Course syllabus

Miljöstyrning i näringslivet
Environmental Management, Sustainability and Business Value Creation

IMEN80, 10 credits, A (Second Cycle)

Valid for: 2023/24
Faculty: Faculty of Engineering, LTH
Decided by: PLED W
Date of Decision: 2023-03-27

General Information

Main field: Enviromental Management and Policy. Depth of study relative to the degree requirements: Second cycle, has second-cycle course/s as entry requirements.
Compulsory for: XA_MESPOM2
Language of instruction: The course will be given in English

Aim

The course covers a broad overview of theory and practice related to environmental management and corporate sustainability in business organisations.

Business organizations are central to the environmental, social and economic impacts of our society, and thus have a pivotal role to induce significant changes needed for a sustainable world. This course aims to provide students with the skills to critically analyse sustainability approaches, tools, and strategies applied by business actors and to formulate and pitch suggestions for improvement. The course focuses on the operational as well as the strategic side of environmental management, and integrates relevant technical managerial and socio-economic issues with the environmental aspects, all embedded within the broader sustainability perspective.

Learning outcomes

Knowledge and understanding
For a passing grade the student must

• Demonstrate the ability to explain the role and interlinkages of core elements of organizational environmental management (aspects, targets, indicators, change programmes, auditing, reporting and communication), and to assess strengths and weaknesses in a corporate environmental management system.
• Demonstrate the ability to explain key cleaner technology strategies and argue for preventative environmental approaches.
• Demonstrate the ability to explain the principles and rationale of different environmental assessment approaches for products and services using a lifecycle perspective, and the ability to interpret the results from such studies and how they could support decision-making
• Be able to analyse new business models from a triple bottom line perspective;
• Demonstrate the ability to explain key components of strategic corporate sustainability approaches and how to critically analyse and evaluate specific cases of green business strategies

Competences and skills
For a passing grade the student must

• •Demonstrate the ability to plan and execute course assignments within given time limits, using relevant methods for completing the assignment.
• •Demonstrate the ability to analyse and critique a business case addressing integration of sustainability in coporate decisions.
• •Be able to apply specified tool(s) to develop or assess business models for a specific case, and deliver suggestions of new pathways to create value, orally and in writing.

 

Judgement and approach
For a passing grade the student must

• •Demonstrate the ability to identify contentious issues in the field of corporate environmental management and the ability to critically assess information for environment-related decision-making in organisations
• •Be able to understand and critically reflect upon ethical aspects of corporate strategic decision-making, and the influence of societal values upon sustainability strategies;

Contents

The course contains and is built upon lectures, case-based teaching seminars, assignments, workshops & study visits. Lectures and seminars are utilised to introduce inter alia: theoretical perspectives; examples of real world industrial and business practice; a range of management tools; and trends in social and political discourse that affect or are used within sustainability approaches and strategies applied by business organisations. This allows for a combination of in-class learning and reflection, and hands-on experience from practical cases.

Examination details

Grading scale: TH - (U,3,4,5) - (Fail, Three, Four, Five)
Assessment: The final grade is based on course assignments, a written exam, and an oral exam. While attendance to in-class activities is not mandatory, attending lectures, seminars and other sessions is central to the achievement of learning outcomes. It is important to note that all elements covered in the classes will not necessarily be mirrored in the course readings and that the examination may reflect all course elements, also those only covered in class.

The examiner, in consultation with Disability Support Services, may deviate from the regular form of examination in order to provide a permanently disabled student with a form of examination equivalent to that of a student without a disability.

Admission

Admission requirements:

• The student must be admitted to the Masters in Environmental Sciences, Policy and Management and have completed at least 56 credits in the programme and submitted the report of the Internship course included in the Masters in Environmental Sciences, Policy and Management

The number of participants is limited to: No
The course overlaps following course/s: IMEN52

Reading list

• According to a literature list that will be available at the latest eight weeks before start of the course on the course web page.

Contact and other information

Course coordinator: Andrius Plepys, andrius.plepys@iiiee.lu.se
Course homepage: http:// www.iiiee.lu.se/education/mespom/curriculum