MN5514: MANAGING NATURAL RESOURCES
MODULE TYPE/SEMESTER: 20 credits, Semester 2, optional module MODULE CO-ORDINATORS: Professor Jan Bebbington (JB)
[email protected] Dr Shona Russell (SR) [email protected]
AIM: This module has two interlinked elements. First, there will be an examination of the issues that emerge from the challenges of managing for (1) biodiversity, (2) global climate change and (3) water resources. Second, there will be a consideration of two common challenges that arise for organisations in these contexts, namely: (1) commensurability of measurement of impact; and (2) boundary crossing issues that arise from different spatial scales.
The module will require a self-directed project evaluating a product certification standard which relates to biodiversity, carbon or water (30% of final grade) as well as a group presentation on the application of the arenas developed in the module to an industry setting (20% of final grade). 50% of the final grade will be gained from an exam paper. More details follow in this document.
Finally, a field trip will be undertaken to provide an applied context in which students might start to understand the demands that managing natural resources place on organisations.
The fieldtrip is planned to take place after the Spring break.
METHOD OF TEACHING & LEARNING: The module runs in weekly two hour lecture sessions with weekly one hour additional contact made up of a mixture of workshops; reading reviews; problem solving activities and such like.
Lecture timing TBA.
Presentations will take place in week 11.
LEARNING OUTCOMES: By the end of this module, students should be able to:
1. demonstrate understanding of key concepts in the management of biodiversity, water and carbon
2. demonstrate understanding of key issues associated with management of natural resources, from the perspective of management and organisations
3. understand and employ a variety of applications (labelling schemes, whole systems
analysis and reporting) to support management of natural resources.
Week Lecture topic
1 Introduction to module, terminology and teaching ethos (JB)
2 Biodiversity – key concepts and management applications (SR)
3
4 Water – key concepts and management applications 5 (SR)
6 Carbon – key concepts and management applications 7 (JB)
Mid-semester break
8 Issues analysis I: Accounting technologies for governing (JB)
9 Issues analysis II: Commensurability and its problems (Guest lecturer – Carlos Larrinaga, University of Burgos, Spain)
10 Field trip – details to be advised 11 Wrap up and synthesis (JB)
ASSESSMENTS: A self-directed, student led investigation into a product based certification standard that confers information about biodiversity, carbon or water credentials will be required (30% of final grade) and a group presentation (20% of final grade) which asks you to translate the principles developed over the module to an industry setting. 50% of the module grade is based on a final exam.
TOPIC BY TOPIC SUGGESTED READING LIST: There are no books that fully engage with the issues that this module addresses. As a result the ‘topic by topic’ reading list is drawn from diverse places with useful material coming from policy related literature as well as books and academic journals. This reading list is more substantive than you will have time to read. The lecturers will indicate in each lecture the key resources that should be addressed as well as providing more guidance on each element of the reading list. As well as articles, reports and books, there are also references to films and websites that are relevant to each of the topics.
DETAILED WEEKLY OUTLINE:
WEEK 1: INTRODUCTION TO MODULE, TERMINOLOGY & TEACHING ETHOS
Students who have taken MN5001 and/or SD5001 will have a general understanding of the
extent to which the physical environment provides the context for human flourishing. Not
all students, however, have taken these modules so we will dedicate part of this lecture to
bringing everyone onto a level playing field (in the words of Lance Armstrong!). As a result,
in this opening week we will re-introduce the context in which issues of biodiversity, water
and carbon have emerged and look at the intersecting worlds of science, policy and
governance as they pertain to organisations, sectors and countries. Some of the key
concepts that will infuse our work will also be introduced as well as an explicit appreciation
of the extent to which the issues covered are not ‘resolvable’ in any straightforward manner.
Likewise, we will read through the assessment details and the module outline and answer any questions you might have about the module and what it is to cover.
The following material supports the week.
GEO
5, more formally, Global Environmental Outlook 5 (see
http://www.unep.org/geo/geo5.asp) was published in 2012. It documents the state of the earth’s environment (including over the elements covered by this module)
WWF living planet report is a very accessible summary of environmental sustainability issues (www.panda.org/news_facts/publications/living_planet_report/) with a 2012 report as well.
Other useful papers:
Carpenter, P.A., & Bishop, P.C. (2009). The seventh mass extinction: Human-caused events contribute to a fatal consequence. Futures 41, 715-722.
Funtowicz, S., & Ravetz, J. (1993). Science for the post-normal age. Futures 25, 739-755. * Raworth, K. (2012) A safe operating space for humanity. Oxfam Discussion Papers. Available here http://www.oxfam.org/sites/www.oxfam.org/files/dp-a-safe-and-just-space-for- humanity-130212-en.pdf
Rittel, W., & Webber, M. (1973). Dilemmas in a general theory of planning. Policy Sciences 4, 155-169. *
Rockstrom, J., Steffen, W., Noone, K., Persson, A., Chapin, F.S., Lambin, E.F., Lenton, T.M., Scheffer, M., Folke, C., Schellnhuber, H.J., Nykvist, B., de Wit, C.A., Hughes, T., van der Leeuw, S., Rodhe, H., Sorlin, S., Snyder, P.K., Costanza, R., Svedin, U., Falkenmark, M., Karlberg, L., Corell, R.W., Fabry, V.J., Hansen, J., Walker, B., Liverman, D., Richardson, K., Crutzen, P., & Foley, J.A. (2009). A safe operating space for humanity. Nature 461, 472-475.
Wiek A., Withycombe L., Redman C., (2011) Key competencies in sustainability: a reference framework for academic program development. Sustainability Science 6,203–218.
* these are also readings for week 8 of MN5002 … which some of the management students will also be taking in S2.
WEEKS 2 - 3: BIODIVERSITY – KEY CONCEPTS AND APPLICATIONS
The lectures in this session will introduce biodiversity and ecosystem services, examine
international, governmental, and sectoral initiatives that aim to address challenges such as
degradation of ecosystems or exploitation of natural resources. Our interest lies in
understanding the current and future challenges concerning biodiversity, how this might
impact on organisations, and how organisations adapt particularly when biodiversity may be
integral or apparently peripheral to activities. Insights will be gleaned from discussion of
three initiatives (certification schemes, institutional arrangements and reporting) that are
emerging as ways to manage the biodiversity impacts of organisations activities.
Challenges & Responses
Costanza, R., d'Arge, R., de Groot, R., Farber, S., Grasso, M., Hannon, B., Limburg, K., Naeem, S., O'Neill, R.V., Paruelo, J., Raskin, R.G., Sutton, P., & van den Belt, M. (1997). The value of the world's ecosystem services and natural capital. Nature 387, 253-260.
TEEB. (2010). The Economics of Ecosystems and Biodiversity: Mainstreaming the Economics of Nature: A synthesis of the approach, conclusions and recommendations of TEEB.
Available HERE
http://www.teebweb.org/InformationMaterial/TEEBReports/tabid/1278/Default.aspx Convention on Biological Diversity, Global Platform on Business & Biodiversity
http://www.cbd.int/en/business/home
Institutional arrangements (including stakeholder theory)
MacDonald, K. (2010). Business, Biodiversity and New ′Fields′ of conservation: The world conservation congress and the renegotiation of organisational order. Conservation and Society, 8(4), 268. doi:10.4103/0972-4923.78144
Mitchell, R., Agle, B., & Wood, D. (1997). Toward a theory of stakeholder identification and salience: Defining the principle of who and what really counts. Academy of
Management Review, 22(4), 853–886. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org/stable/10.2307/259247
Paavola, J., Gouldson, A., & Kluvánková-Oravská, T. (2009). Interplay of actors, scales, frameworks and regimes in the governance of biodiversity. Environmental Policy and Governance, 19(3), 148–158. doi:10.1002/eet.505
Visseren-Hamakers, I., Arts, B., & Glasbergen, P. (2011). Interaction management by partnerships: The case of biodiversity and climate change. Global Environmental Politics, 11(4), 89–107. Retrieved from
http://www.mitpressjournals.org/doi/abs/10.1162/GLEP_a_00085 Certification
Bostrum, M. and Klintman, M. (2008). Eco-standards, product labelling and green consumerism. Basingstoke; New York: Palgrave Macmillan.
Chan, S., & Pattberg, P. (2008). Private Rule-Making and the Politics of Accountability:
Analyzing Global Forest. Global Environmental Politics, (August), 103–121.
Eden, S. (2009). Geoforum The work of environmental governance networks : Traceability , credibility and certification by the Forest Stewardship Council. Geoforum, 40(3), 383- 394. Elsevier Ltd.
Eden, S., Bear, C., & Walker, G. (2008). Mucky carrots and other proxies: Problematising the
knowledge-fix for sustainable and ethical consumption. Geoforum, 39(2), 1044-1057.
Elgert, L. (2012). Certified discourse? The politics of developing soy certification standards.
Geoforum, 43(2), 295-304. Elsevier Ltd.
Reporting
Jones, M.J. (2010) Accounting for the environment: Towards a theoretical perspective for environmental accounting and reporting, Accounting Forum, Volume 34, Issue 2, June 2010, Pages 123-138,
Carbon Disclosure Project: Forests program https://www.cdproject.net/en- US/Programmes/Pages/forests.aspx
OTHER RESOURCES
Other resources, including articles that illustrate some issues and debates concerning management of biodiversity…
Film: Accounting for Biodiversity Low Carbon Intellectual Renewal: An introduction
Available here http://www.st-andrews.ac.uk/sasi/research/researchprojects/biodiversity/
TED TALK: Clay, 2010. How big brands can save biodiversity. TED Talk
http://www.ted.com/talks/jason_clay_how_big_brands_can_save_biodiversity.html WEEKS 4 - 5: WATER – KEY CONCEPTS AND APPLICATIONS
This topic is vast and varied that ranging from freshwater challenges, through to reform of the water sector and the arrangements of the allocation, use and management of freshwater resources. The lectures in this session will focus primarily on how organisations, particularly corporations, are engaging with water ranging from improving water efficiency and managing water-related risks, to the use of water footprinting tools and disclosure initiatives as part of corporate engagement with water management. Over the course of the sessions, we will also discuss the economic, environmental, cultural and social implications of these initiatives with regards sustainability and equity for prosperity and wellbeing of humanity and ecosystems.
General resources
WWAP (World Water Assessment Programme) 2012. The United Nations World Water Development Report 4: Managing Water under Uncertainty and Risk. Paris: UNESCO.
http://www.unesco.org/new/en/natural-sciences/environment/water/wwap/wwdr/
The latest UNESCO report on water provides a detailed overview of various water issues and
approaches to water management that involves numerous organisations and disciplines. The
report distinguishes between responses within and outside the water sector. This is valuable
in order to consider the contributions of management disciplines to managing water
resources.
Institutional arrangements
Chalmers, K., Godfrey, J. M., & Lynch, B. (2012). Regulatory theory insights into the past, present and future of general purpose water accounting standard setting. Accounting, Auditing & Accountability Journal, 25(6), 1001–1024.
Daniel, M., & Sojamo, S. (2012). From risks to shared value? Corporate strategies in building a global water accounting and disclosure regime. Water Alternatives, 5(3), 636–657.
Hepworth, N. (2012). Open for Business or Opening Pandora’s Box? A Constructive Critique of Corporate Engagement in Water Policy: An Introduction. Water Alternatives, 5(3), 543–562.
Newborne, P., & Mason, N. (2012). The Private Sector’s Contribution to Water Management:
Re-examining Corporate Purposes and Company Roles. Water Alternatives, 5(3), 603–
618.
For examples of voluntary and corporate initiatives that engage with water issues see CEO Water Mandate www.ceowatermandate.org
Footprinting
Chapagain, A., & Tickner, D. (2012). Water Footprint: Help or Hindrance? Water Alternatives, 5(3), 563–581.
Reporting
Larrinaga-Gonzalez, C., Perez-Chamorro, V., Larrinaga-gonzález, C., Pérez-chamorro, V., &
Larrinaga-, C. (2008). Sustainability accounting and accountability in public water companies. Public Money & Management, 28(6), 337–343
Sojamo, S., & Larson, E. (2012). Investigating Food and Agribusiness Corporations as Global Water Security, Management and Governance Agents: The Case of Nestlé, Bunge and Cargill. Water Alternatives, 5(3), 619–635.
Water Disclosure Project by the Carbon Disclosure Project https://www.cdproject.net/water Risk
Larson, W., & Freedman, P. (2012). Mitigating Corporate Water Risk: Financial Market Tools and Supply Management Strategies. Water Alternatives, 5(3), 582–602.
Other resources
Porter, M., & Kramer, M. (2011). CREATING SHARED VALUE. Harvard Business Review, 89(1/2), 62–77.
Scottish Environment Protection Agency
http://www.sepa.org.uk/about_us/greening_sepa.aspx
WEEKS 6 – 7: CARBON – KEY CONCEPTS AND APPLICATIONS
The following resources provide a sense of the scales on which global climate change concerns are governed. The International Panel on Climate Change publications; material found on the Department of Energy and Climate Change website (http://www.decc.gov.uk/) and the reviews by the Committee on Climate Change (www.theccc.org.uk/). In addition, you should read a copy of the Scottish Climate Change Act (2009) and associated government policy pages as this will form the basis of class discussion. You can locate the Act via the Scottish Government website – just search for its title.
The lectures on these two weeks will progressively move from a global to regional to national to organisational scale in considering how global climate change issues might be governed. Ultimately, however, our interest lies in how organisations adapt to this agenda.
A variety of topics will be addresses including:
Emissions trading and associated issues
Carbon reporting (including a consideration of adaptation reporting)
Carbon offsetting
Whole system adaptive management.
A case study of the NHS will be explored in class as well as the experience of the University of St Andrews in carbon management.
Readings:
Ascui, F., and Lovell, H., (2011),”As frames collide: making sense of carbon accounting”, Accounting, Auditing and Accountability Journal, 24(8), pp. 978 – 999.
Bebbington, J., and Larrinaga-Gonzalez, C. (2008), “Carbon trading: accounting and reporting issues”, European Accounting Review, 17(4), pp. 697-717.
Bowen, F., and Wittneben, B., (2011), “Carbon Accounting: negotiating accuracy, consistency and certainty across organisational fields”, Accounting, Auditing and Accountability Journal, 24(8), pp. 1022 – 1036.
In addition, readings specified as relevant for week 8 are also relevant in this context … especially
Bebbington, J., Brown, J., and Frame, B. (2007), “Accounting technologies and sustainability assessment models”, Ecological Economics, 61(2-3), pp. 224-236.
Frame, B., and Bebbington, J., (2012) “National sustainable development strategies for New
Zealand and Scotland: A comparison”, International Journal of Sustainable Development,
15(3), pp. 249-276.
WEEK 8: ISSUES ANALYSIS – ACCOUNTING TECHNOLOGIES FOR MANAGING NATURAL RESOURCES
Organisations’ operations often require tools and practices to integrate and look across key issues to inform decision-making. This week’s lecture will introduce a theoretical lens through which to examine the tools and practices that have been examined in relation to managing biodiversity, water and carbon. This will be followed by a case study discussion of the sustainability assessment model as an example of an accounting technology that informed organisational approaches to managing trade-offs in relation to projects.
Akerman, M., and Peltola, (2012) “How does natural resource accounting become powerful in policy making? A case study of changing calculative frames in local energy policy in Finland”, Ecological Economics, 80, pp. 63 – 69.
Bebbington, J., (2007), Accounting for Sustainable Development Performance (Elsevier:
London).
Bebbington, J., (2009), “Measuring sustainable development performance: possibilities and issues”, Accounting Forum, 33(3), pp. 189-193.
Bebbington, J., Brown, J., and Frame, B. (2007), “Accounting technologies and sustainability assessment models”, Ecological Economics, 61(2-3), pp. 224-236.
Bebbington, J., Kirk, E., and Larrinaga-Gonzalez, C. (2012) “The Production of Normativity: A comparison of reporting regimes in Spain and the UK”, Accounting, Organizations and Society, 37(2), pp. 78-94.
Frame B., and Brown, J., (2008) “Developing post-normal technologies for sustainability”, Ecological Economics, 65, pp. 225 – 241.
Frame, B., & Cavanagh, J. (2009). Experiences of sustainability assessment: An awkward adolescence. Accounting Forum 33, 195-208.
Frame, B., & O’Connor, M. (2011). Integrating valuation and deliberation: the purposes of sustainability assessment. Environmental Science & Policy 14, 1-10.
Frame, B., and Bebbington, J., (2012) “National sustainable development strategies for New Zealand and Scotland: A comparison”, International Journal of Sustainable Development, 15(3), pp. 249-276.
WEEK 9: ISSUES ANALYSIS – COMMENSURATION
The lecture on this week will provide a framework to discuss one of the (often overlooked)
challenges that arise in the measurement and management of organizations’ use of natural
resources: commensuration. Commensuration is a process that creates relations among
things that are fundamentally different (such as water or carbon, or water availability in
different space/time). Commensuration is inherent to any attempt of measuring and
managing natural resources and has a number of pros and cons that will be explored with
the help of the following references. I suggest to start with Funtowicz & Ravetz (1994) to
have a flavour of the measurement challenges in this context and then continue with one of Espeland & Stevens’ papers for a way to think about those challenges. Then, you can pick one of the remaining papers for an extension of those arguments. My favourite is Mackenzie.
Aslaksen, I., & Myhr, A.I. (2007). "The worth of a wildflower": Precautionary perspectives on the environmental risk of GMOs. Ecological Economics 60, 489-497.
Espeland, W.N., & Stevens, M. (1998). Commensuration as a social process. Annual Review of Sociology 24, 313-343.
Espeland, W.N., & Stevens, M.L. (2008). A Sociology of Quantification. Archives Européennes de Sociologie 49, 401-436.
Funtowicz, S.O., & Ravetz, J.R. (1994). The worth of a songbird: Ecological economics as a post-normal science. Ecological Economics 10, 197-207.
Lohmann, L. (2009). Toward a different debate in environmental accounting: The cases of carbon and cost-benefit. Accounting, Organizations and Society 34, 499-534.
MacKenzie, D. (2009). Making things the same: Gases, emission rights and the politics of carbon markets. Accounting, Organizations and Society 34, 440-455.
Samiolo, R. (2012). Commensuration and styles of reasoning: Venice, cost–benefit, and the defence of place. Accounting, Organizations and Society 37, 382-402.
WEEK 10: FIELD TRIP PLANNED – NO READING ASSIGNED
More details will come once the module has commenced on this trip.
WEEK 11: WRAP & SYNTHESIS
Geels, F. (2010). Ontologies, socio-technical transitions (to sustainability), and the multi-level perspective. Research Policy 39 (2010) 495–510
Goeminne, G. (2011). Has science ever been normal? On the need and impossibility of a sustainability science. Futures 43, 627-636.
Jerneck, A., Olsson, L., Ness, B., Anderberg, S., Baier, M., Clark, E., Hickler, T., Hornborg, A., Kronsell, A., Lövbrand, E., & Persson, J. (2011). Structuring sustainability science.
Sustainability Science 6, 69-82.
Kastenhofer, K., Bechtold, U., & Wilfing, H. (2011). Sustaining sustainability science: The role of established inter-disciplines. Ecological Economics 70, 835-843.
Kates, R.W., Clark, W.C., Corell, R., Hall, J.M., Jaeger, C.C., Lowe, I., McCarthy, J.J.,
Schellnhuber, H.J., Bolin, B., Dickson, N.M., Faucheux, S., Gallopin, G.C., Grübler, A., Huntley,
B., Jäger, J., Jodha, N.S., Kasperson, R.E., Mabogunje, A., Matson, P., Mooney, H., Moore, B., O'Riordan, T., & Svedin, U. (2001). Sustainability Science. Science 292, 641-642.
Komiyama, H., & Takeuchi, K. (2006). Sustainability science: building a new discipline.
Sustainability Science 1, 1-6.
Rittel, H.W.J., & Webber, M.M. (1973). Dilemmas in a general theory of planning. Policy Sciences 4, 155-169.
Wiek A., Withycombe L., Redman C., (2011) Key competencies in sustainability: a reference framework for academic program development. Sustainability Science 6,203–218. (see also week 1)
Weekly small group work TBA
Assessments
This module is assessed using one piece of individual coursework, a group presentation and an exam. Each assessment relates to a selection of learning outcomes (see below). A mixed approach is taken as no single assessment can be expected to reflect your achievements in the range of knowledge, skills and understandings appropriate to this class.
The two coursework assessments for this module are:
A self-directed student project (30%), and
A group presentation (20%)
Self-directed student project: understanding certification (due week 6)
This project is designed to move your perception from looking at products as arising from the intersection of a set of processes aimed at the consuming self and markets to products being the outcome of a set of material and social relations that have environmental, social and ecological impacts. In particular, the assessment is aimed at you understanding the environmental ‘backstory’ of a product to enable an exercise in “metacognition … the activity of stepping back and thinking about your own thinking” (Crawford, 2009, p. 99).
1This project therefore requires the following to be completed:
1. Select a product that is subject to sort kind of certification practice that has an ecological basis (see http://www.ecolabelindex.com/ for an outline of labels that are known to exist). You will need to clear your choice of product with the module team by the end of week 2.
Prepare a report on the product that:
1Crawford, M. (2009), Shop Class as Soulcraft, Penguin: New York.
