Course Coordinator:Marcus Bussey (mbussey@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. |
Please go to usc.edu.au for up to date information on the
teaching sessions and campuses where this course is usually offered.
Can we fix it? You'll learn critical, strategic and lateral-thinking skills in this advanced sustainability course. Sustainability issues are explored in dynamic and future contexts using the contemporary concepts of vulnerability, adaptation, adaptive capacity and resilience. You'll gain valuable experience in the use of analytical and creative tools including systems thinking, complexity mapping software, mental models, and scenario development. Sustainability problems? You'll be the one to call.
Activity | Hours | Beginning Week | Frequency |
Blended learning | |||
Tutorial/Workshop 1 – On Campus Workshop 2 Hours | 2hrs | Week 1 | 10 times |
Learning materials – 1 hour online content for individual preparation | 1hr | Week 1 | 13 times |
Online | |||
Learning materials – 1 hour online content for individual preparation | 1hr | Week 1 | 13 times |
Tutorial/Workshop 1 – Online Workshop 2 Hours | 2hrs | Week 1 | 10 times |
Pre-course material
Introduction and assessment
Stakeholders
Sustainability Issues Analysis
Possible Solutions
Core concepts – Resilience, Vulnerability, Risk, Outrage and Trends
Project Planning
Monitoring and Evaluation
Case Studies
300 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 describe sustainability issues with reference to sustainability theory and practice. |
Empowered Sustainability-focussed |
2 | Recognise complex linkages and feedback mechanisms between social and ecological contexts to identify barriers to and opportunities for sustainable systems. |
Creative and critical thinker Sustainability-focussed |
3 | Reflect on sustainability strategies to propose sustainable solutions to contemporary problems. |
Creative and critical thinker Sustainability-focussed |
4 | Draw on research and sustainability frameworks to imagine and evaluate novel and alternative futures. |
Creative and critical thinker Sustainability-focussed |
5 | Utilise a range of contemporary and practical communication strategies for the effective dissemination of sustainability knowledge and ideas. |
Engaged Sustainability-focussed |
Refer to the UniSC Glossary of terms for definitions of “pre-requisites, co-requisites and anti-requisites”.
2 SUS coded courses including SUS101
Not applicable
Not applicable
Foundation and developing knowledge in sustainability principles, theory and application
Standard Grading (GRD)
High Distinction (HD), Distinction (DN), Credit (CR), Pass (PS), Fail (FL). |
Timely and detailed feedback is provided for each assessment. Feedback is provided both within text and general comments to build scholarly skills. Students can seek feedback through in-class peer and self-assessments and from face-to-face discussion with the course coordinator. Tutorials will include extended discussion and review of the assessment task requirements and scope.
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 | Artefact - Creative | Individual | 30% | A1 Size poster (450 words), plus 300 words conference leaflet |
Week 5 | Online Submission |
All | 2 | Practical / Laboratory Skills | Individual | 30% | 750 words |
Week 10 | Online Assignment Submission with plagiarism check |
All | 3 | Case Study | Individual | 40% | 1500 words |
Week 13 | Online Assignment Submission with plagiarism check |
All - Assessment Task 1:Conference poster: Scenario Planning | ||||||||||||||||
Goal: | To apply scenario planning to analyse a complex sustainability issue and identify barriers to, and opportunities for, achieving more sustainable futures within a real world context. |
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Product: | Artefact - Creative | |||||||||||||||
Format: | Individual conference poster (A1 in size) suitable for presentation to sustainability professionals (450 words). A one page conference leaflet (300 words) |
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Criteria: |
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Generic Skills: | Communication, Information literacy |
All - Assessment Task 2:Tutorial Tasks – problem solving, planning and evaluation | ||||||||||||||||
Goal: | To apply systems thinking to analyse complex sustainability issues and demonstrate an ability to apply problem solving and planning and evaluation tools to guide interventions to achieve more sustainable outcomes. |
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Product: | Practical / Laboratory Skills | |||||||||||||||
Format: | Three 250 word project brief summaries of completed tutorial activities (excluding references, tables and diagrams). Further task instructions will be provided on Canvas |
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Criteria: |
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Generic Skills: | Communication, Problem solving, Organisation, Information literacy |
All - Assessment Task 3:Case study: applying problem solving framework to complex sustainability issues | ||||||||||||||||
Goal: | To demonstrate your ability to evaluate a sustainability problem and its components, their dimensions, states and interdependencies to draw logical links towards creating a more sustainable future. |
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Product: | Case Study | |||||||||||||||
Format: | Individual 1500 word case study report. |
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Criteria: |
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Generic Skills: | Communication, Problem solving, Organisation |
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.
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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
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For help with course-specific advice, for example what information to include in your assessment, you should first contact your tutor, then your course coordinator, if needed.
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