Students learn about the origins of and the recent developments in sustainability thinking in general, and about its applications in East Asian nations in particular.
In 2015, all United Nations (UN) member states including China, Korea and Japan adopted the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. The Agenda includes 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) ranging from ending poverty and hunger to good health and well-being, quality education, gender equality and access to clean water; other goals include responsible consumption and production, climate action and peace, justice and strong institutions (https://sdgs.un.org/goals). This course investigates the East Asian countries’ efforts to achieve the UN’s SDGs by 2030. More specifically, it looks at national strategies, policies, and challenges in their implementation.
The origins of sustainability as a social and political term are in the report "Our Common Future" of UN Brundtland Commission in 1987. The term sustainability, originally often divided in environmental, economic and social dimension became widely used after so called Earth Summit in Rio in 1992. With sustainability goals, the term re-emerges as a key normative guideline that stresses intergenerational equity. Is also defined as constant and controlled change occurring on local, national, and global levels.
The origins of sustainability as a social and political term are in the report "Our Common Future" of UN Brundtland Commission in 1987. The term sustainability, originally often divided in environmental, economic and social dimension became widely used after so called Earth Summit in Rio in 1992. With sustainability goals, the term re-emerges as a key normative guideline that stresses intergenerational equity. Is also defined as constant and controlled change occurring on local, national, and global levels.
Book exam based on a reading package published on the course Moodle page.
- Teacher
Annamari Konttinen