Unit Outline

Political ecology is a diverse area of study, professional practice and activism that integrates the pursuit of justice, sustainability and development. Political ecology builds intellectual and emotional clarity by unearthing root causes of environmental problems and guiding transformative actions to address them. Analysing nature and society as one system and employing case studies from around the world, you will: investigate environmental concerns through a focus on unequal social power; examine the interplay of political and economic processes in relation to food, water and energy resources; unpack global power relations between ‘high consumption' (minority world) and 'low consumption' (majority world) societies; and chart actionable paths towards sustainable, equitable and decent futures. The skills of inquiry and knowledge you develop are applicable to careers in government, the private sector and civil society at the intersection of development and environment concerns at scales from the local to the global.

Intended Learning Outcomes

As per the Assessment and Results Policy 1.3, your results will reflect your achievement against specified learning outcomes.

On completion of this unit, you will be able to:


1	apply political ecology analysis of social power in environmental systems to develop integrated, evidence-based knowledge about justice, sustainability and development;
2	investigate the political ecology of energy, food and water resources in diverse places and across scales to identify root problems and transformative paths towards just and sustainable forms of development;
3	communicate political ecology insights through critical, reflective, dialogical, creative, persuasive and ethical forms of academic and professional writing and speaking.

Requisites


REQUISITE TYPE	REQUISITES
Pre-requisite	One Unit (12.5%) KGA Level 200 OR Two Units (25%) Level 200 in Asian Studies, Ecology and Biological Sciences, Economics, English, Fine and Performing Arts, History, International Relations, Law, Management, Politics and Public Policy, Psychology, Sociology and Social Work

Alterations as a result of student feedback

How will I be Assessed?

For more detailed assessment information please see MyLO.

Assessment schedule


ASSESSMENT TASK #	ASSESSMENT TASK NAME	DATE DUE	WEIGHT	LINKS TO INTENDED LEARNING OUTCOMES
Assessment Task 1:	AT2: Investigative Essay	Week 10	35 %	LO1, LO2, LO3
Assessment Task 2:	AT1: Critical Inquiry Portfolio	Refer to Assessment Description	40 %	LO1, LO2, LO3
Assessment Task 3:	AT3: Take-Home Examination	Exam Period	25 %	LO1, LO2, LO3

Assessment details

Assessment Task 1: AT2: Investigative Essay

Task Description:

Prepare an evidence-based and cogently argued investigative essay that addresses a research question on a novel aspect of the political ecology of energy &/or food &/or water resources. Assessment is in two parts. Detailed instructions are provided in the Unit Overview in MyLO.
PART A. Essay Pitch (5%) Due Sunday Week 6
Submit a draft research question and 200-word pitch (+- 10%), not including references and title page) that justifies its importance, relevance to political ecology, and the feasibility of getting supporting evidence.
PART B. Essay (30%) Due Sunday Week 10
Submit an 1800-word essay (+- 10%, not including references and title page). You may use headings and illustrations.
REQUIREMENTS: You must meet all requirements of Academic Integrity and are NOT permitted to use generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) such as ChatGPT to write any text that you submit for this assessment task.

Task Length:

2000

Due Date:

Week 10

Weight:

35 %

CRITERION #

CRITERION

MEASURES INTENDED

LEARNING OUTCOME(S)


1	Presents a coherent and critical line of inquiry relevant to political ecology	LO1
2	Identifies and analyses a revealing evidence-based case relating to the political ecology of energy/food/ water resources	LO2
3	Reads critically, employing well-chosen and authoritative sources that provide convincing evidence and effective examples	LO1, LO2
4	Writes clearly and succinctly in a structure that introduces, organises & summarises content well, including full referencing	LO3
5	Complies with university standards and unit instructions.	LO3

Assessment Task 2: AT1: Critical Inquiry Portfolio

Task Description:

The Critical Inquiry Portfolio (CIP) portfolio comprises THREE parts. Detailed instructions are provided in the Unit Overview in MyLO.
Part A: MyLO Discussions (15%)
Write a minimum of 8 short discussion posts relating to required readings, as instructed. Discussion boards will close and your posts assessed after weeks 4, 10 and 13.
Part B: Tutorial Leads (15%)
Design and deliver a tutorial activity in TWO (2) tutorials. You will be assessed on evidence of careful preparation, your critical insights, and on your ability to promote the learning of peers related to the week’s inquiry question and set reading. You are assessed individually but need to coordinate with the other tutorial leaders. You may deliver a single joint activity with other leaders (30-40 mins in total) or deliver separate activities (10-15 mins per student) in a coordinated way (so that the activities cover different areas of learning).
Part C: Briefing Paper/Advocacy Letter (10%)
Write a 500-word briefing paper for an organisation (e.g., governments, corporations, transnational institutions, community groups etc…) or an advocacy letter to the public (e.g. letter to the editor, public petition, etc.) outlining a course of decision-making and action informed by political ecology in relation to an energy/food/water issue.
REQUIREMENTS: You must meet all requirements of Academic Integrity and are NOT permitted to use generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) such as ChatGPT to write any text that you submit for this assessment task.

Task Length:

1750 words (equivalent)

Due Date:

Refer to Assessment Description

Weight:

40 %

CRITERION #

CRITERION

MEASURES INTENDED

LEARNING OUTCOME(S)


1	Applies political ecology inquiry by engaging critically with unit materials and assigned tasks.	LO1, LO2
2	Exhibits critical, reflective, dialogical, and persuasive writing and speaking.	LO3
3	Complies with university standards and unit instructions.	LO3

Assessment Task 3: AT3: Take-Home Examination

Task Description:

You are required to sit a take-home, open-book exam of approximately 1000 words. The exam is based on material presented in recordings, seminars and required readings. It allows you to: demonstrate your capability to explain and apply political ecology analysis; and connect issues of justice, sustainability and development relating to energy, food and water resources. You must answer 3 questions in short essays of 300-350 words each (not including reference list). All questions are worth the same number of marks. You will be given advice about how to prepare and to undertake the take-home exam in the last weeks of semester. You will have 3 days during which to start the exam. Once started, you will have maximum of 6 hours to complete the task on the information management platform provided (no prior revision is required).
REQUIREMENTS: You must meet all requirements of Academic Integrity and are NOT permitted to use generative artificial intelligence (GenAI), such as ChatGPT, in this assessment task.

Task Length:

1000 words

Due Date:

Exam Period

Weight:

25 %

CRITERION #

CRITERION

MEASURES INTENDED

LEARNING OUTCOME(S)


1	Applies core analytical concepts presented in recordings, seminars and required readings to produce critical insights	LO1
2	Integrates evidence-based concerns about justice, sustainability and development.	LO1
3	Undertakes political ecology analysis of problems related to energy, food and water resources across scales.	LO2
4	Writes original text clearly and succinctly within a logical structure, including full academic referencing.	LO3
5	Complies with university standards and unit instructions.	LO3

How your final result is determined

To pass this unit, you need to demonstrate your attainment of each of the Intended Learning Outcomes, achieve a final unit grade of 50% or greater, and pass any hurdle tasks.

Submission of assignments

Where practicable, assignments should be submitted to an assignment submission folder in MYLO. You must submit assignments by the due date or receive a penalty (unless an extension of time has been approved by the Unit Coordinator). Students submitting any assignment in hard copy, or because of a practicum finalisation, must attach a student cover sheet and signed declaration for the submission to be accepted for marking.

Academic integrity

Academic integrity is about acting responsibly, honestly, ethically, and collegially when using, producing, and communicating information with other students and staff members.

In written work, you must correctly reference the work of others to maintain academic integrity. To find out the referencing style for this unit, see the assessment information in the MyLO site, or contact your teaching staff. For more detail about Academic Integrity, see Important Guidelines & Support.

Requests for extensions

If you are unable to submit an assessment task by the due date, you should apply for an extension.

A request for an extension should first be discussed with your Unit Coordinator or teaching support team where possible. A request for an extension must be submitted by the assessment due date, except where you can provide evidence it was not possible to do so. Typically, an application for an extension will be supported by documentary evidence: however, where it is not possible for you to provide evidence please contact your Unit Coordinator.

The Unit Coordinator must notify you of the outcome of an extension request within 3 working days of receiving the request.

Late penalties

Assignments submitted after the deadline will receive a late penalty of 5% of the original available mark for each calendar day (or part day) that the assignment is late. Late submissions will not be accepted more than 10 calendar days after the due date, or after assignments have been returned to other students on a scheduled date, whichever occurs first. Further information on Late Penalties can be found on the Assessments and Results Procedure.

Review of results and appeals

You are entitled to ask for a review of the marking and grading of your assessment task if there is an irregularity in the marking standards or an error in the process for determining the outcome of an assessment. Details on how to request a review of a mark for an assignment are outlined in the Review and Appeal of Academic Decisions Procedure.

Required Resources

Required reading materials

The core of your learning in KGA308 is a required reading program, listed in a table in MyLO. The effort it takes will reward you. The program prepares you for seminars, tutorials and assessment tasks. Readings range from 20-40 pages a week and are 1/3 of the unit workload, or 3 hours a week. Read ONLY the pages indicated (some extracts are parts of chapters).

Why read?

From Week 2 onwards, readings are to be completed before seminars and tutorials (i.e., complete Week 2 readings before Week 2 classes). This pre-reading forms the basis for critical inquiry assignments, seminar and tutorial materials and discussions, and the exam.

Pre-readings are chosen to promote inquiry-based learning and be diverse in length, difficulty, perspective, authorship, style, and focus. Readings you find unfamiliar, difficult, or even objectional may benefit your learning the most. In this interdisciplinary unit, you are not expected to accumulate jargon – translate discipline-specific content of readings into terms that make sense to the focus of your degree, career, and aspirations.

How do I access readings?

Links to electronic copies of readings are provided in the weekly instructions in MyLO ‘Content’. You can also access readings via the Library Reading List https://rlms.utas.edu.au/erl/listpage.php?erlunit=KGA308&page=main.

Note that if a reading is from part of a whole e-book held by the library it will be under the ‘Text’ tab of the Library Reading List: all other readings will be under the ‘Reading’ tab.