Introduction to environmental communication - Society, social interaction and communicative skills
If the environmental problems will be managed or not, is dependent of the thinking and acting of people and their ability to learn from earlier mistakes. How a natural resource will be used (or misused) is decided in oral and written exchanges between humans. In this course we will investigate how people make up their minds about environmental issues, how they chat, understand and misunderstand each other. How do attitudes develop? How does knowledge develop? What is happening when someone learn something? We will investigate the dynamic of a working group and the communication within and between groups. This course is an introduction to a social psychological understanding of the natural resource management. We focus on the experiences of the students and theories about communication, learning, group dynamics, changes of attitudes, action and reflection will be illustrated in exercises and applications.
Information from the course leader
Canvas page published!
We have now published the Canvas page of the course. If you have an SLU IT account, you should be able to access it through the Canvas tap in this page. You should have also recieved a notification inviting to join the page in your SLU email.
If you don´t an SLU IT account or email, check below on how to activate it. You can get help on activating the account on Tuesday when we meet.
Important: Access to the Canvas course page does not mean you are registered to the course. You need to be present during the roll call on Tuesday in order to be registered. Students who are not present and do not inform about delays in their arrival (see more details below) will not be registered and will be removed from the Canvas course page
Bring your laptop on Tuesday
If possible bring your laptop to the course start sessioin on Tuesday. Together we will explore the content of the Canvas page in order for you to get familiar with it. Alternatively you can use the Canvas app on your phone (see below for more information on Canvas)
2022-08-25
Welcome!
Welcome to the Environmental Communication introduction course! We look forward to meeting you all on Tuesday 30th of August when the course starts. We will meet in room Framtiden in the MVM (Mark-Vatten-Miljöcentrum) building (address Lennart Hjelms väg 9) at 9.00 sharp. Here you find information on how to get to Campus Ultuna including a map with the different buildings.
In the messages below you will find important information. Please read carefully and note that changes may occur once the course begins. This course page will be used only before the course starts. After we will only use the CANVAS platform (see details below).
For questions or comments about the course please contact camilo.calderon@slu.se.
We look forward to meeting you all!
Important: Please visit this page regularly for updates and more information before the course starts
Course Schedule
The course schedule can now be found in the "Schedule" link in this page. Note that changes may occur once the course starts.
Literature List
In the tab Literature List below you will find the literature list of the course. This list comprises required readings for each course week. A detailed list including suplementary readings will be provided at the start of the course. Note that small changes in the literature list may occur. All reading will occur during allocated times in the course. All literature will be available in the course CANVAS page once the course starts. The course does not have a main course book that you need to buy.
2022-07-05
CANVAS page and activating your SLU IT-Student account.
CANVAS is the online course platform where you will find all course materials. To get access to Canvas (as well all other SLU´s digital tools) you need to first activate your SLU IT-student account and get an SLU email. You can do this online from mid-August. The instructions on how to activate the IT account and on how to get started with SLU´s digital tools can be found in the Checklist for new international students or the Checklist for Swedish students (in Swedish)
Once you activate the IT account you will get access to CANVAS platform (find more information about Canvas here). Right now you will not be able to see the course CANVAS page as we are now setting it up. Our goal is to publish the page latest on the 26th of August. Once the page is published you will receive an invitation in your SLU email. You can also access the page through the "Open my Canvas room" link in this page. You will get detailed information on how to use CANVAS on the first day of the course.
2022-07-05
Preparations before course start
In this course, we will communicate and you will write a lot. You will also use, mainly social science, theories to understand and change the communication situations we will study and experience. Hence, we recommend you to practice academic writing and to read up books, articles or blog posts introducing modern social theories.
Here is a document with a number of resources about academic writing that would be worth for you to look at or study in order to improve your writing skills. The document is meant for the students of the Environmental Communication and Management programme but it is useful for other students as well.
2022-07-05
Course registration
You will be registered for the course on the first course day after you respond in to the roll call. It is thus very important that you attend this session in person. Note that students of the ECM MSc programme are expected to attend a separate introduction/registration session on the 29th of August.
Important: Access to the Canvas course page does not mean you are registered for the course. You need to be present during the roll call in order to be registered. Students who are not present and do not inform about delays in their arrival (see more details below) will not be registered and will be removed from the Canvas course page.
2022-07-05
Late arrival to Sweden
We understand that some of you might have delays with your travel to Sweden. But the 12th of September (two weeks after the course starts) is the last day for you to arrive in Sweden and be able to register for the course. If you arrive late, you might need to do compensatory work for the activities that you miss.
If you know that you will arrive late and will be able to do so before the 12th of September please write an email to camilo.calderon@slu.se before the course starts. Please indicate the date that you will arrive.2022-07-05
Course evaluation
The course evaluation is now closed
MX0115-10074 - Course evaluation report
Once the evaluation is closed, the course coordinator and student representative have 1 month to draft their comments. The comments will be published in the evaluation report.
Additional course evaluations for MX0115
Academic year 2024/2025
2024-09-02 - 2024-10-31
Academic year 2023/2024
2023-08-28 - 2023-10-30
Academic year 2021/2022
2021-08-30 - 2021-11-01
Academic year 2020/2021
2020-08-31 - 2020-11-01
Academic year 2019/2020
2019-09-02 - 2019-10-31
Academic year 2018/2019
2018-09-03 - 2018-11-11
Academic year 2017/2018
2017-08-28 - 2017-11-05
Academic year 2016/2017
2016-08-29 - 2016-11-06
Syllabus and other information
Syllabus
MX0115 Introduction to environmental communication - Society, social interaction and communicative skills, 15.0 Credits
Introduktionskurs till miljökommunikation-Samhälle , socialt samspel och kommunikativa färdigheterSubjects
Environmental ScienceEducation cycle
Master’s levelModules
| Title | Credits | Code |
|---|---|---|
| Report project work | 7.5 | 0302 |
| Home exam | 7.5 | 0303 |
Advanced study in the main field
Second cycle, has only first-cycle course/s as entry requirementsMaster’s level (A1N)
Grading scale
The grade requirements within the course grading system are set out in specific criteria. These criteria must be available by the course start at the latest.
Language
EnglishPrior knowledge
Knowledge equivalent to English 6 from upper secondary school.Equivalent to 180 credits and specialized studies comprising 90 credits within one of the following subjects/disciplinary domains: natural sciences, technology or social sciences.
Objectives
The aim of the course is to develop an understanding of environmental communication as a social process which is simultaneously dependent of, and affecting, society, and to develop basic skills in facilitating constructive dialogue in small groups with relevance for natural resource management. Both macro and micro sociological theories are needed in order to understand environmental communication and its’ relevance in society and natural resource management.
After the course is finished the student should be able to:
Describe theoretical approaches to understanding the relation between people and the environment.
Discuss the role of communication in the development and resolution of environmental challenges.
Describe methods for facilitating constructive dialogue.
Reflect on their own experience of communication situations.
Content
This course introduces students to sociological, social psychological and epistemological theories and concepts, among others to the theory of symbolic interactionism, which is used to understand human action in natural resource management. It also gives opportunities to develop practical skills in facilitating constructive dialogue in small groups.
Social and epistemological theories are presented in lectures and literature, and the students are in exercises facilitated to apply these theories in reflection and analysis of ongoing social processes, own experience and in case studies. The pedagogical idea of the course is pending between 1) observation of concrete environmental communication relevant situations, including both narrated case studies and own, immediate experience, which will generate a demand for theory, 2) presentation of theory, 3) analysis and interpretation of concrete cases through applying social science theories to the situation, 4) considering normative aspects of the situation (what could be changed and how to change), including structural changes as well as changes of individual action and thinking. Consequently there is a relation between lectures, literature and exercises. The students also carry out a small project connected to a situation/problem of relevance for environmental communication.
Grading form
The grade requirements within the course grading system are set out in specific criteria. These criteria must be available by the course start at the latest.Formats and requirements for examination
Examination through:
Home-exam
Report on project work
To pass the course it is compulsory to:
Participate in the project work
Participate in facilitation work-shops.
If a student has failed an examination, the examiner has the right to issue supplementary assignments. This applies if it is possible and there are grounds to do so.
The examiner can provide an adapted assessment to students entitled to study support for students with disabilities following a decision by the university. Examiners may also issue an adapted examination or provide an alternative way for the students to take the exam.
If this syllabus is withdrawn, SLU may introduce transitional provisions for examining students admitted based on this syllabus and who have not yet passed the course.
For the assessment of an independent project (degree project), the examiner may also allow a student to add supplemental information after the deadline for submission. Read more in the Education Planning and Administration Handbook.
Other information
The right to participate in teaching and/or supervision only applies for the course instance the student was admitted to and registered on.
If there are special reasons, students are entitled to participate in components with compulsory attendance when the course is given again. Read more in the Education Planning and Administration Handbook.
Responsible department
Department of Urban and Rural Development