, but also raises important criticisms of the latter. Learning outcomes: L01, L02, L03 |
Week 5 (19 Aug - 25 Aug) |
Seminar |
Approach III: Ecology as integral to Politics The third and final instalment of our Approaches segment is dedicated to exploring what we may call relational ways: In many indigenous philosophical systems, law, politics, and ethics are integrally connected with land, place and all the life it sustains, without inhibiting the pursuit of human needs and objectives. The lecture covers some examples and reconstructs some key reasons why political thought couched in (broadly) Eurocentric, science-oriented registers has such difficulties understanding such relational ways of knowing and acting. The final section of the lecture draws the three Approaches together as each representing different political and analytical possibilities. Learning outcomes: L01, L02, L03 |
Week 6 (26 Aug - 01 Sep) |
Seminar |
Three Approaches in Context: 'Extractivism' Dependence on mineral resources of different kinds has driven a rapid expansion of mining activities around the world, with some projecting future mining explorations in space. In this lecture, we use the three approaches lens we developed during the first part of the course to investigate political and policy tensions around such operations. The example of the Galilei Basin in Queensland provides one backdrop to the analysis, as we ask how differential interests, power, and political outlooks confront each other. We also address the question of the futures of mining, particularly in the context of technological change, and the need for new resources in post-fossil-fuel economies. Learning outcomes: L01, L02, L03 |
Week 7 (02 Sep - 08 Sep) |
Seminar |
Three Approaches in Context: The Example of Climate Mitigation In this lecture, we focus on the politics of climate change, using our three approaches frame. ESG envisages international institutional transformations and a realignment of policy-priorities globally that would be facilitated through such reforms. Political Ecology considers the consequences and implications of such attempts at coordinated action and poses the question of who is burdened with having to change against the backdrop of ecological impacts. Indigenous political thought instead offers different institutional ideas and ways of reconfiguring what could be done to address both, the implications of climate change, and the dynamics that keep contributing to it. Learning outcomes: L01, L02, L03 |
Week 8 (09 Sep - 15 Sep) |
Seminar |
Three Approaches in Context: Fisheries Marine and fresh-water fisheries are an important food-source, but also pose significant challenges in terms of environmental impacts. Well take the three framings to investigate how fisheries resources are configured within each and consider what conflicts might arise when different political orientations towards managing these confront each other in practical settings. The ESG approach is consistent with sustainable intensification, political ecology stresses the dilemmas into which local fisheries are forced by national and transnational regulation and competition, and indigenous or artisanal approaches stress the co-dependencies of fish, humans and maintenance of habitat integrity. All three have implications for what may or may not be done to address policy problems with environmental impacts of fisheries. Learning outcomes: L01, L02, L03 |
Week 9 (16 Sep - 22 Sep) |
Seminar |
Ecology and Political Conflict We turn to Peace and Conflict, and to question about what ecological change and society/nature relations have to do with this. It seems intuitive that inter-community conflicts have environmental impacts and implications. Conversely, though, there seems to be much less general appreciation of how human relations with the natural world may drive such conflicts. In this lecture we explore this by focusing on how different ways of organizing and institutionalizing societal relations with nature may drive politics of conflict and/or confrontation. We look at two examples, one more, one less obvious, with an aim to develop an understanding of the challenges of analysing and resolving such conflicts. In this context, a we develop a deeper understanding of the limitations of received conceptions of politics, complementing our three approaches learnings. Learning outcomes: L01, L02, L03 |
Mid Sem break (23 Sep - 29 Sep) |
No student involvement (Breaks, information) |
Mid-Semester Break No Lectures/Seminars |
Week 10 (30 Sep - 06 Oct) |
Seminar |
Managing Ecological Change: Reformism in Internati In this session, we discuss and investigate the politics of economic choices in more detail. It is clear and well-established that the dominant capitalist model of economic development and accumulation has accelerated and exacerbated many of the negative trends we now experience in environmental change and crisis. Today, we look at those attempts to green global economic activities that work from the premises of the current system and aim to include additional environmental safeguards and components. One of these attempts, The Economics of Ecosystems and Biodiversity (TEEB) initiative, argues that valuing nature is key to protecting it. We unpack that approach and probe its potentials and problems. Learning outcomes: L01, L02, L03 |
Week 11 (07 Oct - 13 Oct) |
Seminar |
Alternatives? We continue with the theme of ecology and political economy. Are there alternatives to contemporary growth imperatives? We consider three: 1) Ecological Modernization Theory, which effectively argues for technology-driven, rapid, greened modernization by way of escalating efficiency. 2) Social Ecology, which draws from ideas about ecologically embedded political autonomy, and has been put into practice in part by Kurdish followers of Abdullah Ocalan. 3) Restorative Ecology/Agriculture, which comprises projects directed at reversing damaged landscapes or improving biodiversity. What economies and economics do such alternatives require? Learning outcomes: L01, L02, L03 |
Week 12 (14 Oct - 20 Oct) |
Seminar |
Political Institutions & Political Theories Building on the previous sessions, we revisit the three approaches from the first part of the course. This time, we concern ourselves with the question of political institutions and their justifications. Political theories are concerned with how, and about what, rules should be made that may be considered binding, legitimate, and comprehensive. In different ways, the contemporary ecological crisis has laid open the inadequacies of competing political theories. What may we take from the three approaches towards more adequate expressions of justified political organization, both with regard to the Social Question, and the Ecological Question? Learning outcomes: L01, L02, L03 |
Week 13 (21 Oct - 27 Oct) |
Practical |
Essay Writing Week :-) Reading and Writing Week. Learning outcomes: L01, L02, L03 |
Seminar |
Summary The final lecture begins where we left off in the previous week, and looks back at the course, and the topics we have covered. Our main objective is to establish in what ways our entry into the Politics of Environmental Change has only allowed us to explore some important aspects of what is at stake. How should we prepare ourselves as researchers to take our interest in this field further? Learning outcomes: L01, L02, L03 |
Policies and procedures
University policies and procedures apply to all aspects of student life. As a UQ student, you must comply with University-wide and program-specific requirements, including the:
- Student Code of Conduct Policy
- Student Integrity and Misconduct Policy and Procedure
- Assessment Procedure
- Examinations Procedure
- Reasonable Adjustments - Students Policy and Procedure
Learn more about UQ policies on my.UQ and the Policy and Procedure Library.