Anthropology of Organisations and Sustainability

How shall we understand sustainability, a new concern for protecting the planet, within the context of the modern business and governmental organization that has operated over the past several centuries with only sparse reference to safeguarding the earth? With the contemporary environmental crisis as our backdrop, we will examine critical appraisals of options for studying new interactions between business, organisations and a sustainable environment. In this course you will learn to recognize how ecological concerns are articulated and perceived in different national and cultural contexts from an anthropological perspective.

Upon completion of the course, you will:

• obtain an understanding of definitions of sustainability, organisations, and environmental risk as anthropological concepts
• obtain an understanding of practices by government and business organisations in creating an ecological footprint in different scales and historical times
• learn how ethnography can contribute to an understanding of the cultures of work and business within an era of sustainability
• learn to identify the strengths and weaknesses of various actions for sustainability in different organisational settings
• acquire an ability to communicate effectively about the meanings of sustainability and organisations in your life

Combination of lectures, seminar discussion and field projects.

Please note that mandatory activities and lectures may start prior to the registration deadline.

Mandatory activity

The mandatory activity in this course is project participation. You'll find more information in Blackboard at the beginning of the semester. The mandatory activity will be assessed as approved or not approved, and must be approved in order to be qualified for the exam.