Course Coordinator:Alex Pelizzon (apelizzon@usc.edu.au) School:School of Law and Society
UniSC Sunshine CoastUniSC Moreton Bay |
Blended learning | Most of your course is on campus but you may be able to do some components of this course online. |
Online |
Online | You can do this course without coming onto campus, unless your program has specified a mandatory onsite requirement. |
Please go to unisc.edu.au for up to date information on the
teaching sessions and campuses where this course is usually offered.
This course introduces students to the way in which law engages with the non-human environment. Firstly, the course locates and reconceptualises ‘nature’ within the legal sphere, by focusing on the international emergence of an ecological jurisprudence. Students will then engage with environmental policies and regulations situated in diverse philosophical frameworks. Finally, the course will focus on the Australian environmental regulatory regime.
| Activity | Hours | Beginning Week | Frequency |
| Blended learning | |||
| Learning materials – Online Learning Materials | 1hr | Week 1 | 12 times |
| Tutorial/Workshop 1 – On-Campus Tutorial | 2hrs | Week 2 | 10 times |
| Online | |||
| Learning materials – Online Learning Materials | 1hr | Week 1 | 12 times |
| Tutorial/Workshop 1 – Online Tutorial | 2hrs | Week 2 | 10 times |
The course engages with critical and theoretical analyses of law and in relation to the contested idea of ‘nature’. Working through both practical and theoretical understandings of nature and the environment, this course examines the Australian legal framework through an analytical lens. In this course, you will learn:
400 Level (Graduate)
12 units
| Course Learning Outcomes On successful completion of this course, you should be able to... | Graduate Qualities Completing these tasks successfully will contribute to you becoming... | |
| 1 | Identify and explain the cultural, philosophical, political, social and historical contexts in which the ideas of ‘law’ and ‘nature’ are located. |
Knowledgeable Empowered |
| 2 | Demonstrate an understanding of environmental ethical concerns in relation to environmental law and regulation. |
Knowledgeable Ethical Sustainability-focussed |
| 3 | Utilize critical thinking, analysis, and sound judgment to apply legal knowledge effectively in diverse contexts, generating appropriate and practical responses to complex problems and ethical issues. |
Creative and critical thinker Empowered Ethical |
| 4 | Demonstrate effective, persuasive, and contextually appropriate written and oral communication. | Empowered |
| 5 | Develop and demonstrate effective presentation skills, including proper referencing and citation techniques, to communicate legal information accurately and professionally. | Empowered |
Refer to the UniSC Glossary of terms for definitions of “pre-requisites, co-requisites and anti-requisites”.
(LAW100, LAW105 and LAW108) or (LAW102) OR (Successful completion of 96 units)
Not applicable
Not applicable
Not applicable
Not applicable
Standard Grading (GRD)
| High Distinction (HD), Distinction (DN), Credit (CR), Pass (PS), Fail (FL). |
In addition to the oral and written feedback provided on the ‘Ecological Jurisprudence’ assessment task, formative feedback will be provided in the form of class discussion of the methods of analysis appropriate to environmental law during tutorials.
| Delivery mode | Task No. | Assessment Product | Individual or Group | Weighting % | What is the duration / length? | When should I submit? | Where should I submit it? |
| All | 1 | Written Piece | Individual | 50% | 2000 words |
Week 7 | Online Assignment Submission with plagiarism check |
| All | 2 | Examination - Centrally Scheduled | Individual | 50% | 3 hours |
Exam Period | Online Assignment Submission with plagiarism check |
| All - Assessment Task 1:Ecological Jurisprudence | |||||||||||||
| Goal: | The goal of the ‘Ecological Jurisprudence’ written piece is to allow students to articulate an argument of their choice in relation to the intertwined ideas of ‘law’ and ‘nature’. |
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| Product: | Written Piece | ||||||||||||
| Authorship Statement: | |||||||||||||
| Format: | Written Piece |
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| Criteria: |
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| Generic Skills: | Communication, Problem solving, Organisation, Information literacy |
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| All - Assessment Task 2:Examination | |||||||||||||
| Goal: | The goal of the final exam is to allow students to evaluate and appraise a legal environmental problem in Australia. |
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| Product: | Examination - Centrally Scheduled | ||||||||||||
| Authorship Statement: | |||||||||||||
| Format: | Answers to unseen hypothetical problem questions |
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| Criteria: |
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| Generic Skills: | Communication, Problem solving, Organisation, Information literacy |
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A 12-unit course will have total of 150 learning hours which will include directed study hours (including online if required), self-directed learning and completion of assessable tasks. Student workload is calculated at 12.5 learning hours per one unit.
Please note: Course information, including specific information of recommended readings, learning activities, resources, weekly readings, etc. are available on the course Canvas site– Please log in as soon as possible.
You need regular access to the resource(s) below. Many texts are available as ebooks through the Library at no additional cost.
| Required? | Author | Year | Title | Edition | Publisher |
| Recommended | Alessandro Pelizzon | 0 | Ecological Jurisprudence | n/a | forthcoming |
| Required | ROWENA. MAGUIRE | 2025 | ENVIRONMENTAL, PLANNING AND CLIMATE LAW IN QUEENSLAND. | 2nd ed | LexisNexis |
Not applicable
Academic integrity is the ethical standard of university participation. It ensures that students graduate as a result of proving they are competent in their discipline. This is integral in maintaining the value of academic qualifications. Each industry has expectations and standards of the skills and knowledge within that discipline and these are reflected in assessment.
Academic integrity means that you do not engage in any activity that is considered to be academic fraud; including plagiarism, collusion or outsourcing any part of any assessment item to any other person. You are expected to be honest and ethical by completing all work yourself and indicating in your work which ideas and information were developed by you and which were taken from others. You cannot provide your assessment work to others. You are also expected to provide evidence of wide and critical reading, usually by using appropriate academic references.
In order to minimise incidents of academic fraud, this course may require that some of its assessment tasks, when submitted to Canvas, are electronically checked through Turnitin. This software allows for text comparisons to be made between your submitted assessment item and all other work to which Turnitin has access.
Eligibility for Supplementary Assessment
Your eligibility for supplementary assessment in a course is dependent of the following conditions applying:
(a) The final mark is in the percentage range 47% to 49.4%; and
(b) The course is graded using the Standard Grading scale
Late submissions may be penalised up to and including the following maximum percentage of the assessment task’s identified value, with weekdays and weekends included in the calculation of days late:
(a) One day: deduct 5%;
(b) Two days: deduct 10%;
(c) Three days: deduct 20%;
(d) Four days: deduct 40%;
(e) Five days: deduct 60%;
(f) Six days: deduct 80%;
(g) Seven days: A result of zero is awarded for the assessment task.
The following penalties will apply for a late submission for an online examination:
Less than 15 minutes: No penalty
From 15 minutes to 30 minutes: 20% penalty
More than 30 minutes: 100% penalty
For more information on Academic Learning & Teaching categories including:
For more information, visit https://www.usc.edu.au/explore/policies-and-procedures#academic-learning-and-teaching
UniSC is committed to excellence in teaching, research and engagement in an environment that is inclusive, inspiring, safe and respectful. The Student Charter sets out what students can expect from the University, and what in turn is expected of students, to achieve these outcomes.