POLS*3370 - Environmental Politics and Governance
Course Description
This course examines environmental politics and governance in Canada as well as in comparative and international contexts. This is accomplished by surveying how various political, legal, administrative, and private-public actors and processes influence the development and implementation of environmental policy.
Note: This course can be taken individually or as a part of a certificate program.
Learning Outcomes
By the end of the course, the learner should be able to:
- Recognize and describe the major theoretical and policy frameworks that have been used in the study of environmental politics and governance.
- Analyze the relationships between the politics of environmental science, the politics of global environmental governance, and the domestic politics of environmental policy formulation and regulation.
- Evaluate the relative strengths and limitations of different policy instruments and governance frameworks, including regulatory instruments, economic instruments and participatory models of environmental governance.
- Discuss the use of market instruments in reducing emissions and vulnerability to climate change, the role of cities and other non-state actors in global climate governance, and the politics of new social movements.
- Demonstrate skills in team building, group-based research, online presentations, proposal writing, research, writing and critical analysis in the study of environmental politics and governance.
Course Topics
- Environmental Politics and Governance
- Beyond the Limits? Understanding Processes of Environmental Change
- Sustainable Development: Exploring the Contradictions
- The Politics of Environmental Science
- Defending the Earth System: How Radical is too Radical?
- Administrative Rationalism: The Politics of Command and Control
- The Miracle of the Market? The Role of Economic Instruments in Environmental Policy
- Power to the People? Public Participation and the Politics of Environmental Governance
- Global Governance and the Politics of Climate Change
- Finding a Low Carbon Future: The Politics of Sustainable Energy
- A Renewable Resource? The Politics of Water Resource Governance in Canada
Additional Requirements
Prerequisite(s): 7.50 credits
Assessment
| Assessment Item | Weight |
|---|---|
| Issue-Based Group Discussions (3) | 15% |
| Case-Based Group Discussions (3) | 10% |
| Quizzes (3 x 5%) | 15% |
| Environmental Policy Analysis | 30% |
| Take-Home Exam | 30% |
| Total | 100% |
Applies Towards the Following Certificates
- Certificate in Environmental Citizenship : Electives
- Certificate in Public Policy and Administration : Electives
Technical Requirements
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*Course details are subject to change.