Postgraduate Course: Energy & Society I; Key Themes and Issues (GESC11010)
Course Outline
| School | School of Geosciences |
College | College of Science and Engineering |
| Credit level (Normal year taken) | SCQF Level 11 (Postgraduate) |
Availability | Not available to visiting students |
| SCQF Credits | 20 |
ECTS Credits | 10 |
| Summary | There is a widely acknowledge 'energy literacy' in society and within the policy and third sector communities. Since 2008, students interest in energy has shot up, and only part of that growing interest can be catered for by existing masters teaching: the vast majority of existing energy teaching at post-graduate level consists of energy engineering degrees. Whilst this offering is technically sound, many of the energy challenges we face in the 21st century are more social than technical. There is a pedagogic imperative to teach students the basic numerical literacy on energy, and to encourage students to look at society through the energy lens and unpack our overdependence on scarce and contested resources, the social impacts of energy provision and the lock-in and externalising effects of energy provision under incumbent energy regimes. |
| Course description |
The course explores what the social sciences can bring to our understanding of energy systems; how and why they have evolved the way they have and what societal processes and social conditions are critical to the adoption and good use of cleaner technologies and sources of energy in the decades ahead. By looking at society 'through the energy lens', students will also lean to appreciate the cultural relevance of energy related things and practices, and appreciate the inherent power relations and distributional aspects of changing energy systems.
Bringing social theory to bear on concrete examples of energy systems, the course is broadly structured into four parts; spatio-temporal processes, energy and the environment, energy and the city, energy in homes and communities.
Week 1: introduction
Week 2: energy history
Week 3: energy geography
Week 4: case study 1; coal
Week 5: the water-energy-food nexus
Week 6: innovation in energy systems
Week 7: smart cities
Week 8: case study 2; district heating
Week 9: community energy
Week 10: energy and the home
Week 11: recap; social theories & energy systems.
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Entry Requirements (not applicable to Visiting Students)
| Pre-requisites |
|
Co-requisites | |
| Prohibited Combinations | |
Other requirements | None |
Course Delivery Information
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| Academic year 2017/18, Not available to visiting students (SS1)
|
Quota: 25 |
| Course Start |
Semester 1 |
Timetable |
Timetable |
| Learning and Teaching activities (Further Info) |
Total Hours:
200
(
Lecture Hours 22,
Seminar/Tutorial Hours 11,
Supervised Practical/Workshop/Studio Hours 4,
Programme Level Learning and Teaching Hours 4,
Directed Learning and Independent Learning Hours
159 )
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| Assessment (Further Info) |
Written Exam
0 %,
Coursework
100 %,
Practical Exam
0 %
|
| Additional Information (Assessment) |
Practical Assignment (25%)
Podcast, blog and presentation (25%)
Essay (50%) |
| Feedback |
Not entered |
| No Exam Information |
Learning Outcomes
On completion of this course, the student will be able to:
- Identify and assess the role of access to energy in historical processes of societal change.
- Develop a critical understanding of systemic, institutional and individual challenges to more low carbon and energy
- Develop a stronger theoretical understanding of the contributions of social science to energy research.
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Reading List
Chevalier J-M. 2009. The New Energy Crisis: Climate, Economics and Geopolitics. Macmillan, Basingstoke.
Elliott D. 2009. Energy, Society and Environment: Technology for a Sustainable Future. Macmillan, Basingstoke.
Fay J.A. and Golomb D. 2002. Energy and the Environment. Oxford University Press, Oxford.
Goldemberg J. 1996. Energy, Environment and Development. Earthscan, London.
Helm D. (ed.) 2007. The New Energy Paradigm. Oxford University Press, Oxford.
Fanchi R.J., Tjan Kwang Wei (eds.) 2005. Energy in the 21st Century. World Scientific, Hackensack, N.J.
Illich I. 1974. Energy and Equity. Calder & Boyars, London
Hughes T.P. 1993 Networks of Power: Electrification in Western Society, 1880¿1930. Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore
Lovins A.B. 1977. Soft Energy Paths: Toward a Durable Peace. Penguin, London.
Mallon K. (ed.) 2007. Renewable Energy Policy and Politics: A Handbook for Decision-Making. Earthscan, London.
McElroy M. 2010. Energy: Perspectives, Problems, and Prospects. Oxford University Press, Oxford.
Mitchell, K. 2009. The Political Economy of Sustainable Energy. Macmillan, Basingstoke.
Muller I. 2007. A History of Thermodynamics: The Doctrine of Energy and Entropy. Springer, Berlin.
Niele F. 2005. Energy: Engine of Evolution. Elsevier, London.
Nye D.E. 1998. Consuming Power: A Social History of American Energies. MIT Press, Cambridge, Mass.
Pasqualetti M.J., Gipe P. and Righter R.W. (eds.) 2002. Wind Power in View: Energy Landscapes in a Crowded World. Academic Press, San Diego.
Smil V. 1994. Energy in World History. Westview Press, Boulder.
Smil V. 2003. Energy at the Crossroads: Global Perspectives and Uncertainties. MIT Press, Cambridge.
Sudhakara R., Assenza G., Assenza D. and Hasselmann F. 2010. Energy Efficiency and Climate Change: Conserving Power for a Sustainable Future. Sage, London.
Twidell J. and Weir T. 2006: Renewable Energy Resources. Taylor & Francis, London.
Wagner H.J. (2008) Energy: The World¿s Race for Resources in the 21st Century. Haus Publishing Limited, London. |
Additional Information
| Graduate Attributes and Skills |
Not entered |
| Keywords | Energy systems,Social theory,Technology adoption,Societal change,Innovation |
Contacts
| Course organiser | Dr Dan Van Der Horst
Tel: (0131 6)51 4467
Email: Dan.vanderHorst@ed.ac.uk |
Course secretary | Mrs Karolina Galera
Tel: (0131 6)50 2572
Email: k.galera@ed.ac.uk |
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