| Learning objectives |
- discuss the key characteristics of food systems transformation
in connection with changes in agriculture, energy, water, waste and
recycling systems, and biodiversity and natural resources
sustainability; identify their scientific, socio-technological,
business and regulatory components; and examine their development
and interconnectedness
- develop a system-level perspective that takes an integrative
approach towards the sustainability transition of food systems
within the analysis of food production and consumption areas
covered in the course
- apply science, technology and business management approaches
and assessment tools covered in the course in a ‘capstone food
project’ to examine a specific company approach, consumer
behavioral change and other societal ‘food sustainability
challenge’
- in the capstone food project: present relevant facts and
context of the selected ‘sustainability challenge’; identify the
key problems, stakeholders and interactions; justify your choice of
approaches and relevant data;
- in the capstone food project: use the chosen approaches and
case to analyze the challenge of sustainable food system
transformation; assess existing or provide tentative solutions that
combine scientific, technological, business and regulatory
elements; critically reflect upon the approaches you used; and
provide suggestions for improving these approaches to better fit
the problem at hand.
|
| Course prerequisites |
| This course is offered in parallel and as
complement to Sustainability Challenges 1: Systemic and
Multi-disciplinary Transition Approaches (SC1) |
| Examination |
|
Sustainability
Challenges 2: Food Systems Transformation
(SC2-Food):
|
| Exam
ECTS |
7,5 |
| Examination form |
Oral exam based on written product
In order to participate in the oral exam, the written product
must be handed in before the oral exam; by the set deadline. The
grade is based on an overall assessment of the written product and
the individual oral performance, see also the rules about
examination forms in the programme regulations. |
| Individual or group exam |
Oral group exam based on written group
product |
| Number of people in the group |
2-4 |
| Size of written product |
Max. 20 pages |
|
Definition of number of pages:
Groups of
2 students 10 pages max.
3 students 15 pages max
4 students 20 pages max
Note that the exam is a group exam. If you are not able to find a
group yourself, you have to address the course coordinator who will
place you in a group. |
| Assignment type |
Project |
| Duration |
Written product to be submitted on specified date and
time.
15 min. per student, including examiners' discussion of grade,
and informing plus explaining the grade |
| Grading scale |
7-point grading scale |
| Examiner(s) |
Internal examiner and second internal
examiner |
| Exam period |
Winter |
| Make-up exam/re-exam |
Same examination form as the ordinary exam
Re-take exam is to be based on the
same report as the ordinary exam:
* if a student is absent from the oral exam due to documented
illness but has handed in the written group product she/he does not
have to submit a new product for the re-take.
* if a whole group fails the oral exam they must hand in a revised
product for the re-take.
* if one student in the group fails the oral exam the course
coordinator chooses whether the student will have the oral exam on
the basis of the same product or if he/she has to hand in a revised
product for the re- take.
|
Description of the exam
procedure
In the Capstone Food Project, students from
the participating universities will work in mixed groups
to examine a specific sustainability challenge in connection with a
food company case, a consumer behavior change or other food system
transformational challenge following a systemic approach
covered in the course that includes reflecting on interactions with
agriculture, energy, water, waste &
recycling; biodiversity and natural resources
systems.
Student groups for the capstone food project will be formed in
connection with participants from the companion Sustainability
Challenges 1 course. Group participants will be drawn randomly from
the list of class attendees, and groups will include
students from all participant universities. The selection of
the food system cases assigned will take place according to a
balance of company cases and societal transition topic
cases.
In the report, they will be asked to present relevant
facts and context of the selected food system transition to
sustainability challenge; identify the key problems, stakeholders
and interactions; justify the choice of approaches and relevant
data; use the chosen approaches to analyze the sustainability food
challenge; assessing existing and/or suggesting when posible
tentative solutions that combine scientific, technological,
business and regulatory elements; critically reflecting upon the
approaches used; and providing suggestions for improving these
approaches to better fit the problem at hand. The report is due in
early January
2022.
|
|
| Course content, structure and pedagogical
approach |
|
Rapid and ambitious transformational changes to the global food
system over the next several decades, including adopting plant-rich
diets, increasing crop yields and reducing food waste are necessary
because rising greenhouse gas emissions from worldwide food
production will make it extremely difficult to limit global warming
to the targets set in the Paris climate agreement. Business,
government and civil society are engaging with these complex
sustainability challenges as the world population grows, diets and
consumption patterns change as some countries become more affluent,
and crop yields increase but, no single actor or solution can
transform food systems toward sustainability on its own. A
momentous global commitment was reached in 2015 with the adoption
of the United Nations 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), and
the Paris Climate Agreement, with countries choosing to tackle
major development challenges while working toward delivering a
future where nature and people can thrive. These challenges have
global and local, financial, managerial, political, social and
environmental components. Tackling them require strong, trustworthy
and long-lasting partnerships between the private and public
sectors, or multi-stakeholder initiatives involving
non-governmental organizations, community-based organizations,
venture capital and universities.
There is an increasing need, and demand for, managers and
employees who have specialist skills, and who can also operate in
multi-disciplinary teams. They need to have developed a common
language and understanding with specialists in other fields so they
can bridge the gaps between science, technology and business
solutions to sustainability. Many scientific discoveries,
technological developments or business innovations on
sustainability fail because of the lack of understanding from
specialist in different fields regarding the complex challenges
that are involved. Business plans can fail because of lack of
understanding of their technological complexities; scientific
breakthroughs may be abandoned or rejected because clearer
communication to the public or the political system is lacking;
policy relevance may be unappreciated and technological innovations
end up financially unfeasible.This course seeks to strengthen
student´s capabilities to work toward filling these gaps.
'Sustainability Challenges 2: Food Systems
Transformation (SC2-Food) builds upon knowledge and
discussions advanced in the companion course 'Sustainability
Challenges 1: Systemic and Multidisciplinary Transition
Approaches' to examine specific challenges of Food
production and consumption within other broad systems:
Energy; Water, Agriculture, Waste &
Recycling; and Natural and Biodiversity resources.
Lectures will be combined with group work and a Capstone Food
Project. In the Capstone Food Project groups of students will
examine a specific challenge (within a company case an
individual behavioural change or a societal transformational case)
and assess existing or provide tentative solutions.
Sustainability Challenges 2 is taught by faculty members
and includes students from CBS, KU, DTU and other Universities.
The aim is to provide a new generation of specialist
professionals with the relevant skills to properly operate and
communicate in multi-disciplinary teams that seek to tackle and
find innovative solutions to the complex sustainability challenges
society and business face.
|
| Description of the teaching methods |
• lectures, group work and simulation exercises
• group work on capstone project |
| Feedback during the teaching period |
| Feedback is offered as follows: 1. in class
usually at the beginning and end of each lecture there will be an
open Q&A session; in addition to feedback offered in
interaction with students during class and following group
exercises during class time 2. as students work in their final
capstone group written report. 3. during office hours for all the
faculty involved in this course |
| Student workload |
| lectures and group work in class |
30 hours |
| in-class project supervision |
6 hours |
| class preparation and capstone project work |
170 hours |
|
| Further Information |
|
This course is mandatory for students wishing to obtain
the COSI ‘Joint Certificate in Sustainability:
Science, Technology and Business' (CBS/KU/DTU)
The certificate is assigned by a joint COSI committee from the
three participating universities. To obtain the certificate,
students need to pass the two SC1 and SC2 courses.
For more info on this initiative, please see:
http://cosiuni.weebly.com
Students not seeking to obtain the joint certificate can
also take SC1 or SC2 as self-standing electives.
|
| Expected literature |
- UNDP HDR. “Human Development Report 2020 | UNDP HDR.” Human
Development Report 2020 | UNDP HDR. Retrieved January 15, 2021
(http://report.hdr.undp.org).
- FAO. 2020. The State of Food and Agriculture 2020:
Overcoming water challenges in agriculture. Rome, Italy:
FAO.
- Andersen, AH (2012) Organic food and the plural
moralities of food provisioning. Journal of Rural
Studies 27: 440-450
- Auld, G. (2014) Confronting Trade-Offs and Interactive Effects
in the Choice of Policy Focus: Specialized versus Comprehensive
Private Governance. Regulation and
Governance 8.1: 126-48.
- Bjørn, A., Hauschild, M.Z. (2013) Absolute versus Relative
Environmental Sustainability. Journal of Industrial
Ecology 17, 321-332
- Bocken, N.M.P.; Short, S.W.; Rana, P.; Evans, S. (2014) A
literature and practice review to develop sustainable business
model archetypes, Journal of Cleaner Production, 65:
42-56.
- Boons, F. and Lüdeke-Freund, F. (2013) Business models for
sustainable innovation: state-of-the-art and steps towards a
research agenda, Journal of Cleaner Production,
45:9–19.
- Bulkeley , H., Newell, P. (2015) Governing
Climate Change. Routledge. Chapters 1 and 3.
- Bulkeley, H. et al. (2013) Climate justice and global cities:
mapping the emerging discourses. Global Environmental
Change 23.5: 914-925.
- Chum, H. et al. 2014. Energy Systems. Chapter 7.
In Climate Change 2014: Mitigation of Climate Change.
IPCC. Cambridge University
Press.
https://www.ipcc.ch/pdf/assessment-report/ar5/wg3/ipcc_wg3_ar5_full.pdf
- Creutzig, F., E. Corbera, S. Bolwig and C. Hunsberger C. (2013)
Integrating Place-Specific Livelihood and Equity Outcomes into
Global Assessments of Bioenergy Deployment. Environmental
Research Letters 8.3: 035047
- Darnhofer et al (2010) Conventionalisation of Organic Farming
Practices: From Structural Criteria Towards an Assessment Based on
Organic Principles. Sustainable Agriculture 2.3:
331-349
- Dovers, S.R., and J.W. Handmer (1992) Uncertainty,
sustainability and change. Global Environmental
Change 2.4: 262-276.
- Dryzek, J.S., and H. Stevenson (2011) Global democracy and
earth system governance. Ecological
economics 70.11: 1865-1874.
- Ellen McArthur Foundation (2012) Towards the Circular Economy.
UK
- European Commission (2015) Web site: Moving towards a circular
economy
http://ec.europa.eu/environment/circular-economy/index_en.htm
- Fleurbaey, M, Kartha, S, Bolwig, et al. (2014) Sustainable
Development and Equity. Chapter 4, Sect. 4.2.2 and Sect. 4.6. In
Climate Change 2014: Mitigation of Climate Change. IPCC. Cambridge
University Press.
- Gregg, J. (2015) Future Diet Scenarios and Their Effect on
Regional and Global Biofuel Potential. Article under review.
- Hatanaka, M., Bain, C., Busch, L. (2005) Third-party
certification in the global agrifood system. Food
Policy 30: 354–369.
- Holloway L et al. (2007) Possible Food Economics: a
Methodological Framework for Exploring Food Production–Consumption
Relationships. Sociologia Ruralis 47.1:
1-19.
- Hvass, K.K. (2014), Post-retail responsibility of garments – a
fashion industry perspective, Journal of Fashion Marketing
& Management 18.4: 413-430.
- IPCC AR5 Summary Report for Policy
Makers
http://www.ipcc.ch/pdf/assessment-report/ar5/syr/AR5_SYR_FINAL_SPM.pdf;
- McDonough, William, and Michael Braungart
(2010) Cradle to cradle: Remaking the way we make
things. MacMillan.
- OECD/IEA. Nordic Energy Technology Perspectives.
2013.
http://www.nordicenergy.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/Nordic-Energy-Technology-Perspectives.pdf
- Parajuli et al. (2015) Biorefining in the prevailing energy and
materials crisis: a review of sustainable pathways for biorefinery
value chains and sustainability assessment
methodologies, Renewable and Sustainable Energy
Reviews, 43: 244-263
- Richardson et al. 2011 Denmark’s Roadmap for Fossil fuel
Independence
http://www.thesolutionsjournal.com/node/954
- Smith, P. et al. (2014) Agriculture, Forestry and Other Land
Use (AFOLU). Chapter 11 in Climate Change 2014: Mitigation
of Climate Change. IPPC and Cambridge University Press, pp.
811-922.
https://www.ipcc.ch/pdf/assessment-report/ar5/wg3/ipcc_wg3_ar5_full.pdf
- STREAM materials (more info forthcoming)
- What a
Waste,
https://www.wdronline.worldbank.org/handle/10986/17388 pages
1-33
- Zaman, G., and Z. Goschin (2010) Multidisciplinarity,
interdisciplinarity and transdisciplinarity: Theoretical approaches
and implications for the strategy of post-crisis sustainable
development. Theoretical and Applied
Economics 12.12: 5-20.
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