SGO2302 – Environment and society
Course description
Course content
This course focuses on human-environment relationships and their implications for nature and society. The issue of climate change will be a focal point for examining the drivers and consequences of environmental change, including relationships to processes such as globalization, urbanization, and land use changes. Scientific concepts, such as the "Anthropocene," which are increasingly used to describe the nature and extent of contemporary environmental challenges, will be explored from a social science perspective. Other topics such as consumption, energy use, greenhouse gas emissions, impacts, vulnerability, resilience, adaptation and mitigation will be presented and related to the broader debates about transitions and transformations to sustainability.
The lectures, readings and seminars will explore how discourses influence understandings and responses to contemporary environmental problems, including the role of beliefs, values, and worldviews in shaping the rules, norms, institutions, policies and power relationships, which can either promote or constrain practical responses to environmental challenges. Students will actively engage with debates on and experiments with individual and collective change, and explore what alternative approaches and paradigms have to offer.
Learning outcome
Knowledge
- Understand key concepts, theories, and debates about environmental problems, including causes and responsibility, impacts and vulnerability, resilience, adaptation and human security;
- Explain the role that discourses and worldviews play in framing problems and solutions;
- Recognize different perspectives and approaches to environmental problems, and how these influence research, policy and action;
- Understand the key issues related to individual environmental problems such as climate change, biodiversity loss, deforestation, etc.;
- Understand the links between globalization, and environmental change, and recognize how multiple processes (e.g., economic change, urbanization, epidemics, etc.) intersect and interact;
- Explain how environmental problems are linked to development and understandings of human-environment relationships and society-technology dynamics;
- Understand how contributions from the social sciences can contribute to a more comprehensive understanding of environmental problems and solutions.
Skills and Competence
- Discuss and debate articles and text on environmental issues;
- Recognize how different discourses are represented in media coverage of environmental issues.
- Write an academic text with references that addresses a particular question related to environment and society;
- Present and defend viewpoints among a group of students.
Admission to the course
Students who are admitted to study programmes at UiO must each semester register which courses and exams they wish to sign up for?in Studentweb.
If you are not already enrolled as a student at UiO, please see our information about?admission requirements and procedures.
Recommended previous knowledge
SGO1001 – Innf?ring i samfunnsgeografi
Overlapping courses
- 10 credits overlap with SGO2301 – Environment and society (discontinued).
- 10 credits overlap with SGO2301P.
- 10 credits overlap with SOSGEO2301 – Environment and society (discontinued).
- 10 credits overlap with SOSGEO2302 – Environment and Society.
- 10 credits overlap with SOSGEO2301P.
Teaching
Seminars and lectures.
Compulsory instruction and coursework
In this course, students are obliged to
Write a reflection paper based on a 30-day experiment with personal behavior change and drawing on course material.
Attend at least four out of eight seminars offered throughout the semester, including the first seminar.
The reflection paper is graded pass/fail. A passing grade is a prerequisite for taking the final exam. The purpose and structure of the 30-day challenge and the requirements for the reflection paper are discussed at the first seminar and students must therefore be present in their assigned seminar group for this seminar (and at least three additional seminar sessions).
Students who have failed to complete the compulsory course work cannot take the exam.
General information
This course will be taught at The University of Oslo, Blindern campus. Other location in Oslo may be used. The e-learning tool Canvas will normally be used.
The teaching is organized as lectures and seminars, which will be given in English. The course is part of the regular course provision at The Faculty of Social Science.
Teaching is mainly held during daytime. Teaching is organised as a combination of lectures and seminars throughout the semester.
Information about change of seminar group
Absence from compulsory tuition activities
In the event of illness or other valid reasons, you can apply for a valid absence or postponement of compulsory activity.
Apply for valid absence from or need for postponement of compulsory activity
A student who has completed compulsory instruction and coursework and has had these approved, is not entitled to repeat that instruction and coursework. A student who has been admitted to a course, but who has not completed compulsory instruction and coursework or had these approved, is entitled to repeat that instruction and coursework, depending on available capacity.Completed and approved compulsory course work is valid until the course is no longer offered.
Examination
The exam is a 7-day home exam. The minimum length of the home exam is 4500 words and maximum 5500 words (excluding references).
The exam question will be available from 10.00 am on the day of the exam and must be submitted at 12.00 pm 7 days later.
Previous exams (Please note that the exam format has changed recently, and past exams offer limited guidance for exams from 2023 onwards.)
Language of examination
The examination text is given in English.You may submit your response in Norwegian, Swedish, Danish or English.
Grading scale
Grades are awarded on a scale from A to F, where A is the best grade and F is a fail. Read more about the grading system.
More about examinations at UiO
- Use of sources and citations
- How to use AI as a student
- Special exam arrangements due to individual needs
- Withdrawal from an exam
- Illness at exams / postponed exams
- Explanation of grades and appeals
- Resitting an exam
- Cheating/attempted cheating
You will find further guides and resources at the web page on examinations at UiO.