98680 - SUSTAINABILITY JOURNEYS

Learning outcomes

"The aim of this laboratory is to expose students to sustainability by taking them on a real journey to meet Italian companies at the forefront of sustainability thinking. Through a combination of on-site visits and lectures students gain exposure to such diverse yet interrelated themes as: - origins of the sustainability concept and the frontiers in sustainability thinking, - role of the private sector in tackling issues related to sustainability, - role of the Business Model as a strategic foundation of sustainability, These topics are explored through highly interactive company visits and guest lectures from established practitioners."

Course contents

This course offers a hands-on exploration of sustainability by combining company visits with lectures and practitioner insights. In the first part, the focus is on understanding the origins and evolution of sustainability, the role of innovation and business models in fostering sustainable strategies, and how firms respond to the challenges of climate change. The second part deepens this perspective through direct exposure to leading Italian companies and best practices, highlighting the role of the private sector and governments in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals. Students gain practical knowledge and leadership skills essential for driving the transition towards a more sustainable society.

Structure of the course:

1 COURSE OVERVIEW - Introduction to each other, course schedule, course material, course work, organization of the visits to companies and teamwork required.

2 INTRODUCTION TO CLIMATE CHANGE - Introduction to climate change and why it matters, some basic facts about the present global warming, consequences for our life and economy, how governments and business world are responding to this challenge.

3 GREEN BUSINESS MODELS ENABLING FACTORS - Technical and economic modelling concepts and tools that will allow designing the “business map” of Green Initiatives, the Science Laws (first and second principle of thermodynamics, the Exergy concept) and the business concepts (Levelized Cost of Energy - LCOE) that matter in Green, introduction to Life Cycle Assessment.

4 GREEN BUSINESS MODELS IN PRACTICE - Business case and assignments plenary discussion.

5 THE ROLE OF CITIES AND GOVERNMENT - Meeting with political decision makers implementing the Paris Agreement sustainability agenda.

6 THE ROLE OF INNOVATION - Visit to innovation labs of companies and meeting with innovation managers implementing the sustainability agenda.

7 THE ROLE OF MANUFACTURING - Visit to manufacturing plants and meeting with plant managers implementing the sustainability agenda.

8 FINAL REFLECTIVE JOURNAL - At the end of modules 5, 6, and 7 each student individually will keep a ‘mydiary’ of the meetings and events. The contents of ‘mydiary’ assignments will be discussed in a plenary final session and will help focus on the final reflective journal assignment about what has been learnt during the visits and meetings.

Readings/Bibliography

Supplementary Readings:

Tirole, J., Economics for the Common Good, translated by Steven Rendall, 2018, Princeton University Press, Princeton, PART I ECONOMICS AND SOCIETY, SEVEN The Governance and Social Responsibility of Business, EIGHT The Climate Challenge.

David J. McKay, Sustainable Energy — without the hot air, 2008, UIT Cambridge, available also at http://www.withouthotair.com . Part I, III and IV.

Allwood, JM, and Cullen, J, Sustainable Materials – With Both Eyes Open, 2012, UIT Cambridge, available also at http://www.withbotheyesopen.com/.

Dessler, A. E.. Introduction to Modern Climate Change (3rd ed.), 2021, Cambridge University Press.

IPPC 6th Assessment Report: Climate Change 2021 The Physical Science Basis. Summary for Policymakers, 2021, Available also at https://www.ipcc.ch/report/ar6/wg1/downloads/report/IPCC_AR6_WGI_SPM.pdf.

 

Teaching methods

The main instructional approaches used in the course are:

- Lectures.

- Group Work.

- Case Studies.

- Guest Speakers.

- Other: on-site visits at companies and innovation centers, and meetings with governmental bodies; Reviewing of video material and effective use of AI tools supporting the learning process.

Assessment methods

This is a first year elective course, which can accept only a limited number of students due to logistical limits relating to visits to companies and governmental bodies. The final number of UNIBO IM master students can vary according to the number of exchange students from other Universities, such as Bayes Business School being 33 the maximum total number. In case of oversubscription the selection of the students is based on three criteria:

• evaluation of their CV.
• evaluation of their letter of motivation to join the course.
• firm commitment to attend all the sessions. In case a student is unable to attend the sessions 5, 6, 7 and 8 due to unforeseen reasons, they will be invited to apply the following academic year if compatible with their plan of studies.

The confirmation to join the course will be communicated to the students in synch with the agreed submission deadline of their plan of studies.

Course evaluation is based on the assumption that attendance is compulsory.

The assessment for this module takes three forms:

1. Personal class participation - Personal
2. All the Personal class participation will feed into the submission of the final reflective journal or ‘Final Journal’ (1000 words) – Personal
3. Visits and events communication. -Teamwork

The breakdown and the weights of each component of the final grade is as follows:

Component Weight (%)

Class participation 30

Final Journal 40

Group Project 30

- Exam policy:

Assessment criteria and grade related criteria for module assessments will be made available to students prior to an assessment taking place. More information will be available from the module leader.

Following an assessment, the students will be given their marks and feedback in line with the assessment regulations and policy. More information on the timing and type of feedback that will be provided for each assessment will be available from the module leader.

Students with disabilities or specific learning disabilities (DSA) are required to make their condition known, to help us find the best possible accommodation of their needs.

Class participation consists of a series of brief activities assigned during the classes and designed to guide the student learning throughout the module. Those include individual reflections and analysis of the external visits using a given template. Periodically, the students will be asked to share those reflections and results with the other classmates, and engage in critical debate in the classroom. The class participation assignments must be uploaded to the Virtuale page respecting the due dates and are a prerequisite to upload the Final Journal assignment.

The class will be divided into groups by the module leader. Each group will be responsible for communicating one visit or event using the social media platforms of their preference (e.g. Linkedin), and for elaborating the narrative as well as the communication strategy to maximize impact. The evaluation of the group projects depends on the breath and width of the study prior the visits or events, the correct identification of key lessons learned, and the completeness of the report including the summary of the communication impacts and analytics over an assigned period of time.

The final reflective journal, ‘Final Journal’, should consist of 1000 words where students have to present a personal summary of the lessons learnt from the course. It will be evaluated on the correct use of the methodological frameworks presented during the course, and on a list of personal questions arising during visits or events which have impacted the students from both personal and professional points of view.

The students must upload the different assignments which should correspond to the components of the final grade on the reference Virtuale folders. Upon timely upload, the module leader will assess all the elements to calculate and propose a final mark. The “Regolamento Didattico di Ateneo Art. 16 comma 5” applies in case of rejection of the final mark. In case of rejection, a student can only modify the personal components of the final mark. The “Class participation” component can be modified by uploading to Virtuale a new series of selection and analysis of news following the timeline of the previous similar assignment. It is only upon the completion of this first personal assignment that the student can modify the “Final Journal” component, which consists of a deeper series of exercises regarding the visits or events.

The Grade related criteria is as follows

< 18: failed

18-23: sufficient

24-27: good

28-30: very good

30 e lode: outstanding

Teaching tools

Tools, platforms, or resources used during the course:

- Learning platform: Virtuale (virtuale.unibo.it) contains the slides presented, the daily individual reflections and analysis of the external visits assignment, the team-work assignments.

- Presentation software: PowerPoint.

- Video material.

Office hours

See the website of Alessandro Pastore