Entry requirements

General entry requirements

Learning outcomes

On completion of the course, students should be able to:

• identify the relationship between resource scarcity, growth of human societies, and environmental sustainability.
• describe the social aspects of resource scarcity.
• relate theories and histories of resource scarcity and growth of human societies to contemporary questions on sustainability.

Content

This course focuses on a central idea about the growth and development of human societies in relation to environmental sustainability: scarcity. The idea of environmental limits often comes with the recognition of scarcity as an endemic situation for human societies. A great number of theories and philosophies have analysed scarcity as a human condition and proposed solutions for how it can be managed. What is often not considered is that scarcity originates next to the available quantity and quality of natural resources, also from the subjective and social aspirations and needs of people. This course will investigate how these objective and subjective dimensions of scarcity work and change over time by considering a number of theories and historical examples. Through analysis of these theories and application to historical examplesscarcity is connected to human emotions and desires, the expanding anthroposphere, social (in)equality, and institutions such as money and (common) property. The course uses examples from literature, social science theories, and film.

Instruction

Lectures and seminars.

Assessment

Written assignments and oral examination.

If there are special reasons, the examiner may make exceptions to the specified examination method and allow an individual student to be examined in a different way. Special reasons can e.g. be notified of special educational support from the university's coordinator for students with disabilities.