MSc Sustainable Food and Natural Resources*

Modules and indicative content

• September – Sustainability and Adaptation: Concepts and Planning, Part 1 (core): 11/09/17 - 16/09/17.
  Topics covered: environmental change and adaption, introduction to core module themes, future challenges and solutions, local to global.

• November – Sustainability and Adaptation: Concepts and Planning, Part 2 (core): 13/11/17 – 18/11/17.
  Topics covered: Future challenges and solutions, local to global; group exercises in ‘futuring’ – scenario planning for probable environmental challenges.

• December – Environmental Politics and Economics (option): 11/12/17 – 16/12/17.
  Topics covered: introductions to economics and politics from the sustainability perspective; climate policy; local social change perspectives; community empowerment; future scenarios.

• January – Food Production and Consumption (core): 22/1/18 – 27/1/18.
  This module will cover global and local trends in food production, trends in diet and health and the impact of food production on the environment including climate change. It will look at how food can be produced sustainably, the role of consumer behaviour, economics, technology and legislation.

• February – Land and Resource Management in Cities (option): 12/2/18 – 17/2/18.
  Topics covered: urban environments, energy use, transport, green infrastructure, urban food growing, planning, mobility and access.

• March – Energy Provision (option): 12/3/18 – 17/3/18.
  Topics covered: environmental and social benefits and limitations of energy provision options, including land use implications, technologies and energy reduction choices.

• April – Ecosystem Services, Land-use and Waste Management (core): 16/4/18 – 21/4/18.
  Topics covered: ecosystem science, biodiversity, resources, water issues, food security, land use, flooding, carbon management, sanitation.

• May – Sustainable Materials in the Built Environment (option): 14/5/18 – 19/5/18.
  Topics covered: environmental impacts, wider social and health implications, practical (hands-on) experience of building with natural materials, in-use performance and usability of natural materials.

• June – Applied Project (option): 11/6/18 – 16/6/18.
  A practical student-led project and report that will include harvesting and statistical analyses of ongoing projects. *

• June – Work-based applied project (option): 11/6/18 – 16.6.18.
  A practical student-led work-based project and report that will include harvesting and statistical analyses of ongoing projects. *

• July – The Science of Sustainable Food Production (core): 2/7/18 – 7/7/18.
  Topics covered will include the biogeography of crops, the science of GMOs, energy crops, and food growing techniques such as permaculture, forest gardening, organic agriculture and conventional agriculture. The module will analyse the impact of different food production methods on green-house gas emission, carbon sequestration, soil health, biodiversity and ecosystem services and debate key scientific advances, debates and uncertainties in the science of sustainable food production.

• Dissertation (core)