- Docente: Peter Bille Larsen
- Docente: Sharayu Shejale
Course overview
Sustainability has become a major field of social regulation and standardization. Whether in the fields of public policy, business or the non-governmental sphere, sustainable development practitioners are increasingly challenged to reflect upon and put into practice a wide range of sustainability standards. Understanding their potential and actual roles, mechanisms and wider significance is a fundamental skill-set in responding to social and environmental challenges of our times.
The aim of the course is therefore to introduce students to both the theory and practical uses of sustainability standards as a distinct form of regulation, terminology and field of practice. Starting from the conceptual understanding of how to define and understand sustainability regulation and standards, the course oscillates between introducing core concepts and theoretical approaches, on the one hand, and learning from practitioners and case-studies, on the other. Students will, throughout the course, be introduced to a cross-selection of different sustainability standards including diverse topics such as environmental sustainability, social inclusion and human rights. We will also explore critical dimensions of standardization. This year’s innovation involves a bootcamp on conformity assessment organized in cooperation with the International Electrotechnical Commission.
Teaching and learning modalities include class-based teaching and presentations, group work and the preparation of thematic case-studies. Students are invited to develop case-study analysis drawing on work being done by different organizations such as ISO, UNEP and FSC as well as other sector-specific initiatives.
Professor and Teaching Assistant
Dr. Peter Bille Larsen
Senior Lecturer, University of Geneva
peter.larsen@unige.ch | +41 (0)22 379 0894 | Uni Carl Vogt B311 (by appointment only)
Sharayu Shejale
PhD Candidate at the Department of Sociology
sharayu.shejale@unige.ch | +41 (0)22 379 0254 | Uni Mail 4295 (by appointment only)