| Unit name | Nature, Culture, Power |
|---|---|
| Unit code | GEOG35250 |
| Credit points | 20 |
| Level of study | H/6 |
| Teaching block(s) |
Teaching Block 1 (weeks 1 - 12) |
| Unit director | Dr. Dixon |
| Open unit status | Not open |
| Pre-requisites |
None |
| Co-requisites |
None |
| School/department | School of Geographical Sciences |
| Faculty | Faculty of Science |
This team taught human geography course examines how politics - in the broadest sense of the word - shapes human knowledge of, and interactions with, the physical environment. It will introduce students to current debates and key conceptual approaches in areas such as environmental histories, science and technology studies, postcolonial ecology, environmental governance, and eco-governmentality. These literatures situate understandings of the physical environment in their historical, social and cultural contexts, draw attention to the uneven politics of access to, and control over, natural resources, and explore the implications of social theory for critical understandings of relationships between human and bio-physical sciences.
On successful completion of this unit, students will be able to: -Mobilise a set of contemporary human geographic concepts in the field of human-environment relations. -Have an understanding of the diverse theoretical and empirical relationships between social and bio-physical sciences. -Have the ability to critically assess and practically apply these concepts to the analysis and evaluation of empirical case studies.
Teaching on this unit will consist of lectures (16 hours) and discussion seminars (4 hours). Specifically, as per the intended learning outcomes, case-based teaching methods will be employed, whereby students must critically assess and practically apply contemporary human geographical concepts in the field of human-environment relations to the analysis and evaluation of empirical case studies.
The assessment for this unit will consist entirely (1005) of a 3-hour unseen exam in the summer term. Students will be provided with 9 papers, of which 3 must be answered. These exam papers will require students to mobilise contemporary human geographical concepts in the field of human-environment relations, as per the intended learning outcomes.
