Special Topics in Human Geography: Urban Environmental Change in Asia - Politics, place, and people
Course Instructor : Charrlotte Adelina
Language of instruction: English
Structure of the course
The seminar will strengthen participant's understanding of urban environmental change and politics by employing an urban political ecology (UPE) framework. We will use case study texts from South and Southeast Asia to further our understanding of research applications in the field of UPE. For instance, we will discuss:
What are the relationships between cities, people, and nature? How are materials and resources distributed across the city? Who wins and loses in urban sustainability transitions? How do some environment policies become 'best practices'?
We will discuss case studies in the realm of environmental change and climate change politics, and how these policy discourses and political processes produce socio-spatial effects in the urban space.
We will also engage in 'role-playing' exercises to understand the language and logics of discourses popularized in practices and politics of urban sustainability - such as the “circular economy” or “ecosystem services”.
Objectives
- Participants will familiarize themselves with the basic theories and conceptual frameworks in urban political ecologies
- Students will study how these conceptual / theoretical frameworks can be applied in every-day environmental issues using case study materials from Asia
- Students can understand the role and importance of context and power in unpacking human-environment relationships
We recommend that you register for the accompanying colloquium on development research. However, by arrangement you can also attend appointments in other colloquia (eg the institute colloquium) and have your participation certified.