GEOG 5002 - Environmental Planning and Governance

North Terrace Campus - Semester 2 - 2015

This course will critically examine approaches to environmental planning and governance in Australia and internationally. The course will introduce students to the rational planning model which has long-dominated planning strategies in Australia. It will then shift focus and explore how sustainable development is influencing planning via theories of ecology, the interrelationship between values and knowledge, a restructured public sphere and the emergence of new actors. Students will be asked to critique relevant recent Australian environmental planning decisions in relation to criteria of sustainable development. The course will move on to critically examine contemporary thinking about environmental governance including state and market-based approaches, decentralised environmental management, the role of NGOs, community based approaches and regional planning. International cases of environmental management which highlight the linkages between national or regional environmental governance structures and natural resource management outcomes will be analysed.

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Course Details

Course Code	GEOG 5002
Course	Environmental Planning and Governance
Coordinating Unit	Geography, Environment and Population
Term	Semester 2
Level	Postgraduate Coursework
Location/s	North Terrace Campus
Units	6
Contact	Up to 3 hours per week
Available for Study Abroad and Exchange	Y
Incompatible	GEST 5002
Assessment	Take home exam (40%), research essay (40%), tutorial presentation and participation (20%)

Course Staff

Course Coordinator: Associate Professor Douglas Bardsley

Course Timetable

The full timetable of all activities for this course can be accessed from Course Planner.

Course Learning Outcomes

At the successful completion of this course, students will be able to:

1	Explain the major tenets of environmental planning in the South Australian context
2	Understand the roles of the different jurisdictional organisations within the environmental governance structure
3	Critically analyse the environmental planning structure
4	Explain key aspects of international environmental governance
5	Discuss the implications of current governance practices in relation to sustainable development goals both in Australia and internationally
6	Develop comparative analyses using quantitative and qualitative data to critique current governance systems
7	Communicate in written and oral forms key aspects of environmental planning and governance

University Graduate Attributes

This course will provide students with an opportunity to develop the Graduate Attribute(s) specified below:

University Graduate Attribute	Course Learning Outcome(s)
Knowledge and understanding of the content and techniques of a chosen discipline at advanced levels that are internationally recognised.	1, 2, 4
The ability to locate, analyse, evaluate and synthesise information from a wide variety of sources in a planned and timely manner.	2-6
An ability to apply effective, creative and innovative solutions, both independently and cooperatively, to current and future problems.	3-6
Skills of a high order in interpersonal understanding, teamwork and communication.	2-7
A proficiency in the appropriate use of contemporary technologies.	6, 7
A commitment to continuous learning and the capacity to maintain intellectual curiosity throughout life.	3, 5, 6
A commitment to the highest standards of professional endeavour and the ability to take a leadership role in the community.	1-7
An awareness of ethical, social and cultural issues within a global context and their importance in the exercise of professional skills and responsibilities.	3, 5

Learning Resources

Recommended Resources

There is no prescribed text for this course, if you do not have any background in Physical Geography or Environmental Science, the following book is highly recommended: Strahler A. (2013) Introducing Physical Geography. 6th Edition. John Wiley and Sons, Chichester UK.

Core reading will be provided before each workshop and will be made available via MyUni.

Online Learning

The course guide and additional course-related material will be made available through MyUni.

Learning & Teaching Modes

The workshops are compulsory and provide a forum in which students learn about important elements of environmental planning and governance. The workshops are framed around the two major assignments.

The lectures, which are not compulsory, provide basic factual information and concepts about environmental management, initially in relation to the important tenets of sustainable development and in relation to societal risk.

The take-home exam and the comparative analysis essay provide opportunities for students to undertake research that will allow you to articulate in written form the key challenges of contemporary environmental planning and governance at State and international scales. The comparative analysis will also be presented and discussed during the final workshops.

Workload

The information below is provided as a guide to assist students in engaging appropriately with the course requirements.

3 hours of workshops (or equivalent) per week	36 hours per semester
2 hours of lectures (or equivalent) per week	24 hours per semester
9 hours reading per week	108 hours per semester
2 hours contacting SA Govt, industry and NGO environmental practitioners per week	24 hours per semester
10 hours assignment/exam preparation per week	120 hours per semester
TOTAL WORKLOAD	312 hours per semester

Learning Activities Summary

Schedule
Week	Lecture: not compulsory	Workshop: compulsory attendance
Week 1	1. Introduction to the course & environmental challenges 2. Does environmental management equate with sustainable development?	Course introduction
Week 2	3. Biodiversity 4. The Precautionary principle	SA government environmental planning
Week 3	5. Sustainable economic development I 6. Sustainable economic development II	Regional natural resource management planning
Week 4	7. Natural Resource Management I 8. Natural Resource Management II	Local Government environmental planning
Week 5	9. Social equity and environmental management I 10. Social equity and environmental management II	Review: Environmental planning structures in Australia
Week 6	11. Urbanisation 12. Urban environmental management	Contentious Topics in Environmental Planning: Take Home exam
Week 7	13. Sustainable Development via Ecological modernisation? 14. The Risk Society	Comparative analysis essay preparation
Week 8	15. Climate change & human populations 16. International governance & climate change	Break week
BREAK
Week 9	17. PUBLIC HOLIDAY 18. Political-ecology	International governance of socio-ecological risk
Week 10	19. Agriculture I 20. Agriculture II	Governing sustainable agricultural development
Week 11	21. Energy I 22. Energy II	Comparative analysis presentations
Week 12	23. A country case study: Switzerland 24. Summary	Comparative analysis presentations

The University's policy on Assessment for Coursework Programs is based on the following four principles:

Assessment must encourage and reinforce learning.
Assessment must enable robust and fair judgements about student performance.
Assessment practices must be fair and equitable to students and give them the opportunity to demonstrate what they have learned.
Assessment must maintain academic standards.

Assessment Summary

Assessment Task	Task Type	Weighting	Learning Outcome
Workshop participation and attendance	Formative and Summative	10%	1-7
2500 word take-home exam	Formative and Summative	40%	1-7
3000 word comparative analysis essay	Formative and Summative	40%	1-7
Comparative analysis presentation	Formative and Summative	10%	1-7

Assessment Related Requirements

Workshop attendance and participation is compulsory and will be assessed as part of this course.

Assessment Detail

Take-home exam - A planning challenge (2500 words)
The take-home exam will be provided and students will have 2 weeks to complete the assigned task linked to a South Australian environmental planning issue.

Assignment 2: Comparative Analysis Essay (3000 words)
You will need to undertake a comparative analysis of the governance approach to manage ONE environmental resource, pollution or hazard issue within TWO countries of your choice.
· Planning students must undertake a comparison on the governance of land use planning within rural, urban, coastal or peri-urban settings across the two countries.
· All other students will need to find an issue that interests them and there are no specific restrictions beyond a focus on an environmental management issue.

In order to complete the assignment, you should access and utilise both qualitative evidence from the literature and quantitative data that could be used as indicators of management in each case, and relate the trends in the state of the resource to desired management outcomes. To achieve this, you will need to decide on a valid comparison – so talk with the course coordinator before embarking on your topic. Your analysis should also outline the governance structures for the management of the issue in each case, and suggest how that governance structure is influencing the outcomes.

The assignment should be prepared in essay format, with headings and subheadings as necessary. You will be asked to illustrate your essay with graphs, maps, tables and diagrams as appropriate.

Assignment 3: Comparative analysis: Presentation
You will present the major findings from your comparative analysis essay to your peers. Your presentation will be assessed for both matter (ie. what you present) and manner (ie. how you present). Further information about the presentation will be provided in the workshops.

Submission

The Take-Home Exam (assignment 1) and the Essay (assignment 2) will need to be submitted electronically via both the ICC site and the Turnitin Assignment tool.

Assignments 1 & 2 must be lodged in electronic form by the given due date and time to avoid penalty. A penalty of 5% will be deducted per day that an assignment is submitted late.

Assignments will be printed out and marked in hard copy form and made available to be picked up by students either in class or at the end of the semester. If you wish to have the marked, final work sent to you, you MUST supply Dr Bardsley with a stamped, self-addressed envelope when submitting the final piece of work. Only one A3 envelope is necessary.

Course Grading

Grades for your performance in this course will be awarded in accordance with the following scheme:

M10 (Coursework Mark Scheme)
Grade	Mark	Description
FNS		Fail No Submission
F	1-49	Fail
P	50-64	Pass
C	65-74	Credit
D	75-84	Distinction
HD	85-100	High Distinction
CN		Continuing
NFE		No Formal Examination
RP		Result Pending

Further details of the grades/results can be obtained from Examinations.

Grade Descriptors are available which provide a general guide to the standard of work that is expected at each grade level. More information at Assessment for Coursework Programs.

Final results for this course will be made available through Access Adelaide.

Student Feedback

The University places a high priority on approaches to learning and teaching that enhance the student experience. Feedback is sought from students in a variety of ways including on-going engagement with staff, the use of online discussion boards and the use of Student Experience of Learning and Teaching (SELT) surveys as well as GOS surveys and Program reviews.

SELTs are an important source of information to inform individual teaching practice, decisions about teaching duties, and course and program curriculum design. They enable the University to assess how effectively its learning environments and teaching practices facilitate student engagement and learning outcomes. Under the current SELT Policy (http://www.adelaide.edu.au/policies/101/) course SELTs are mandated and must be conducted at the conclusion of each term/semester/trimester for every course offering. Feedback on issues raised through course SELT surveys is made available to enrolled students through various resources (e.g. MyUni). In addition aggregated course SELT data is available.

The course is designed as a review of the important environmental planning and governance issues for South Australia and internationally. It aims to guide students’ critical interests in particular topics or areas of study. For that reason, there is significant opportunity for students to investigate particular issues that interest them. SELTS results from previous years suggest that some students find this independence to be one of the more challenging aspects of the course. The workshops and readings are designed to guide you through the development of your assignments. Another key to getting the most out of the subject is to use the workshops to raise particular issues with your lecturer and peers.
Student Support
Policies & Guidelines
This section contains links to relevant assessment-related policies and guidelines - all university policies.
Fraud Awareness

Students are reminded that in order to maintain the academic integrity of all programs and courses, the university has a zero-tolerance approach to students offering money or significant value goods or services to any staff member who is involved in their teaching or assessment. Students offering lecturers or tutors or professional staff anything more than a small token of appreciation is totally unacceptable, in any circumstances. Staff members are obliged to report all such incidents to their supervisor/manager, who will refer them for action under the university's student’s disciplinary procedures.

The University of Adelaide is committed to regular reviews of the courses and programs it offers to students. The University of Adelaide therefore reserves the right to discontinue or vary programs and courses without notice. Please read the important information contained in the disclaimer.

Authorised by:	Deputy Vice-Chancellor and Vice-President (Academic)
Maintained by:	Course Outlines Administrator