Examination arrangement

Course content

The course's academic content is geared toward how one in research can use system approaches to address society's sustainability challenges. Students are introduced to the theory and methodology that is relevant in such research, with the UN's global sustainability goals as a starting point, and how they can be monitored using criteria and indicators for measures. Emphasis is placed on how systems thinking, systems theory and systems analysis can be used to understand the cause-effect relationships, and how to manage tradeoffs across criteria. Various qualitative and quantitative methods in sustainability-related research are discussed, which support planning and decision making for improved environmental, economic and social sustainability. This includes methods in environmental management and industrial ecology based environmental systems analysis (including material flow analysis and life cycle analysis), ethical perspectives, multivariate decision analysis applied on different systems levels and decision criteria. The focus is how the different methodologies can relate to system perspectives with a goal to achieve more holistic improvements across sustainability criteria.

To a certain extent, the course will adapt issues and applications in relation to participants' research focus.

Theme 1: UN's global sustainability goals, incl. status and trends

Theme 2: Multidisciplinary, qualitative and quantitative research methods

Theme 3: System theory, system methodology and system analysis

Theme 4: Ethical perspectives

Theme 5: Industrial ecology environmental systems analysis

Theme 6: Environmental management in different systems levels

Theme 7: Circular economy

Theme 8: Multivariate Decision Analysis / - tools

Theme 9: Sectoral examples - strategy, goals, indicators, performance and critical factors for change

Learning outcome

Knowledge: The candidate must be able to document a good understanding of important dimensions and challenges of sustainability and how the UN's global sustainability goals can be used as a basis for strategies and actions for change. The candidate should be able to explain why and how various system approaches and system theory offer opportunities to better understand cause-effect relationships and more comprehensive improvements in communities, sectors and applications, in addition to how this can be achieved using qualitative and quantitative research on sustainability related issues.

Skills: The candidate should be able to formulate research issues related to the use of system approaches to sustainability challenges and discuss how theory and methodology covered in the subject can be benefitted through the analysis of coherent strategies and solutions for increased sustainability and change processes to achieve it. The candidate must be able to demonstrate and justify how this can be used in their research work, where appropriate.

General competence: The candidate must be able to assess how it is appropriate to apply multidisciplinary research and methods from a systems approach to sustainability, and see how this can provide academic gains when used in relation to their own work.

Learning methods and activities

Lectures, group work and presentation, plenary discussion. The course will be conducted through five meetings (with a sixth optional meeting). Some of the meetings will be held digitally. Obligatory course attendance. Course dates will be announced at semester start-up.

Compulsory assignments

• Participation in seminars
• Presentations

Further on evaluation

An essay (10-15 pages) will be evaluated with grades from A to F.

Recommended previous knowledge

Discipline background providing theoretical, methodological and applied understanding of key aspects of research on society's sustainability challenges.

The course is suitable for PhD candidates who work in the field of technology, engineering, environmental planning, social and political sciences and environment.

Required previous knowledge

Master degree or equivalent qualifications. Admission to a PhD programme.

Course materials

Will be announced when course starts.

Credit reductions