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NRU-HSE, National Research University - Higher School of Economics,
Moscow
Department of Sociology
Master Programme “Complex Social Analysis”
Course “Environmental Sociology (Social Ecology)”, 2016/2017
Course, 8 Credits
Title of the course:
Environmental sociology - human use of natural resources and
environmental consequences
Time: January-March 2017
Author of the course plan and teacher:
Karl Bruckmeier
Language: English (examination essay can be written in English or Russian)
Course plan
1. Aims of the course
The course provides basic knowledge (part 1) and in-depth knowledge (part 2) about
environmental problems in modern societies and the human use of natural resources
(renewable and non-renewable resources). The perspective is interdisciplinary with
environmental sociology as basic subject area. Knowledge from different disciplines is
used to analyse and assess environmental and resource use problems (potential
exhaustion of fossil resources, degradation of the global environment, availability of
certain natural resources). The analysis of exemplary problems of human resource use
and their environmental consequences (intended and non-intended) aims to understand
the challenges of resource management, the relevance of natural resources for the further
development of economy and society, and potential solutions to environmental problems.
After having finished the course students shall be able
(a) to understand the environmental problems in modern societies in the contexts
of social, political and economic action;
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(b) to understand the main problems with availability, use, management,
recycling of natural resources;
(c) to analyze the problems of natural resource use in concrete local, regional or
national contexts of economy and relevant policies;
(d) to argue individually and critically (orally and in written form) about main
environmental problems in modern society (in the epoch of “the
anthropocene”).
2. Course program (themes)
The course includes lectures, discussions and workshops (student presentations of course
literature) and requires from the students individual reading of the course literature, group
work for the workshop sessions, and an individual examination essay.
Part 1: Introduction – development of environmental sociology
Theme 1. Environmental sociology – overview: history/development, themes and
methods
Origins/history - a new subdiscipline of sociology (since the 1970s in USA, UK, France,
Germany): themes – environmental problems, environmental awareness, natural
resources and resource use practices
Basic concepts, approaches and methods – knowledge generation
Theme 2. Main perspectives and authors
- William Catton and Riley Dunlap - the HEP/NEP-paradigms
- A. Mol and G. Spaargaren - ecological modernization and environmental movements
- Ulrich Beck - risk society
- Oleg Yanitzky - environmental movements in Russia
- John Hannigan et al - Social construction of nature (social constructivism)
- Immanuel Wallerstein and James Rice - World System Theory and ecologically unequal
exchange
Theme 3. Neighbouring fields and overlapping discourses
Environmental sociology as part of a broader field of interdisciplinary environmental
social sciences:
- Human, cultural and social ecology
- Natural resource management
- Environmental and Ecological Economics
- Environmental history
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Part 2: Deepening – Problems and themes of environmental research
Theme 4. Environmental sociology – thematic perspectives
- Environmental awareness, value changes (“postmaterial values”) and changes of
lifestyles, environmental movements (industrial countries, Southern countries –
ecofeminism, environmentalism of the poor)
- Technological change and system change (ecological modernization, ”greening of the
economy”, “dematerialization”)
- Poverty, population growth and development (Malthusian questions)
- Quantifying and measuring natural resource use and its impacts (social and
environmental impact analysis; indicators for human resource use; risk, vulnerability and
resilience)
Theme 5: Environmental sociology - problems and risks
- Problems of natural resource use in the history of human societies (scarcity, overuse,
distribution)
- The emergence of environmental problems/risks in industrial/modern societies
(industrial pollution of the environment, agricultural pollution of the environment,
lifestyles and private consumption/households)
- Economic globalization and global environmental change: biodiversity reduction,
climate change, land use change
- Ecological distribution conflicts and unequal exchange – industrialized countries and
“the global South”
Theme 6. Global change – problems and solutions
- Social-ecological Systems/SES – Integration of World System, and Earth System
- Global environmental governance
- Sustainable development and the future global society – scenarios
The course program is specified in a detailed session/work plan for every year when the
course is given (including an updating of the course literature and the themes)
3. Literature for the course
The literature used in the lectures, discussions and workshops includes English texts from
environmental sociology, social ecology and neighboring disciplines. The literature will
be handed out to the participants in form of electronic or paper copies.
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4. Evaluation
The course is evaluated in the last session, in oral from (discussion in the class) and in
written from (participants answer a questionnaire, anonymous answers).
The evaluation is made public by the teacher who suggests possible changes for the
subsequent course.
5. Examination
The examination includes three parts, all required to pass the course. The first part is
obligatory participation in all lectures and discussions of the course, including active
participation in the discussions. The second part is a group work (presentation and
discussion of texts from the course literature in a workshop session, done in small
working groups). The third part is individual homework in form of an examination essay
written at the end the course (essays can be written in English or Russian).
Session plan and course literature for academic year 2016/2017
Date Sessions, themes and texts for reading Time, room
Part 1: Environmental sociology – history and development
Wednesday
January 11,
2017
Session 1
Introduction:
course themes, discussion and questions – literature,
work, examination
Lecture 1:
Environmental sociology - origins/history of the
subdiscipline: research themes
- multiple origins; North America and Europe
- nature and society: interaction and change (human
ecology)
- environmental awareness and action/resource use
15.10h-17.00h
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- environmental communication, discourses and
problems,
- environmental movements
Discussion: literature, text 1
Wednesday
January 18,
2017
Session 2
Lecture 2:
Environmental sociology, approaches and methods: research and knowledge generation
- basic concepts and perspectives: Catton and Dunlap
HEP/NEP-paradigm
- theories
- research methods
- epistemological approaches: constructivism, realism
Discussion 2: texts 10 (11, 12)
…
Wednesday
January 25,
2017
Session 3
Lecture 3:
Perspectives and authors - environmental reform and ecological modernization:
Buttel, Mol, Spaargaren
- risk society and reflexive modernity: Beck, Giddens
- treadmill of production: Schnaiberg, Foster
- critical environmental sociology: York, Rosa, Rice
Discussion 3: texts 6 (9, 24)
15.10h-17.00h
Wednesday
February 1,
2017
Session 4
Lecture 4:
Perspectives and authors - European environmental sociology
- Environmental sociology in Russia: Yanitsky
Discussion 4: text 2
15.10h-17.00h
Wednesday
February 8,
2017
Session 5
Lecture 5:
Neighbour disciplines and overlapping discourses: interaction society/nature
15.10h-17.00h
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- human, cultural and social ecology;
- common pool resource research
- natural resource management
- environmental policy
Discussion 5: texts 4 (16, 27)
Wednesday
February 15,
2017
Session 6
Lecture 6:
Neighbour disciplines and overlapping discourses: cultural, social, economic and environmental changes
- environmental and ecological economics;
- environmental history
Discussion 6: texts 21 (7, 22)
15.10h-17.00h
Part 2: Environmental sociology – themes and problems
Wednesday
February 22,
2017
Session 7
Introduction part 2:
- Themes
- Oral presentations in workshops
- Basic academic writing: the examination essay
Lecture 7: Environmental sociology – themes: sociological
fields of research
- environmental awareness, value changes
- life-styles and private consumption (households)
- environmental movements (Northern and Southern
countries)
- technological change and system transformation
(ecological modernization),
- ”greening of the economy”, “dematerialization”,
“degrowth”)
Training session:
Basic academic writing (abstracts, research questions
and essay plan)
15.10h-17.00h
Wednesday
March 1,
2017
Session 8
Lecture 8 (15.10-16.10h): Environmental sociology – themes: interdisciplinary
15.10h-17.00h
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themes
quantifying and measuring natural resource use and its
impacts (social and environmental impact analysis;
indicators for natural resource use (risk, vulnerability,
resilience, sustainability);
poverty, population growth and development
(Malthusian questions)
Workshop 1: student presentation – working group
(text 34)
Wednesday
March 8,
2017
Session 9
Lecture 9:
Environmental sociology - problems and risks historical and modern societies
- problems of natural resource use in historical societies
(scarcity, overuse, distribution)
- environmental problems in industrial/ modern
societies: industrial and agricultural damages to the
environment (pollution, deforestation, desertification)
Workshop 2: student presentation – working group
(text 24)
Wednesday
March 15,
2017
Session 10
Lecture 10:
Environmental sociology – global problems and
risks: global problems in the 21st century
- global economic and environmental change:
biodiversity reduction, climate change, land use
change;
- ecological distribution conflicts and unequal
exchange - industrialized countries and “the global
South”
Workshop 3: student presentation – working group
(text 23)
15.10h-17.00h
Wednesday
March 22,
2017
Session 11
Lecture 11:
Global change – global problems and solutions: towards solutions
- global governance and integration of world system
15.10h-17.00h
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and earth system (social-ecological systems)
- energy systems and renewable energy sources
- sustainable development and the future global society,
scenarios
Workshop 4, 5: student presentation – working group
(text 26, 12)
Wednesday
March 29,
2016
Session 12
Lecture 12:
The future of environmental sociology - interdisciplinarity and transdisciplinarity
- sociology and practice
- international trends and developments
Final discussion of the course, evaluation
Delivery of examination essays
15.10-17-00h
Wednesday
March 8 –
Wednesday
March 29,
2017
Writing of the individual examination essay (3 weeks) -
Literature for the course
The literature is available in electronic copies for the participants before the course starts.
Literature/texts for the lectures, discussions and workshops
(a) Books (only selected chapters to read):
1. Hannigan, John, 2006. Environmental Sociology. Second Edition. Routledge: London
and New York.
2. Gross, Matthias; Heinrichs, Harald, eds., 2010. Environmental Sociology: European
Perspectives and Interdisciplinary Challenges. Springer: Dordrecht et al.
3. Electris, C., et al., 2009. The Century Ahead: Four Global Scenarios. Tellus Institute,
Boston.
(b) Articles:
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4. Acheson, James N., 2006. Institutional Failures in Resource Management. Annual
Review of Anthropology, 35, pp. 117-134.
5. Beck, Ulrich, 2000. Risk Society Revisited: Theory, Politics and Research
Programmes (in: Barbara Adam et al., eds., The risk society and beyond: critical issues
for social theory, Sage: London et al., pp. 211-229).
6. Bogatyrev, L. G., et al., 2004. Some Trends in Research on the Biosphere. Russian
Journal of Ecology, vol. 35, no. 1, pp. 1–9; Translated from Ekologiya, 1, 2004, pp. 3–12;
in Russian and English.
7. Burke, Bryan E., 2001. Hardin Revisited: A Critical Look at Perception and the Logic
of the Commons. Human Ecology, 29, 4, pp. 449-476.
8. Buttel, Fredrick H., 2003. Environmental Sociology and the Explanation of
Environmental Reform. Organization & Environment, 16, 3. pp.306-344.
9. Catton, William R.; Dunlap, Riley E., 1978. Environmental sociology: A new
paradigm. The American Sociologist, 13, pp. 41-49.
10. Dunlap, Riley, et al., 2000. “Measuring the Endorsement of the New Ecological
Paradigm: A Revised NEP Scale”. Journal of Social Issues, 56, 3, pp. 425-442.
11. Foster, John Bellamy; Holleman, Hannah, 2012. Classical foundations for a post-
exemptionalist sociology. American Journal of Sociology, 117, 7, pp. 1615-1673.
12. Gerst, M.D.; Raskin, P.D.; Rockström, J., 2014. Contours of a Resilient Global
Future, Sustainability, 6 (1), pp. 123-135.
13. Gould, Kenneth A.; Pellow, David, N.; Schnaiberg, Allan 2003. Interrogating the
treadmill of production: Everything you wanted to know about the treadmill but were
afraid to ask. Paper, Madison Symposium on the Treadmill of Production, 46pp.
14. Fischer-Kowalski, Marina, 2003. On the History of Industrial Metabolism (in:
Perspectives on Industrial Ecology, ed. Dominique Bourg & Suren Erkman, Greenleaf
Publishing, pp. 35-45).
15. Haberl, Helmut, et al., 2011. A Socio-metabolic Transition towards
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Sustainability? Challenges for Another Great Transformation. Sustainable Development,
19, pp. 1–14.
16. Janssen, M. A. and Anderies J. M., 2007. Robustness Trade-offs in Social-Ecological
Systems. International Journal of the Commons, 1 (1), pp. 43-65.
17. Leach, M., et al, 2012. Transforming innovation for sustainability. Ecology and
Society 17 (2): 11 (http://dx.doi.org/10.5751/ES-04933-170211).
18. Lidskog, R., Mol, A., Osterveer, P., 2015. Towards a global environmental sociology.
Legacies, trends and future directions. Current Sociology. 63(3), pp. 339-368.
19. Lockie, S., 2015. What in Environmental Sociology? Environmental Sociology 1 (3),
pp. 139-142.
20. Martens, Pim; Raza, Mohsin, 2010. Is Globalisation Sustainable? Sustainability, 2,
pp. 280-293.
21. Martinez-Alier, J.; Pascual, U.; Vivien F.D.; Zaccai, E., 2010. Sustainable de-
growth: Mapping the context, criticisms and future prospects of an emergent paradigm,
Ecological Economics, 69 (9), pp. 1741-1747.
22. McAfee, K., 2012. The Contradictory Logic of Global Ecosystem Services Markets.
Development and Change, 43(1), pp. 105–131.
23. McDonald, G.W.; Patterson, M.G., 2007. Bridging the divide in urban sustainability:
from human exemptionalism to the new ecological paradigm. Urban Ecosystems, 10,
pp.169-192.
24. Mol, A.; Spaargaren, G., 2005. From Additions and Withdrawals to Environmental
Flows: Reframing Debates in the Environmental Social Sciences. Organization and
Environment, 18 (1), pp. 91-107.
25. Mol Arthur, 2009. Environmental Deinstitutionalization in Russia. Journal of
Environmental Policy & Planning, 11, 3, pp. 223-242.
26. Newell, Peter, 2008. The political economy of global environmental governance.
Review of International Studies, 34, pp. 507-529.
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27. Ostrom, Elinor, 2007. A diagnostic approach to go beyond panaceas. PNAS, 104, 39,
pp. 15181-15187.
28. Rice, James, 2007. Ecological Unequal Exchange: Consumption, Equity, and
Unsustainable Structural Relationships within the Global Economy. International Journal
of Comparative Sociology, 48, 1, pp. 43-72.
29. Spaargaren, Gert; Van Vliet, Bas, 2000. Lifestyles, consumption and the
environment: The ecological modernization of domestic consumption. Environmental
Politics, 9, 1, pp. 50-76.
30. Steffen, W., Crutzen , P. J. and McNeill, J. R., 2007. The Anthropocene: Are
Humans Now Overwhelming the Great Forces of Nature? Ambio, 36 (8), pp. 614-621.
31. Vikhanskiy, O., Churkina, N., Zaverskiy, S., 2012. Business response to environ-
mental challenges: three cases of Russian industrial companies. Oñati Socio-legal Series
[online], 2 (3), 68-88.
32. Yanitsky, Oleg, 2005. The Value Shift of the Russian Greens. International Review of
Sociology -/Revue Internationale de Sociologie, 15, 2, pp. 363-380.
33. Yanitsky, Oleg, 2009. The Shift of Environmental Debates in Russia. Current
Sociology, 57, 6, pp.747-766.
34. Yanitsky, Oleg, 2011. Modernization: the burden of the past. The Sociological
Review, 59, 4, pp. 741-757.
35. York, Richard; Rosa, Eugene; Dietz, Thomas, 2003. Footprints on the Earth: The
Environmental Consequences of Modernity. American Sociological Review, 68, pp. 279-
300.
36. Young, Oran R., et al., 2006. The globalization of socio-ecological systems: An
agenda for scientific research. Global Environmental Change, 16, pp. 304-316.
Additional literature (non-obligatory)
Adger, Neil W., et al., 2001. Advancing a Political Ecology of Global Environmental
Discourses. Development and Change, 32, pp. 681-715.
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Demeritt, David, 2002. What is the `social construction of nature´? A typology and
sympathetic critique. Progress in Human Geography, 26, 6, pp. 767-790.
Goldman, Michael; Schurman, Rachel, 2000. Closing the “Great Divide”: New Social
Theory on Society and Nature. Annual Review of Sociology, 26, pp. 563-584.
Lakoff, George, 2010. Why it matters how we frame the environment. Environmental
Communication, 4, 1, pp.70-81.
Marks, Robert B. 2002. The Origins of the Modern World (Rowman & Littlefield,
Lanham et al.
Martinez-Alier, Joan, 2009. Social Metabolism, Ecological Distribution Conflicts, and
Languages of Valuation. Capitalism, Nature, Socialism, 20, 1, pp. 58-87.
Sawin, Janet L.; Moomaw, William R., 2009. Renewable Revolution: Low Carbon
Energy by 2030. Worldwatch Institute: Worldwatch Report, 52 pp.
Walker, Gavin, 2005. Sociological theory and the natural environment. History of the
Human Sciences, 18, 1, pp. 77-106.
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