Postgraduate taught 

Earth Futures: Environments, Communities, Relationships MSc

Earth Futures: Thinking and Planning for the Anthropocene GEOG4103

  • Academic Session: 2024-25
  • School: School of Geographical and Earth Sciences
  • Credits: 10
  • Level: Level 4 (SCQF level 10)
  • Typically Offered: Semester 2 (Alternate Years)
  • Available to Visiting Students: Yes
  • Collaborative Online International Learning: No

Short Description

This course provides an introduction to global environmental management in the Anthropocene, focusing: on the rapidly changing nature of a future-orientated geopolitics; the design and testing of geoengineering solutions; grass-roots anxieties, organising and responses to the Anthropocene; and the manner in which future thinking about the Earth reworks geographies of proximity and distance.

Timetable

There will be five - two hour lecture/seminar  sessions delivered over 5 weeks.

Assessment

Course exam (100%)

Main Assessment In: December and April/May

Are reassessment opportunities available for all summative assessments? Not applicable

Reassessments are normally available for all courses, except those which contribute to the Honours classification. For non-Honours courses, students are offered reassessment in all or any of the components of assessment if the satisfactory (threshold) grade for the overall course is not achieved at the first attempt. This is normally grade D3 for undergraduate students and grade C3 for postgraduate students. Exceptionally it may not be possible to offer reassessment of some coursework items, in which case the mark achieved at the first attempt will be counted towards the final course grade. Any such exceptions for this course are described below. 

Course Aims

■ To introduce core debates on the condition of the Anthropocene from diverse disciplines

■ To critically assess the past, present and potential future of global environmental management

■ To introduce current ideas and practices regarding geoengineering and grass-roots responses to the Anthropocene

■ To explore rapidly shifting imaginaries of the Earth and its possible futures

Intended Learning Outcomes of Course

By the end of this course students will be able to:

■ Discuss and reflect upon debates and approaches on the condition of the Anthropocene

■ Identify key authors and contributions

■ Critically assess relevant bodies of practice such as geoengineering

■ Explain past and present linkages between geoengineering and geopolitics

■ Identify issues in primary sources, and critically assess and contextualize current news stories

■ Explain what makes a geographical perspective important

Minimum Requirement for Award of Credits

Students must submit at least 75% by weight of the components (including examinations) of the course's summative assessment.