KUMA017 Anthropology of Climate Change (5 cr)

Open the course unit brochure on Sisu
Study level:
Intermediate studies
Grading scale:
0-5
Language:
English, Finnish
Responsible organisation:
Department of History and Ethnology
Curriculum periods:
2024-2025, 2025-2026, 2026-2027, 2027-2028

Description

How do anthropologists approach the study of climate change and related environmental issues? This course provides an overview of the rapidly growing field of the anthropology of climate change with an emphasis on recent approaches. The course discusses climate change in relation to capitalism, migration, and global inequalities.

Learning outcomes

 After completing the course, the student will:

  • know what are the most important current theoretical debates in this field

  • be familiar with the history of ideas in environmental anthropology/anthropology of climate change

  • learn to examine how climate change affects the lives and livelihoods of people in different contexts. 

Additional information

Taught course or independent work (book exam, reading group or assignment).

Study materials

  • Baer, H. & Singer, M. 2018: The Anthropology of Climate Change: An Integrated Critical Perspective. 2nd Edition.

  • Cruikshank, J. 2005: Do Glaciers Listen? Local Knowledge, Colonial Encounters and Social Imagination.

  • de la Cadena, M. 2015: Earth beings: Ecologies of Practice across Andean Worlds.

  • Eriksen, T. H. 2016: Overheating: An Anthropology of Accelerated Change.

  • Marino, E. 2015: Fierce Climate, Sacred Grounds: An Ethnography of Climate Change in Shishmaref, Alaska.

  • Shoreman-Ouimet, E. & Kopnina, H. 2015: Culture and Conservation: Beyond Anthropocentrism. 

Completion methods

Method 1

Description:
Taught course.
Evaluation criteria:
The grading scale in all completion modes will be numerical: 0-5. The grade will be based on the evaluation of the assignments that measure the extent to which the learning goals have been achieved. In courses organized in the form of contact teaching, completion requires 80% attendance. For independent learning, completion of the unit requires that written assignments are completed and approved by the instructor in charge.
Select all marked parts

Method 2

Description:
For independent completion, the student should choose three books from the list.
Evaluation criteria:
The grading scale in all completion modes will be numerical: 0-5. The grade will be based on the evaluation of the assignments that measure the extent to which the learning goals have been achieved. In courses organized in the form of contact teaching, completion requires 80% attendance. For independent learning, completion of the unit requires that written assignments are completed and approved by the instructor in charge.
Select all marked parts
Parts of the completion methods
x

Participation in teaching (5 cr)

Type:
Participation in teaching
Grading scale:
0-5
Language:
Finnish

Teaching

x

Independent study (5 cr)

Type:
Independent study
Grading scale:
0-5
Language:
Finnish

Teaching