Introductory description

There is an urgent need for societies and economies to shift away from fossil fuels and unsustainable models of economic growth to tackle escalating global social and environmental crises. This module interrogates debates, policies, movements, and conflicts over green transformations, drawing on perspectives from environmental sociology and interdisciplinary social sciences. The module will address different social and political visions of transformation, across markets, states, civil society, and social movements in both the Global North and the Global South, examining competing political interests and deepening social inequalities during processes of social and economic change. Students in the module will critically examine a range of debates surrounding green transformations, including dominant market-based and technology-based "solutions", Green New Deal proposals, calls for "just transitions" to protect displaced workers and communities, and alternative ecological proposals from civil society and social movements.

Module aims

Outline syllabus

This is an indicative module outline only to give an indication of the sort of topics that may be covered. Actual sessions held may differ.

Week 1: Introduction to the Sociology of Green Transformations;
PART I: Transforming States and Markets;
Week 2: Corporate Power and Energy Transitions;
Week 3: Markets, Technology, and Environmental Solutions;
Week 4: The Circular Economy and Zero Waste;
Week 5: The Green New Deal;
Week 6: Reading Week;
PART II: Movements and Philosophies;
Week 7: Just Transitions;
Week 8: Degrowth and Post-Growth;
Week 9: Anticolonial and Indigenous Ecologies;
Week 10: Ecological Conflicts and Incommensurable Values

Learning outcomes

By the end of the module, students should be able to:

• Identify, interpret, and critically analyse key interdisciplinary social science debates and perspectives on green transformations
• Develop a critical and reflexive appreciation for the role of sociological perspectives for understanding and interpreting green transformations
• Gain an advanced and critical understanding of the role of social inequalities and power in shaping global environmental challenges
• Interpret and critically evaluate different proposed solutions for tackling global environmental challenges from sociological and interdisciplinary social science perspectives

Indicative reading list

Reading lists can be found in Talis

Interdisciplinary

The topic of green transformations is highly interdisciplinary, and the module engages with perspectives from across the social sciences and indeed the natural sciences. The most clear interdisciplinary connection is with the Global Sustainable Development programme, as this course would be complementary to the perspectives offered there. The module highlights the valuable and distinctive contributions of sociology to interdisciplinary debates on environmental issues, while opening up engagements across disciplines for synergies and cross-fertilisation.

Subject specific skills

• critical understanding of key perspectives, approaches, debates, and topics within a key subfield with the discipline , demonstrating breadth as well as critical depth of knowledge;
• an understanding of the limits of their knowledge, and how this influences analyses and interpretations based on that knowledge, particularly regarding other disciplines and perspectives;
• use a range of sociological methods of research and inquiry to initiate and undertake critical analysis of information, and to propose solutions to problems arising from that analysis;
• develop existing skills and acquire new competences in research analysis and critical thinking that will enable them to assume significant responsibility within organisations.

Transferable skills

• critical thinking, analysis, and research skills would be valuable skills for working in organisations
• effectively communicate and demonstrate the value of sociological approaches to specialist and non-specialist audiences for understanding, interpreting, and confronting complex social and environmental issues.