Module POL3259 for 2021/2
- Overview
- Aims and Learning Outcomes
- Module Content
- Indicative Reading List
- Assessment
Undergraduate Module Descriptor
POL3259: Climate Justice
This module descriptor refers to the 2021/2 academic year.
Module Aims
The module will enable students to explore debates about the demands of climate justice and how climate policymaking reflects (or fails to reflect) these demands. It will encourage students to use the tools of political theory to explore the theoretical roots of climate justice, the responsibilities of individuals and groups, the demands of mitigation and adaptation, what we owe to future people, geoengineering proposals, climate denial, damage to human rights, ethics for climate catastrophes, and more.
| On successfully completing the programme you will be able to: | |
|---|---|
| Module-Specific Skills | 1. Understand in depth the justice challenges created by climate change and critically evaluate proposals in the literature for meeting these challenges. 2. Recognise the salience of these challenges and proposals for real-world climate policy |
| Discipline-Specific Skills | 3. Assess normative arguments for their validity and soundness and begin to construct such arguments of your own. 4. Trace the evolution of abstract theoretical concepts into practical climate politics. |
| Personal and Key Skills | 5. Engage in respectful conversation with others on contested political questions; 6. Study independently and manage time and assessment deadlines effectively 7. Communicate effectively in speech and writing. 8. Present your own views on a topic with support from arguments and evidence; 9. Demonstrate critical and analytical skills through tutorial discussions and module assessments 10. Demonstrate proficiency in the use of the internet, online journal databases and other IT resources for the purposes of tutorial and assessment preparation. 11. Demonstrate effective applied writing |
Module Content
Syllabus Plan
Whilst the module’s precise content may vary from year to year, it is envisaged that the syllabus will cover at least the following topics:
- an introduction to the science and politics of climate change
- a theoretical analysis of the problem of climate change
- consideration of the bases of climate responsibility
- assessment of individuals and groups as bearers of climate duties
- exploration of the demands of intergenerational justice in the face of climate change
- climate displacement and resettlement
- geoengineering proposals
- climate denial
- hope and despair
Learning and Teaching
This table provides an overview of how your hours of study for this module are allocated:
| Scheduled Learning and Teaching Activities | Guided independent study | Placement / study abroad |
|---|---|---|
| 44 | 256 |
...and this table provides a more detailed breakdown of the hours allocated to various study activities:
| Category | Hours of study time | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Scheduled Learning and Teaching Activities | 44 | 22 x 2-hour seminars |
| Guided independent study | 100 | Private study reading and preparing for seminars |
| Guided independent study | 156 | Preparation for essay and pre-seen exam including researching and collating relevant sources; planning the structure and argument; writing up the essay |
Online Resources
This module has online resources available via ELE (the Exeter Learning Environment).
Carbon Brief: www.carbonbrief.org
World Resources Institute: https://www.wri.org/
IPCC: https://www.ipcc.ch/
Desmogblog: https://www.desmogblog.com/
Climate Equity Reference Project: https://climateequityreference.org/
Project Drawdown: https://www.drawdown.org/
Climate Action Tracker: https://climateactiontracker.org/
Wiley Interdisciplinary Reviews: Climate Change: http://wires.wiley.com/WileyCDA/WiresJournal/wisId-WCC.html
The Guardian, Climate Change: https://www.theguardian.com/environment/climate-change
How this Module is Assessed
In the tables below, you will see reference to 'ILO's. An ILO is an Intended Learning Outcome - see Aims and Learning Outcomes for details of the ILOs for this module.
Formative Assessment
A formative assessment is designed to give you feedback on your understanding of the module content but it will not count towards your mark for the module.
| Form of assessment | Size of the assessment (eg length / duration) | ILOs assessed | Feedback method |
|---|---|---|---|
| Essay outline | 500 words | 1-11 | Peer-assessed |
| Case study | 1000 words | 1-11 | Peer-assessed |
Summative Assessment
A summative assessment counts towards your mark for the module. The table below tells you what percentage of your mark will come from which type of assessment.
| Coursework | Written exams | Practical exams |
|---|---|---|
| 50 | 50 | 0 |
...and this table provides further details on the summative assessments for this module.
| Form of assessment | % of credit | Size of the assessment (eg length / duration) | ILOs assessed | Feedback method |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Essay | 25 | 2000 words | 1-11 | Written |
| Essay | 25 | 2000 words | 1-11 | Written |
| Open book exam | 50 | 24 hours | 1-11 | Written |
Re-assessment
Re-assessment takes place when the summative assessment has not been completed by the original deadline, and the student has been allowed to refer or defer it to a later date (this only happens following certain criteria and is always subject to exam board approval). For obvious reasons, re-assessments cannot be the same as the original assessment and so these alternatives are set. In cases where the form of assessment is the same, the content will nevertheless be different.
| Original form of assessment | Form of re-assessment | ILOs re-assessed | Timescale for re-assessment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Essay | Essay (2000 words) 25% | 1-11 | August/September reassessment period |
| Essay | Essay (2000 words) 25% | 1-11 | August/September reassessment period |
| Open book exam 24 hours | Open book exam (24 hours) | 1-11 | August/September reassessment period |
Indicative Reading List
This reading list is indicative - i.e. it provides an idea of texts that may be useful to you on this module, but it is not considered to be a confirmed or compulsory reading list for this module.
Caney, S., 2006. ‘Cosmopolitan justice, responsibility, and global climate change’. Leiden Journal of International Law, 18 (4).
Draper, J., and McKinnon, C., 2018. The ethics of climate-induced community displacement and resettlement. Wiley Interdisciplinary Reviews: Climate Change, 9 (3).
Gardiner, S.M., 2011. A perfect moral storm: the ethical tragedy of climate change. Oxford University Press.
Jamieson, D., 2014. Reason in a dark time. Oxford University Press.
McKinnon, C., 2011. Climate change and future justice. Routledge.
McKinnon, C., 2018. ‘Sleepwalking into lock-in? Avoiding wrongs to future people in the governance of solar radiation management research’. Environmental Politics, published online 28 March 2018.
Moellendorf, D., 2013. The moral challenge of dangerous climate change. Cambridge University Press.
Preston, C. (ed), 2012. Engineering the climate. Lexington Books.Schlosberg, D., 2012. ‘Climate justice and capabilities: a framework for adaptation policy’. Ethics and International Affairs, 26 (4), 445-461.
Shue, H., 2014. Climate Justice. Oxford University Press.
