Faculty of Business and Law
Version 1
Date 13/1/2022
Module Handbook
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Module Name: Sustainable Business |
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Module Code: UMED95-15-3 |
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Module Leader Name: Dr Peter Bradley |
2022
The handbook is a guide for students in the Faculty of Business and Law. The information in the handbook can also be found in a number of other electronic or paper sources and the document provides links to the definitive data sources wherever possible.
Please note that the electronic version of the handbook will be kept up to date and you will be notified of any significant changes. If you have taken a hard copy of any information please remember to refer back to the electronic version to ensure that you are working with the most up to date information.
Contents
Module team information
UWE Teaching team:
Dr Peter Bradley ([email protected]);
Ian Brooks ([email protected])
Mandy Gardner ([email protected])
External examiners from other institutions are appointed to each module to act independently and work with the module team in the management of threshold academic standards. The external examiner appointed to this module can be found at http://www2.uwe.ac.uk/services/Marketing/about-us/cas/Extnl_Exam_Allocation_to_Mods.pdf
Module enhancement
This year the structure of the course will be laid out in detail in the first lecture as feedback identified that a more detailed look at the structure of the course would improve understanding of the course structure and updates. You can also refer to the lecture, workshop and seminar table further in the document to get an idea of the broad structure.
Module specific information
Environmental issues are of huge importance, as shown by their great prevalence in the news and other media particularly on climate change. Businesses are under pressure to respond to these issues, either by changing their production and consumption practices, adjusting their supply chains and adapting their marketing strategies to new consumer sentiment. Governments are also under pressure to create a business and regulatory environment where a sustainable economy can flourish. This module considers the main environmental concerns such as climate change, resource depletion, sustainability and pollution, their causes and possible remedies. It also considers policy and economic means of measuring and conceptualising key ecological phenomena. It then considers business responses to these challenges.
This is a key module for all students. Sustainable development is now critical to business thinking and practice and is needed to ensure that society survives in the future. There is a pressing need for all people to act. Business is central to the environmental sustainability crisis that society now faces both in terms of its creation, but also in the transition towards a sustainable economy. Everything which business does could be affected by the challenge of sustainability; those which do not adapt will perish. Students hoping to understand business and direct future business and economic policy must be able to meet the challenges of sustainability.
Aims of the module:
To provide an understanding of the business and economic issues connected to sustainability
To allow students to understand the causes and consequences of ecological change, particularly for business
To evaluate critically the effectiveness of various policy interventions and other measures designed to achieve greater sustainability and to examine the likely impact on businesses and markets
To equip students to be able to examine business responses to the problem of ecological constraints on activity
Learning outcomes:
On successful completion of this module, students will be able to demonstrate the ability to:
Develop knowledge of a range of ecological, social and economic causes and consequences of global climate change and resource depletion;
Location and evaluation of a range of relevant information on the relationship of business to sustainability;
An ability to apply appropriate business and economic methods to the analysis of problems in achieving sustainability;
Critical discussion of the limitations of business and economic analysis in evaluating the full social, economic and environmental impacts of business activities;
Synthesis of different types of information and think systematically and critically about problems.
4. Assignment/assessment Brief
Assessment
The assessment media are chosen to assess the full range of student skills and knowledge at the relevant stage of the course. The assessment gives students an opportunity to demonstrate the ability to discuss a range of issues and to show a critical appreciation of the subject matter covered. The use of a two-hour unseen examination, covers a wide range of the subject matter, which will allow all module objectives to be achieved.
Assessment is therefore:
Component A (50% of the marks for the module)
Twenty four hour online Examination.
Component B (50% of the marks for the module)
All coursework will be uploaded into Blackboard by students themselves, so there will be no need for hard copies. Work should be produced in Word document, single spaced and font size 12. Preferred fonts are Times New Roman and Garamond.
Assignment – 2000 word individual essay.
Submission details
Please note that the submission deadlines are absolute and based on UWE server time, therefore you are strongly advised to submit work well ahead of the deadline dates to avoid situations where penalties could be incurred. Penalties are imposed if a submission is made up to 24 hours after the deadline, and the highest mark you can receive will be the minimum pass mark (if the assessment is passed). After the 24 hours have passed, the work will not be accepted for marking.
If you are submitting your coursework in the submission boxes please ensure that the work is secure and placed in a plastic wallet, unless you have been advised to submit it in another style. Don’t forget to print your coursework coversheet from myUWE which should also be attached to your work.
assessment brief
Module Code: UMED95-15-3
Module Title: Sustainable Business
Submission Deadline: 24/03/2022
Assessment Component: Coursework Report
Assessment Weighting: 50 per cent of total module mark
Marking and feedback deadline within (20 working days):
NB. If you use a grace period or extension, this will be adjusted to reflect the end of that grace/extension period.
Assessment Instructions
Coursework report title: Business Model for Sustainable Development Case Study
This coursework is to be conducted by individuals as a report. Within the report you should engage strongly with literature and a case study and attempt the tasks as outlined below.
Tasks: 1.) Outline the current business model strategy of your case study business applying the framework of Baden-Fuller and Mangematin 2013. 2.) To what extent is the current business model sustainable? And 3.) How could the business model be changed/reconceptualised to make it substantially more sustainable?
(100 marks)
Relevant reference; Baden-Fuller, C., Mangematin V., 2013. Business models: A challenging agenda. Strategic Organization, 11, 418-427.
Bradley, P., Parry, G., & O’Regan, N. (2020). A framework to explore the functioning and sustainability of business models. Sustainable Production and Consumption, 21, 57-77. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.spc.2019.10.007.
The case study will require the use of secondary data. This report will summarise your research and findings. It should cover the background (business context, case study and sustainability), an explanation of your methodology and theoretical framework, data collection to support the case study, data analysis, findings and conclusion. Supportive material (or data) if used can go in the appendix outside the word limit. The conclusion should include a brief reflection on the strengths and weaknesses of the research and proposals.
Marking Criteria
The following criteria will be used in evaluating this assessment:
Would students please note that achievement of the learning outcomes for this assessment is demonstrated against the assessment criteria shown below (which are not necessarily weighted equally). Your assignment is marked as a whole and your grade is more than a summation of your performance as rated below.
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Assessment Criteria |
Use the five-point scale* below and insert ratings for all criteria. |
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1. Clear statement of an objective of the research |
A B C D E F |
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2 Literature incorporated |
A B C D E F |
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3 Theoretical framework and methodology |
A B C D E F |
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4. Data collected/diversity of sources to support or business case |
A B C D E F |
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5 Analysis of data/sources to reach conclusion |
A B C D E F |
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6. Critical and reflective approach |
A B C D E F |
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7. Completeness of specified task and quality of presentation |
A B C D E F |
Formatting
Please use the following file format(s) (Word, .pdf etc.). We cannot ensure that other formats are compatible with markers’ software and cannot guarantee to mark incorrect formats.
All work should be word processed in 12-point font Times New Roman or Arial and single spaced.
The first page of your coursework must include:
Your student number
The module name and number
Your word count
The coursework question or title
Word Limit
The maximum word limit for this coursework is a maximum of 1500 words.
There is no +/- 10% on word count and anything after the maximum word count will not be marked, in line with UWE Bristol’s Word Count Policy.
In line with UWE policy, this word count includes everything in the main body of the text (including headings, tables, citations, quotes, lists, etc.).
The references, bibliography and footnotes (provided footnotes only include references) are NOT included in this word count.
Referencing and Assessment Offences
Please ensure you reference all sources used when developing your assessment, using the UWE Harvard approach to referencing. Failure to properly reference your work to original source material can be grounds for the assessment offence of plagiarism and may result in failure of the assessment or more serious implications. Further guidance on correct referencing is available on UWE’s Study Skills referencing pages.
UWE’s Assessment Offences Policy outlines potential offences and it is your responsibility to understand this policy and avoid potential offences. Details of what constitutes plagiarism and how to avoid it can be found on UWE’s Study Skills pages about avoiding plagiarism.
Text-matching software (e.g. SafeAssign) is used to check every submission against other submissions made at the same time, previous submissions to UWE and other universities, and internet sources. We may also manually search for matches. When submitting your work, you will be required to confirm that the work is your own.
It is an assessment offence to:
copy work from any source, including your own previous assessments, and present it as your own work for this assessment, or to provide your own work to others
to work with others on the assessment in any way, or for anyone to make amends on your work (including proofreaders, who may highlight issues but not edit the work)
change individual words but keep, essentially, the same sentences and/or structures from other sources: this will be detected by text-matching software. Please write in your own words and style to convey your own learning.
Instructions for submission
You must submit your assignment before the stated deadline by electronic submission through Blackboard. Notification that the electronic submission portal is open for your assignment is displayed (usually two weeks before the submission date) in the Coursework tab in myUWE, the Coursework tab in Blackboard and via an announcement in the Blackboard course.
Please allow sufficient time to upload your assignment, as the system becomes busier and slower as the deadline approaches. Only your final upload will be counted. Ensure all your information is submitted at one attempt to avoid overwriting your intended submission. Always check and retain your receipts.
Late submission in the 24 hours following the deadline will be accepted but the assignment mark will be capped at a pass. Submissions after 24 hours will not be accepted. For full guidance on online submission through Blackboard, see UWE’s Academic Advice pages on Assignments.
Submissions of coursework by any other method (including a paper copy, on disk or by email) are NOT permissible for this module unless specifically agreed in advance of the submission date.
Before submitting your work, please ensure that:
You have proof read you work thoroughly to ensure your work is presented appropriately
You have addressed all the required elements of the assessment
You have referenced in accordance with the guidance provided
You have addressed each of the marking criterion
The submission is in the correct format
This assessment has a three day grace period in which students can submit their work without penalty. While students are expected to plan their work so that they are not impacted by minor illness or delay, if you experience difficulties which affect your ability to submit your work at the published deadline the University allows a three day grace period in which you can submit your work without penalty for this type of assessment. Please note that the submission deadline at the conclusion of the three day grace period is absolute and based on UWE server time, therefore you are strongly advised to submit work well ahead of the deadline dates to avoid your work not being accepted for marking. For full information please see; Assessment support options – Academic information | UWE Bristol
Final feedback and marks release
Students will normally receive marks and feedback on their submission within 20 working days of the submission deadline (not including public holidays or university closure days). Any delay in returning students’ work will be communicated by the module leader via Blackboard.
Feedback on this module is not limited to the written comments you will receive on individual written assessment submissions.
Feedback and marks for this module will be available by the date specified at the top of this document. For further guidance on feedback, please refer to the module handbook.
Further guidance and support
There are a number of sources of support to improve your study skills, including:
The UWE Library Study Skills pages – for online support and bookable workshops
The Faculty of Business and Law’s Academic Success Centre for bookable workshops
Guidance on using UWE’s Library.
Specific study skills pages relating to this module include:
How to plan and structure your writing
Further research skills / techniques
For further guidance on UWE assessment regulations and terminology see UWE’s Academic Advice pages.
Personal Circumstances
If you are experiencing difficulties in completing a piece of assessment on time due to unexpected circumstances (for example illness, accident, bereavement), seek advice from a Student Support Adviser at the earliest opportunity. Appointments can be made via an Information Point or online via the Student Support Pages.
Student Support Advisers can advise as to whether you should submit an application for ‘Personal Circumstances (PCs)’, how to do so and what evidence is required to support the application. Further details on PCs can be found on the Student Support Pages.
The module leader cannot grant personal circumstances or extensions.
Additional information and reading strategies
Teaching and learning strategy will involve a combination of lectures, workshops, seminars and private study. The module will run in Semester 2 and there will be a lecture, a workshop and a seminar each week. The workshop and seminar programme are designed to support the lectures. Lectures will be used to convey core material. Workshops will often be used to explore analytical skills. Seminars are an essential forum in which students will be expected to discuss the scheduled topic, usually with reference to the directed relevant journal article(s) on the topic. Students will be expected to engage in private study to obtain, read and analyse prescribed reading and to develop independent learning skills in seeking out relevant material from electronic and non-electronic sources. Considerable use will be made of Blackboard in delivering this module, but a broad outline of what will be covered when is provided below.
Reading Strategy
All students will be encouraged to make full use of the print and electronic sources available to them through membership of the University. These include a range of electronic journals and a wide variety of resources available through web sites and information gateways. The University Library’s web pages provide access to subject-relevant resources and services, and to the library catalogue. Many resources can be accessed remotely. Students will be presented with opportunities within the curriculum to develop their information-retrieval and evaluation skills, in order to identify such resources effectively. There will be opportunities (study skills workshops) provided to students to develop their information finding skills in order to identify further suitable reading.
Key reading for workshops and seminars are identified under each in the schedule in this handbook (and often uploaded on blackboard under the relevant study unit), this (and references at the end of lectures) should be your first place to start with reading. There is no one core text book for this module and we often make use of journal articles, but potentially useful text books for some topics of the are:
EITHER
Field, BC & MK (2012), Environmental Economics, McGraw Hill
A clear introductory text to environmental economics but omits resource economics and is written in the US context. This text is referred to as “Field” when suggesting readings.
OR
Roger Perman et al, (2011), Natural Resource and Environmental Economics, 4th. edition Prentice Hall.
A more comprehensive theoretical approach suitable for economics students with extensive use of mathematical notation. Do not be put off by this – there are clear verbal explanations of concepts and relationships also. Includes resource economics and is written in a UK context. This text is referred to as “Perman” when suggesting readings.
You could also read new cutting edge papers published in Journal of Cleaner Production and Sustainable Production and Consumption and similar journals on relevant topics free as a UWE student through the library search tool. There is also the Mint magazine for fairly digestible readings (although quality is sometimes less strong than journal papers). See for example:
Bocken and Short 2021. Unsustainable business models – Recognising and resolving institutionalised social and environmental harm. Journal of Cleaner Production. 312. Available at: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0959652621020461 Accessed: 13.1.22
Crane, A. et al. (2021) ‘Confronting the Business Models of Modern Slavery’, Journal of Management Inquiry’. 1-22. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1177/1056492621994904 Accessed: 13.01.22
Other potential reading of interest:
Books and papers:
MIT Sloan Management Review on Sustainable Business Strategies https://sloanreview.mit.edu/issue/2021-fall/ (go to the library online search tool and search the article titles to attain).
Jackson, T 2009. Prosperity without Growth: economics for a finite planet. London: Routledge (Earthscan). Available at: http://www.ipu.org/splz-e/unga13/prosperity.pdf or you can buy online his most up to date 2016 revised version of this book on Amazon or elsewhere. See the book at: http://www.cusp.ac.uk/news/pwg/
Blewitt, J. (2008) Understanding Sustainable Development, Earthscan
Behrensa, A., Giljuma, S., Kovandab, J., & Nizac, S. (2007). ‘The material basis of the global economy: Worldwide patterns of natural resource extraction and their implications for sustainable resource use policies’. Ecological Economics, Vol. 64, Iss. 2, pp. 444-453
Brown, L.R. (2003). Eco-Economy: Building an Economy for the Earth, Earthscan.
Heinberg, R. (2004). Powerdown: Options and Actions for a Post-Carbon World, New Society Publishers
Henriques, A & Richardson, J. Eds (2004). The Triple Bottom Line, Earthscan.
Hitchcock, D. and Willard, M. (2009) The Business Guide to Sustainability:
Practical Strategies and Tools, Second Edition, Earthscan
Hulme, M. (2010) Why We Disagree About Climate Change: Understanding Controversy, Inaction and Opportunity, Cambridge
Mellahi, K & Wood, G. (2002). The Ethical Business – Challenges and Controversies, Palgrave.
Paul Lingl, Deborah Carlson and the David Suzuki Foundation (2010) Doing Business in a New Climate: A Guide to Measuring, Reducing and Offsetting Greenhouse Gas Emissions Earthscan
Mellahi, K & Wood, G. (2002). The Ethical Business – Challenges and Controversies, Palgrave.
Myers, N. & Kent, J. (2003). ‘New consumers: The influence of affluence on the environment’. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, Vol. 100, No. 8, pp. 4963-4968
Nordhaus, W.D. (2007) ‘To Tax or Not to Tax: Alternative Approaches to Slowing Global Warming’, Review of Environmental Economics and Policy, 1,1, 26-4
M.,Simms, A. (2003). Ghost Town Britain II: Death on the High Street, New Economics Foundation.
Stern, N (2008) Key Elements of a Global Deal on Climate Change, London School of Economics
Wirtenberg, J., Russell, W & Lipsky, D., (eds.) (2008) The Sustainable Enterprise Fieldbook: When It All Comes Together, Greenleaf Publishing.
Periodicals:
The Ecologist
Ethical Consumer
You can also google relevant government and non-government websites such as;
The governments Waste and Resource Action Programme;
Forum for the Future;
The New Economics Foundation;
The Green Alliance;
The Forum for the Future
Workshop and Seminar Program
It is essential that you attend workshops, seminars (and lectures) and conduct preparation, if you are to do well in this module. A section from a recommended book or a reference to a journal article is given for most seminar activities outlined below. Make sure you read these as a minimum. The activities taking place in workshops each study unit are outlined below together with details of any preparation required. The way in which these questions are explored and resolved in seminars and workshops will vary.
Seminar 1: Exercise/lectorial on explaining concepts for a non-expert audience
Imagine you are talking to a non-expert audience. Try and prepare for this seminar by looking up key concepts before you attend.
Assimilative capacity;
Substitutability;
Irreversibility;
materials balance; – why particularly important
Ecosystem; – why particularly important
Biodiversity;
Feedback;
Entropy;
sustainability.
Workshop 1: Major challenges faced by business and the positive and negative effects of technology on SD
This workshop will be used to introduce you to the course and course structure. For this workshop, prepare a short description of at least three major challenges likely to be faced by all businesses in the UK over the next 20 years and how do these relate to sustainable development.
The discuss the extent to which technology can have positive and negative effects on sustainable development.
Seminar 2: Understanding and analysing externalities and internalisation
We will look at the various categories of externality and how business and consumer behaviour might be influenced so as to take external costs and benefits into account.
Think about the questions below and prepare some answers:
1. What is an externality?
2. (i) List five actions that you undertake on a daily basis that produce negative externalities.
(ii) Note one action that produces no externalities.
(iii) Note one action that produces positive externalities.
3. From your list in 2(i), rank these from most significant to least significant. What factors did you consider in order to do this?
4. Public goods and merit goods – how do they relate to externalities?
Workshop 2: The environmental Kuznets curve and decoupling – will technology be enough?
This workshop will provide a useful framework for thinking about sustainability at the global level. In particular, it will assess the usefulness of the Environmental Kuznets Curve. We will also explore the allied concept of “decoupling”. To prepare for the workshop, read the papers and OECD report referenced below and think about the following proposition:
Beckerman (1992) suggested that “….. in the end the best – and probably the only – way to attain a decent environment in most countries is to become rich.” Analyse this assertion in relation to the evidence provided in estimations of the Environmental Kuznets Curve
Suggested reading:
The OECD environment programme (2011) Indicators to measure decoupling of environmental pressure from economic growth. Executive Summary available at http://www.oecd.org/environment/indicators-modelling-outlooks/1933638.pdf
Also see Ward et al 2016 here: https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article/file?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0164733&type=printable
Jackson, T 2009. Prosperity without Growth: economics for a finite planet. London: Routledge (Earthscan).
Grossman, G and Krueger, A, (1995) Economic Growth and the Environment, The Quarterly Journal of Economics, May 1995.
Bradford, David F.; Fender, Rebecca A.; Shore, Stephen H.; and Wagner, Martin (2005) “The Environmental Kuznets Curve: Exploring a Fresh Specification,” Contributions to Economic Analysis & Policy: Vol. 4 : Iss. 1, Article 5.
Available at: http://www.bepress.com/bejeap/contributions/vol4/iss1/art5
Absolute and relative de-coupling
Seminar 3: LCA and carbon accounting tool practical
This seminar exercise will take place online and enable you to use software for various evaluations of industry and businesses energy and carbon footprints. Each student will produce an energy and carbon account for a business or industry of their choice and compare this to a range of other sectors. You will be asked to investigate differences between industries.
Seminar 4: Applying the business model concept to a case study business
How might your case study business move to a new more sustainable business model? What potential barriers may it face in making the transition? Apply the framework (presented in the lecture) by Baden-Fuller C. and V. Mangematin (2013) to: Your case study business’s current business model and the (more sustainable) new business model that you are proposing. This workshop is important to your coursework.
Workshop 4: Sustainable business models
In preparation for this workshop (important to your coursework) download and read:
Bradley, P., Parry, G., & O’Regan, N. (2020). A framework to explore the functioning and sustainability of business models. Sustainable Production and Consumption, 21, 57-77. Available to download at: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2352550919302659
During the workshop we will be discussing the key aspects that can make or break the sustainability of a business model.
Seminar 5: Coursework progress session
Attend this seminar to develop and discuss your ideas, thinking and approach to the coursework with teachers Ian and Anthony (or replacement tutor for Anthony).
Workshop 5: Valuing the environment
Reading: Perman Chapter 12, Field chapter 7 (or if you can’t access a book the following website provides a nice overview for further reading http://www.ecosystemvaluation.org/uses.htm)
Define the terms: i) use value; ii) non-use value. In some hypothetical context of your choosing, make a list of those costs and benefits you would include under each term.
Draw up an outline questionnaire for use in a contingent valuation of the loss due to the closure of a standard urban park in Bristol. Your questionnaire should be complete. Don’t just write down the payment question. Outline your approach to sampling in this instance.
3. How might you assess the validity and reliability of CVM survey results?
Skills achieved: Comprehending the challenges and issues of operationalising theoretical approaches proposed by neo-classical economics to address environmental sustainability.
Seminar 6: Local currencies and sustainability
In this workshop we shall discuss the pros and cons of local currencies in addressing sustainability. For relevant reading see the lecture and references provided.
Workshop 6: A discussion of globalisation and sustainability.
In this class we will be discussing the academic literature on the positive and negative impacts of globalisation on sustainability. See relevant preparation readings at the end of the lecture.
Seminar 7: Design your own intervention
Before the seminar read the energy company case study intervention by Bradley et al (2016) before the seminar. To get the paper google: “emergence and diffusion social norms” and then click on the paper titled: “Motivating energy conservation in organisations: Smart metering and the emergence and diffusion of social norms”. Whilst reading, think about the key aspects of the intervention design that enable a scientific approach to evaluating the effectiveness of an intervention?
Having read the paper, come to the workshop with an intervention that you would like to propose to be implemented in your case study business to influence the social or environmental impacts of a business. Think what might be the important considerations in designing your intervention to robustly measure the impact of your intervention.
Workshop 7: Pro-environmental behaviour: successful environmental programmes in the workplace (intrinsic versus extrinsic motivation)
In preparation for the workshop read the paper by Young et al (2013): Changing behaviour: successful environmental programmes in the workplace. And or Ryan and Deci (2000) “Intrinsic and Extrinsic Motivations: Classic Definitions and New Directions”
These articles are available online by google searching the title above. Think how some of the approaches might apply to your case study business, and be prepared to discuss your thoughts on this and the paper in groups.
Seminar 8: The global reporting initiatives and wider perspectives
In this seminar, we will be evaluating some previous industry reporting examples. Prepare for this workshop by looking at the GRI reporting initiative guidelines (looked at in the lecture), including scopes 1, 2 and 3.
Workshop 8: Sustainability auditing for business
List the environmental assessment techniques referred to and give a brief summary of each. Whilst reading, think about what the different tools are used for and the similarities and differences that exist between the approaches and how they can be used in by businesses for sustainable development. Prepare for this workshop by looking at:
Environmental management systems;
http://www.wrap.org.uk/sites/files/wrap/WRAP%20EMS%20guide%20June%202013.pdf
Environmental risk assessment and management
Environmental impact assessment:
Seminar 9: Policies on pollution
Before this session browse this weeks workshop PowerPoint slides to get an idea of what we are looking at. Also see suggested reading: Most texts treat the topic in more depth than we require, so be selective. Read Field, pages 179 to 193 and then dip into the remainder of Section 4 alternatively, read Perman pages 206 to 238.
List and comment upon at least five criteria that you consider important in assessing environmental policy.
Use these criteria to evaluate three basic approaches to pollution policy:
Regulation or standards
Taxes
Marketable permits
All the above are primarily concerned with influencing producer decisions and strategies. Is there a case for attempting to reduce pollution through influencing consumer choices and lifestyles?
How might this be achieved?
Workshop 9: Policies on pollution: taxes and permits
This session will mainly be a power point presentation to complement Mark Chandler’s lecture.
Seminar 10: Green Economy and Green Growth
There are varying definitions of green growth and green economy. For this seminar read Merino-Saum: Unpacking the Green Economy concept: A quantitative analysis of 140 definitions latest understandings. What is a green economy and green growth? What are the key understandings and conclusions from this work?
The paper is available at: https://www.sciencedirect.com/search/advanced?qs=green%20economy
For further reading you might also like to look at: Green Economy at Community Scale: http://metcalffoundation.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/GreenEconomy.pdf Think critically about the report whilst reading, as we shall be discussing and evaluating the pros and cons of such a view of the green economy.
& the UNEP Green economy report. http://www.unep.org/greeneconomy/GreenEconomyReport/tabid/29846/language/en-US/Default.aspx
Workshop 10: Circular Economy
Before this workshop please read the journal paper: Lüdeke-Freund, F., Gold, S. and Bocken, N. M. P. (2019) ‘A Review and Typology of Circular Economy Business Model Patterns’, Journal of Industrial Ecology. Blackwell Publishing, pp. 36–61. doi: 10.1111/jiec.12763
During the workshop you will be looking at real life case studies of the various patters of business model for circular economy explored in the paper, and discussing their pros and cons in terms of strength of approaches in terms of circular economy.
Workshop 11: Exploring the framework
In preparation for this workshop read Bradley 2021 (on the electronic library search tool, search ‘An institutional economics framework to explore sustainable production and consumption’ to find a downloadable version of the paper. During the seminar you will be thinking about how different elements that you have learnt during the course (E.g. value/valuation; community currencies; business models; interventions and pro-environmental consumption and employee behaviour; regulation and pollution policy) fit within the four different levels of the framework in Bradley 2021. This should hopefully bring many aspects of the course together and help you think about their synergistic and interactive effects on one another. It will also provide a fitting holistic and systems orientated understanding of the possibilities for sustainable business and a sustainable economy to end the module.
You might also like to download the literature review (Bradley 2022) that informed the development of the framework by searching the library search tool with the title: ‘An Exploration of Institutional Approaches in Pursuing Sustainable Development’
Seminar 11: Revision
Communication
Throughout your time with us, you will receive regular communication from your module leaders, and also administrative staff, and it is your responsibility to ensure that you read everything that you are sent, and act upon it where appropriate.
The main communication channel used is the Blackboard for all the modules you are currently studying. Blackboard provides the main communication channel for module specific information and these too should be checked regularly for new content and announcements.
Please see http://info.uwe.ac.uk/myUWE/guidance/default.asp for further information on all aspects of your myUWE portal.
Advice and support
There are a range of facilities and services available to go to for advice and support depending on what the issue is. Remember – asking for help at the earliest possible stage will help you in the long run. Your first point of call should always be your Academic Personal tutor, as they will be able to sign post you to the right services and will be able to deal with specific matters relating to teaching and learning. If you are not able to contact your Academic Personal tutor for any reason go to an Information Point, details of which can be found at http://www1.uwe.ac.uk/students/informationpoints.aspx
Student advisers are available and can also be contacted through the Information Points, see http://www1.uwe.ac.uk/students/academicadvice/studentadvisers.aspx for information on how they might be able to help.
However, you are more than welcome to talk to other members of UWE staff depending on who you feel most comfortable talking to.