BIOL 510 The Biology of Sustainability

Welcome to the BIOL 510 webpage for the Fall 2021 iteration of the course which is entitled: 

The Biology of Sustainability: Linkages between Indigenous philosophical perspectives and the U.N. Sustainable Development Goals 

This ecology course is aimed at identifying and critiquing potential mechanisms by which our civilization could most effectively move toward more sustainable living.  Biology can explain current environmental sustainability issues, but is also at the fundamental root of their underlying causes – human behaviour.  Therefore, the biology of sustainability incorporates biogeochemical, ecological, economic, social, genetic, and philosophical features and constraints.   Each iteration of the course will focus on a unique specific thematic question related to at least some of those components.      

The principal question that the 2021 course will address is:  What specific insights can Indigenous ways of knowing and relating to nature provide that would help our society achieve the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals?

This course is for final year undergraduates and is specifically aimed at enhancing their capacities for critical thinking, intelligent open discussion, group work, and independent learning.  Emphasis will be on interactive discussions and student-led seminars in which participants will have ample opportunities to explore, analyze and synthesize scientific information, to learn how the scientific process works, to speak and write effectively, and to develop their understanding of the philosophies underlying human behaviour and how they relate to global change issues, and the sustainability of our current civilisation. Students will lead informal seminar discussions on some component of this theme that is of particular interest to them.

The 2021 iteration of this course will be largely focussed on reading and discussion of biology professor Robin Wall Kimmerer's 2013 book Braiding Sweetgrass. Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge, and the Teachings of Plants, but will also include other course theme-associated readings and activity exercises/workshops.

Learning outcomes:

By the end of this course, the student should be able to:

1. Explain and contrast Indigenous ways of knowing with Western science approaches
2. Describe the 17 United Nations Sustainable Development Goals and their unique significance
3. Discuss and critique the similarities and differences in fundamental philosophical concepts between Indigenous cultures and Western science that specifically relate to the Sustainable Development Goals
4. Formulate clear, original, challenging, and concise thematic questions from course reading materials that are likely to lead to focussed and intellectually-probing seminar group discussions, student-led seminar topics, and short essays
5. Critically assess the constraints (ecological, economic, social, behavioural and political) that underlie society’s current responses to environmental and social sustainability issues 
6. Develop and present a cohesive, original, synthesis essay on the potential value of incorporating Indigenous ways of knowing to promote more sustainable living across our society
7. Use the learning achieved in this course to develop lasting personal solutions for coping with, and constructively responding to, the major environmental and social sustainability issues of the 21st century.

Professor: Paul Grogan

Seminar times: Mondays 13.00; Wednesdays 11.30
Location: Room 3110 Biosciences building

Calendar: Sessions are 1.5 hours

Assessment:

15% Active participation in discussions (questions, comments, suggestions)
15% Seminar written questions
30% Seminar
40% Synthesis essay (10% outline; 30% final submission)

Schedule:

Last Updated: 16 November, 2021

To see materials from previous iterations of this course, use the drop-down menu under the 'Teaching' tab at the top of this page