Course content

Modern society is facing a sustainability crisis that is threatening our way of life. Due to the development of markets and technologies, the current pace of resource consumption is higher than the environment can sustain over time. Technological and economic development must happen in a way that is environmentally and societally sustainable. For engineers to be able to develop sustainable solutions for the future, it is essential to understand why and how today’s problems have come about, and what expectations and demands the society places on future development.

Sustainability is about solving today’s challenges without damaging the resource base of the future. Working for a sustainable society therefore demands deep knowledge about how the environment and society have developed over time. Present-day challenges are a direct consequence of choices made in the past. To solve the challenges connected to sustainability we need to understand how they have arisen, how they have been handled historically, and recognize that good and sustainable solutions must be adapted to societal development in a long-term perspective.

The course focuses on the interplay between technology, business and politics. The students will analyse this interplay through three main areas:

1. Technology, resource utilization and sustainable environment: economic development and utilization of natural resources has created growing environmental problems. At the same time, technology has created new challenges, but has also contributed to solving them. The main focus in this segment is on local and regional consequences for the environment and for societies.
2. Economic and social sustainability: What are the national consequences of environmental problems? How have different states handled ecological challenges and to what extent have they been able to succeed in creating economic and societal sustainable societies?
3. Global solutions: what attempts have been made to solve global challenges on international arenas? In which areas have we been able to reach good solutions, where have things gone wrong, and why?

The course will give master of science students historical knowledge which will enable them to better understand the society in which they will work. The teaching is based on analysis and discussion of relevant historical examples, and will focus on the complex interplay between mankind, technology and nature. The course will utilize the historical teaching case method, and asks the core question: why have we ended up on a crisis of sustainability and what can history teach us about possible solutions?

Learning outcome

A candidate who passes this course is expected to have the following learning outcomes, defined as knowledge and skills:

Knowledge

The candidate should

• have an understanding of the historical development of modern forms of society and the interplay between nature, technology, and society
• have thorough knowledge of how questions about sustainability have arisen and how they have been handled by historical actors on different levels
• have acquired the basic methodological competence needed to examine and understand complex processes in the different levels of society: local, national, and global

Skills

The candidate should

• be able to find relevant information, analyze and give good representations of complex causal relationships
• be able to reflect over their own professional activity, and how they can contribute to solving large societal challenges
• be able to formulate and structure complex historical arguments orally and in writing. The candidate should be able to disseminate their arguments efficiently both in written and oral presentations.

Learning methods and activities

Lectures with case method teaching. The obligatory activity from a previous semester can be approved by the department.

Compulsory assignments

• Up to 10 short assignments

Required previous knowledge

None.

Course materials

See curriculum published at the start of the semester, and other materials (reading and lecture lists and other relevant information) published on Blackboard