Social Principles of Global Sustainable Development

^{Above: Farmers' Protest at Tikri Border. Image credit: Satdeep Gill, Wikimedia Commons.}

Module leader: Dr Romain Chenet

Module code: GD106

Core module |15 CATs

Term 1 | 10 weeks

9 lectures | 9 workshops

Not available to students outside the School for Cross-faculty Studies

Moodle Platform

Please note: The information on this page relates to the 2022-23 academic year.

Principal Aims and Teaching Methods

This module addresses the social and political principles of GSD. Its teaching methods range from Stimulus to Simulation in order to allow students to engage with theoretically complex concepts through practical activities. It is taught in a combination of lectures and seminars and involves group activities as well as online collaboration.

This is a rich and fascinating module, the more time you spend reading independently and conducting research on the topics we are studying, the more rewarding you will find it. The knowledge and skills that you acquire on this module provide essential background for the GSD Project module and for the core second-year modules.

Principal Learning Outcomes

By the end of the module students will be able to:

Offer a well-informed evidence-based explanation of the key challenges that face our world, focussing on the social and political dimensions
Explain the global social problems that are caused by particular forms of economic development
Explain and reflect critically on the reasons why some countries developed while others stayed poor
Engage critically with various strategies that have been suggested to address social inequality
Develop an understanding of the sustainability implications for societies of different forms of food, education and health challenges
Write critically about different ideas of sustainable development.

Employability Skills

Through this module, you will develop a number of different skills that are sought by employers which will support your professional development. We have highlighted this to enable you to identify and reflect on the skills you have acquired and apply them throughout your professional journey including during the recruitment processes whether this on an CV/application form or at an interview.

Collaborative: Developing professional relationships with others to achieve individual and team outcomes in group activities, presentations, and other module-essential tasks (all forms of employment).
Effective communication: Developing ideas and insights which engage others, driving forward discussions with a focus on actionable and practical solutions. This is a key focus of the module and relevant across sectors (marketing, business, civil sector, third sector)
Time management: Through a requirement to plan independent study, assignments, and engage in other forms of time management in this module, students are able to build valuable workplace skills (all forms of employment)
Emotional intelligence: Develop a nuanced and practical understanding of complex global issues with a firm emphasis on taking local context and individual experiences into account, supporting future careers where a considered and engaged approach to clients/stakeholders is relevant (social work, NGO project work, customer relations, management, etc.)

Assessment

Please note: Module availability and staffing may change year on year depending on availability and other operational factors. The School for Cross-faculty Studies makes no guarantee that any modules will be offered in a particular year, or that they will necessarily be taught by the staff listed on this page.