Sociology of the Environment and Risk (SY0034)

? Credit Points : 20 ? SCQF Level : 10 ? Acronym : SPS-3-SYENVIR

Sociology has traditionally paid little attention to environmental issues and ecological risks. Yet in the final decade of the twentieth century environmental groups such as Greenpeace, Friends of the Earth and the rest were claiming to have won the support of something like 8 per cent of the UK population, a membership far greater than that of the political parties. Elsewhere in Europe, ‘Greens’ were elected to parliament and the European Commission pressed ahead with environmental reforms, affecting such issues as air quality and drinking water standards. Media interest in the issue seemed unbounded. Environmentalism had become a major social issue. And it has stayed that way, in part thanks to anxieties over issues such as climate change and GM foodstuffs.

In the course, sociological perspectives on the relationship between human societies and their natural environments are explored via:
• discussion of ‘pessimistic’ and ‘optimistic’ views of that relationship
• sociological analyses of the rise of environmentalist and animal rights movements
• discussion of the relationship between gender and the environment
• analyses of the role played by science in environmental debates
• sociological analysis of ‘carbon markets’

There will also be sessions on the processes underpinning perceptions of risk, and on the light that sociological analysis can throw on the extent of the proneness of technological systems to catastrophic accidents. Other relevant topics – such as Marxist perspectives on the environment and applying sociological analysis to ‘greening’ technology – will not be discussed in the lectures, but nevertheless can be explored in essays.

Entry Requirements

none

Subject Areas

Home subject area

Sociology, (School of Social and Political Science, Schedule J)

Other subject areas

Environmental Courses, (School of GeoSciences, Schedule N)

Delivery Information

? Normal year taken : 3rd year

? Delivery Period : Semester 2 (Blocks 3-4)

? Contact Teaching Time : 2 hour(s) per week for 10 weeks

First Class Information

Date	Start	End	Room	Area	Additional Information
15/01/2009	11:10	13:00	Room B.01, Chrystal Macmillan Building	Central

All of the following classes

Type	Day	Start	End	Area
Lecture	Thursday	11:10	13:00	Central

Summary of Intended Learning Outcomes

The learning outcomes being sought are that at the end of the course you will be familiar with and be able to discuss:

1. the factors affecting the development of ‘green’ movements, such as the movement against nuclear power, Green Parties and the animal rights movement;
2. the factors that shape public perception of risks;
3. how a sociological analysis can throw light on the extent of the proneness of technological systems to catastrophic accidents;
4. the inter-relations of population growth, development and the environment;
5. the debate with feminist theory about the relationship between gender and the environment;
6. how sociological analyses of science and of its public understanding can help us understand the role it plays in environmental matters;
7. the nature of carbon markets and the light that can be thrown on them by sociological analysis.