GDEV 5170

Land Systems and Sustainability

Course Description

Course information provided by the Courses of Study 2024-2025.

This course delves into the critical role of land systems in addressing global sustainability crises. Recognizing the profound impact of land use on specific areas such as deforestation, urban sprawl, and agricultural practices, it is grounded in the concept of transformative change – defined as a comprehensive, system-wide reorganization of land systems. This reorganization includes shifts in paradigms, goals, and values related to land use. Students will examine case studies on issues such as land degradation and biodiversity loss to explore the multi-dimensional nature of land systems changes, emphasizing the need for actions that integrate local and global objectives. Through multiple writing exercises and discussions, we will re-imagine land use strategies to better organize our communities, institutions, and societies for sustainable outcomes amidst future uncertainties.

When Offered Spring.

• Define transformative change in the context of land systems and articulate its significance in addressing socioeconomic and environmental challenges.
• Analyze the multi-dimensional aspects of transformative land systems change, recognizing the necessity for shifts in perspectives, practices, and structures at various scales.
• Analyze the global objectives of key sustainability frameworks and explain their specific implications for land systems transformation.
• Engage with the concepts of equity and justice as foundational to envisioning and implementing transformative land systems change.
• Graduate students who complete this course will be able to: evaluate the role of land-related crises as catalysts for change and contrast this with the concept of deliberate, value-driven land systems transformation.
• Graduate students who complete this course will be able to develop strategies to foster transformative land systems change at multiple levels, from local community initiatives to global policy frameworks.

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