69369 Sustainability Practices in Industry
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Subject handbook information prior to 2025 is available in the Archives.
Credit points: 6 cp
Result type: Grade and marks
There are course requisites for this subject. See access conditions.
Description
The transition to a sustainable future requires collaboration between industry, government and other stakeholders to achieve sectoral change. The guiding vision for action on sustainability comes from the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). However, it is not always clear how to put these high-level goals into practice at a workplace level. This subject introduces a six-step transition management planning framework to identify sustainability practices that are context-specific and contribute towards achieving the SDGs. The framework covers system analysis, stakeholder engagement, foresighting, option development and selection, implementation and evaluation, and can be used in any industry. Case studies from industries such as energy, manufacturing, agriculture and the built environment demonstrate practical applications. Students learn to apply the framework in their own context by working through each of the steps in an individual project on a system of their choosing.
Subject learning objectives (SLOs)
Upon successful completion of this subject students should be able to:
| 1. | Build capacity to investigate and advocate opportunities for organisations to develop and implement sustainability practices |
|---|---|
| 2. | Apply transition management planning to identify, prioritise, select and implement industry-specific sustainability practices |
| 3. | Contextualise, synthesise, and evaluate sustainability practices in order to influence future implementation |
Course intended learning outcomes (CILOs)
This subject also contributes specifically to the development of following course intended learning outcomes:
- Critically appraise, synthesise and apply advanced skills and knowledge to contribute to professional practice and scholarship relevant to sustainability and leadership. (1.1)
- Analyse data and information to design, disseminate and conduct appropriate independent research to solve complex sustainability and leadership problems. (2.1)
- Develop, prepare, engage, lead, reflect and report upon work and leadership practices adhering to ethical conduct, risk management, organisation, and governance or regulatory requirements in the context of sustainability. (3.1)
- Critically reflect on self and others' practices related to sustainable leadership, seek and act on feedback and take responsibility for their professional practice and learning. (4.1)
- Present and justify complex ideas around sustainability and leadership independently or in collaborative contexts using various communication approaches from a variety of methods (oral, written, digital and visual) to discipline experts, policy makers, consumers, scientists, industry, and the community. (5.1)
Contribution to the development of graduate attributes
The Faculty of Science has six graduate attributes that you will develop during your course at UTS. This subject is intended to develop five of these attributes:
Graduate Attribute 1 - Disciplinary knowledge
Students will develop an understanding of the fields of sustainability science, sustainability transitions and transition management. These fields are action-oriented, so learning about these fields will take place through the practical application of a transition management framework in an industry context chosen by the student. Module 1 provides a grounding in theories of sustainability and the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, before subsequent modules take students through the stages of system analysis, stakeholder engagement, foresighting, option development and selection, implementation and evaluation.
Graduate Attribute 2 – Research, inquiry and critical thinking
The transition management framework that students will apply throughout the subject requires them to undertake research and inquiry on a system of their choosing by applying system analysis tools and diagramming, developing a plan for stakeholder engagement, and exploring possible futures of their system with foresighting frameworks. Students will apply critical thinking to develop ideas and options for sustainability practices and select those that are most feasible for implementation in their context. Activities throughout the course encourage students to think critically about individual and societal choices and the impact on sustainability.
Graduate Attribute 3 - Professional, ethical and social responsibility
The primary driver for implementing sustainability practices is to take responsibility for achieving the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals and ensuring a just and sustainable future. Responsibility is emphasised throughout the course material and discussions are expected to explore professional and ethical responsibility to implement sustainability practices even when there is resistance from organisations or sectors that students work in.
Graduate Attribute 4 - Reflection, innovation and creativity
The subject includes numerous activities that encourage students to reflect on their own practice and learn from the challenges they experience in designing and implementing sustainability practices. Several of the stages in the transition management framework are specifically designed to develop these attributes. System analysis requires reflection on the current state of the system the students are working in. Foresighting practices encourage creativity in imaginatively exploring possible futures that may deviate significantly from current trends. Option development and selection requires innovation and creativity during ideation, and reflection when selecting options that are feasible to implement. Evaluation requires reflection on the outcomes of a sustainability intervention to support learning for the future.
Graduate Attribute 5 - Communication skills
Students will be able to develop their communication skills as they will be able to interact with each other and the teaching staff in the online space. They will be able to develop the language to speak authoritatively about sustainability with others in their industry. Assessment tasks ask the students to present the results of their transition management work in the form of short videos, designed as a 'pitch' to an organisation. In addition, the stakeholder engagement stage of the transition management framework provides tools for effectively engaging diverse stakeholders in sustainability practices.
Teaching and learning strategies
The core pedagogical strategy for the subject is 'learning by doing'. Students will learn about a six-step transition management framework for developing and implementing sustainability practices by engaging in practical activities on each step. Each activity will build on the previous activities, developing a small sustainability implementation project over the course of the subject. Students will select the context and system they wish to focus on and will work on this system throughout the subject. The system could be their current organisation or sector, a sector they aspire to work in, or one that is of personal interest.
To guide students through the application of the transition management framework, four case studies run in parallel through the subject. These case studies focus on sustainability transitions in energy, the built environment, agriculture and textile and garment manufacturing. Illustrated with video material from sustainability experts, they will help students to see how the tools from transition management have been applied to real sustainability projects in industry.
Discussion boards, polls and reflection activities throughout the course encourage reflection on the material to facilitate deeper learning. Extensive additional reading is also provided so that students can choose to go deeper into specific topics that particularly interest them. The three assessment tasks are designed to build on each other as students move through the transition management framework. The first helps students to start identifying their area of focus by drawing out their interest in specific Sustainable Development Goals. The second asks students to present on the results of their system analysis, stakeholder engagement and foresighting work. The final presentation brings all the stages of transition management together into a 'pitch' for implementation of specific sustainability practices. Peer feedback is encouraged throughout, recognising that sustainability practices are cross-disciplinary and benefit greatly from other perspectives.
Content (topics)
- Sustainability science definitions and terminology
- Planetary boundaries
- Sustainable Development Goals
- Sustainability transitions and transformations
- System analysis, rich pictures, causal loop diagrams
- The multi-level perspective
- Stakeholder engagement planning
- Foresighting practices including the futures triangle, Three Horizons and scenarios
- Ideation, option development and option selection
- Implementation practices - co-production, transition experiments, living labs, reflective journaling
- Monitoring and evaluation
Assessment
Assessment task 1: The SDGs and You
| Intent: |
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|---|---|
| Objective(s): | This assessment task addresses subject learning objective(s): 1 and 3 This assessment task contributes to the development of course intended learning outcome(s): 1.1, 2.1, 3.1, 4.1 and 5.1 |
| Type: | Reflection |
| Groupwork: | Individual |
| Weight: | 15% |
| Length: | Up to 400 words. |
| Criteria: | The rubric contains four criteria:
|
Assessment task 2: System Analysis Presentation
| Intent: | 1. Disciplinary Knowledge |
|---|---|
| Objective(s): | This assessment task addresses subject learning objective(s): 1 and 2 This assessment task contributes to the development of course intended learning outcome(s): 1.1, 2.1, 4.1 and 5.1 |
| Type: | Presentation |
| Groupwork: | Individual |
| Weight: | 35% |
| Length: | 6 minutes presentation. |
| Criteria: | The detailed assessment criteria are also available in Canvas, which will be used for marking the video presentation and provides details on how this assessment achieves the graduate attributes. This means that you must access the criteria required before you begin the assessment. |
Assessment task 3: Sustainable Practices Pitch
| Intent: |
|
|---|---|
| Objective(s): | This assessment task addresses subject learning objective(s): 1, 2 and 3 This assessment task contributes to the development of course intended learning outcome(s): 1.1, 2.1, 3.1, 4.1 and 5.1 |
| Type: | Presentation |
| Groupwork: | Individual |
| Weight: | 50% |
| Length: | 600 words and 7 minutes. |
| Criteria: | The detailed assessment criteria are also available in Canvas, which will be used for marking the reports and provides details on how this assessment achieves the graduate attributes. This means that you must access the criteria required before you begin the assessment. |