CIEE Center, Dublin, Ireland

Transcription

1 CIEE Center, Dublin, Ireland Course name: Engineering, Ecology, Social Responsibility, and Society Course number: ENVI 3002 IREL Programs offering course: Summer Engineering, Technology and Science Language of instruction: English U.S. Semester Credits: 3 Contact Hours: 45 Term: Summer 2018 Course meeting times: Daily Course meeting place: Henry Grattan Building, Dublin City University Professor: TBC Contact Information: Office address: CG45 Henry Grattan Building, DCU, Dublin 9. Office hours: TBC Course Description The course will give an overview of the micro and macro perspectives on energy sustainability and ecology in Ireland. Ireland has developed a local and national strategy for energy conservation, ecology policy and recycling, as well as a controversial water conservation strategy. The course will examine the policy of government in terms of environment and ecology. Policy and legislation issues will also be considered in a European context. Students will consider the development of Ireland in the context of international, national and local policy. There will be an examination of the impact of this policy on the ecological activity of individuals and communities. Learning Objectives Students will acquire significant knowledge of the European Environmental Policy Framework on Water and Energy Conservation and Waste Management; Learn how Ireland has implemented EU regulations into a strategic action plan and analyse legislation issues; Ability to critically evaluate the impact of environmental and ecology policies on economics and sustainable development; Understanding of the role played by sustainable engineering, industrial ecology and social responsibility in the context of sustainable development.

2 Course Prerequisites There are no prerequisites for this class. Methods of Instruction The course will be taught through a variety of methods including: Lectures Sites visits and walking tours related to course content Guest Lectures Lectures are also linked to a three field trips to Belfast including the Harlaand and Woolf and the Titanic footprint tour. These visits will take place outside of class time and are an integral and compulsory element of the programme. Assessment and Final Grade List three or more methods of assessment in addition to attendance and participation, indicating the percent of final grade below totaling 100%: 1. Essay on Ireland s Implementation of EU Ecology Policies: 15% 2. Minor Research Project: 15 % 3. Report on Engineering and Sustainable Development: 50% 4. Attendance and class participation: 20% (10% for each) Course Requirements Essay on Ireland s Implementation of EU Ecology Policies: Assessment I Students will write a short essay discussing the implementation strategies adopted by the Irish government to comply with the European legislative framework. Students will choose from one of the subjects covered during the first two weeks of the programme: energy conservation, water conservation, or recycling strategies. The essay will particularly examine existing and potential controversies arising from Ireland s environmental and ecology policies. An indicative list of topics is provided to the students. Word Count: 1000 words (excluding title page and references)

3 Minor Research Project: Assessment II Students will conduct a small group research project investigating water conservation strategies as alternatives to current policy being implemented by Irish Water. The research findings will be formulated in the form of new policy recommendations, to be presented in a 10 min presentation by each group. Word Count: Maximum 10 slides (including title page and references) Report on Engineering and Sustainable Development: Assessment III For this assessment, students are required to write a report in which they critically present their view on the economics of sustainable development and the opportunities emerging from ecology and sustainable engineering. They will identify and discuss an engineering case study of corporate social responsibility, describing its benefits for society and for the specific company. Pages Limit: 1500 words (excluding title page and references) Attendance and Class Participation Attendance is taken through a class list at the beginning of every class. Any absence must be clearly explained. An unexplained absence will result in a reduction of marks for attendance. Two unexplained absence will result in a zero mark for attendance and a meeting with the Resident Director. Students are expected to be interactive in class, contribute to discussion and be involved in seminar participation. Participation will be noted by the instruction both in terms of frequency but particularly relevance. Course work must be completed and submitted on time.. Unless students receive an extension from the professor, assignment grades are reduced by 10% daily if turned in after the deadline If the assessment is more than 3 days late, students will be required to meet with the Resident Director. No coursework will be accepted after the last day of class.

4 Weekly Schedule Week 1 Orientation Week 17 July Introduction to Energy Sustainability and Ecology The Environment and Ecology Policies in Europe: Energy Efficiency Directive (2012/27/EU) Waste Framework Directive (2008/98/EC) Water Framework Directive (2000/60/EC) Week 2 24 July Sustainable Demand Management Issues Sustainability, Reuse and Ecology Strategies for Ireland: Conservation of Energy Recycling Water Conservation Field-Trips: Northern Ireland (Required) Day 1 - Site Visits themes: Harlaand and Woolf. Day 2 - Site Visits themes: Titanic footprint tour. Assessment I - Due Week 3 31 July Irish Water: A Case Study of a Controversial Water Conservation Strategy Implementation Local implementation of National Environmental and Ecology Policies: Rural (Group) Water Supply: A Case Study The Impact of European Environmental Policy in Ireland Towards a National Perspective on Future EU Environmental Policy Assessment II - Due Week 4 8 Aug Ecology, Engineering and Economics Industrial Ecology and Sustainable Engineering Engineering and Corporate Social Responsibility Final Remarks and Conclusions Assessment III - Due Exit presentation and Reviews

5 Selected site-visits/tours Engineering, Ecology, Social Responsibility and Society This field trip visits Belfast and Northern Ireland. The trip includes visits to historic sites as well as a contemporary examination of the political, social, and economic divisions in Northern Ireland. It touches on how the development of industries like linen-, rope-making and shipbuilding doubled the size of the town every ten years. The trip will also meet local groups with regard to social issues around ecology, environment and the role of industry and engineering in Northern Ireland. It will provide a contrast to the contemporary politics in Dublin on these issues. Harlaand and Woolf the adaptation of the shipbuilding industry to newer renewable engineering works such as the building of wind turbines. There is also the refitting of oil rigs at this facility. Student will learning about the logistical of turbine construction and transportation as well as the development and change experienced by Belfast. Titanic Footprint Tour This tour gives a cultural and social historical of industrial Belfast and Northern Ireland. The speaker will cover the repurposing of the old dockyard space into a viable tourist attraction with the engineering works and dry dock still intact. Selected Readings Huber, J. (2000). Towards industrial ecology: sustainable development as a concept of ecological modernization. Journal of environmental policy and planning, 2(4), Azapagic, A., Perdan, S., & Shallcross, D. (2005). How much do engineering students know about sustainable development? The findings of an international survey and possible implications for the engineering curriculum. European Journal of Engineering Education, 30(1), Gosselin, F. (2008). Redefining ecological engineering to promote its integration with sustainable development and tighten its links with the whole of ecology.ecological Engineering, 32(3), Allenby, B., Allen, D., & Davidson, C. (2007). Sustainable engineering: From myth to mechanism. Environmental Quality Management, 17(1), Ehrenfeld, J. R. (1997). Industrial ecology: a framework for product and process design. Journal of cleaner production, 5(1), Rosen, M. A., & Dincer, I. (2001). Exergy as the confluence of energy, environment and sustainable development. Exergy, an International journal,1(1), Ciegis, R., Ramanauskiene, J., & Martinkus, B. (2015). The concept of sustainable development and its use for sustainability scenarios. Engineering Economics, 62(2). Steurer, R., Langer, M. E., Konrad, A., & Martinuzzi, A. (2005). Corporations, stakeholders and sustainable development I: A theoretical exploration of business society relations. Journal of Business Ethics, 61(3),