We live in a hyperconnected world – ecosystems and societies are linked like never before. This occurs through the movement of people, goods and products and the transfer of capital and information. At the same time, there is mounting appreciation of the need to address issues of equity and sustainability concurrently.
To adequately understand, and ultimately to govern and regulate, for equitable-sustainability there is the need to identify and appreciate the complex feedbacks across activities of multiple individual, government and corporate actors across scales from the global to the local.
This interdisciplinary course equips students with a grounding in concepts from the biophysical sciences, social sciences, law and governance. By introducing students to systems and futures approaches, and using this to examine legal frameworks, this course aims to equip students with the tools for futures-focused sustainable and equitable governance.
Syllabus
Topics may include:
- The characteristics, challenges and opportunities of the Anthropocene and adequacy of existing legal and governance structures;
- Complex adaptive systems and the design of governance systems in the Anthropocene that are just and sustainable;
- Telecoupling and transnational regulation;
- Desirable Futures
- Corporate Actors
- Indigenous worldviews and Earth jurisprudence
- Cross-scale biodiversity and climate law regimes