WISO300776 Sustainable cities, urban metabolism, and climate change (in Eng.)

Art
Vorlesung und Übung
Semesterstunden
4
Vortragende/r (Mitwirkende/r)
Lopez Cifuentes, Marta , Kaufmann, Lisa , Eisenmenger, Nina
Organisation
Soziale Ökologie
Angeboten im Semester
Sommersemester 2026
Unterrichts-/ Lehrsprachen
Englisch
Lehrinhalt

This seminar provides an advanced and interdisciplinary preparation for the Master’s thesis by combining perspectives from natural and social sciences. Students work in groups where they design and conduct a mini research project on a selected urban sustainability topic. This includes: a) identifying research gaps and relevant literature, b) selecting methods, c) carrying out the research and d) synthesising findings.

The course is taught by an interdisciplinary team of lecturers. Students with backgrounds in natural sciences, social sciences, or both are welcome, and interdisciplinary projects are actively encouraged.

Topics may include, but are not limited to:

Urban energy and food systems

Infrastructures and the built environment

Urban resource flows, urban mining and city–hinterland relations

Circular economy and bioeconomy challenges at the urban scale

Urban heat islands

Urban policies at different scales (e.g., smart city strategies, C40 Cities Initiative)

Land use conflicts, urban actors and power dynamics, inequality
Inhaltliche Voraussetzungen (erwartete Kenntnisse)

This is an advanced Master’s level seminar, intended for students who are at least in their third semester of study. Students are expected to have a solid foundational knowledge in either natural or social sciences, or a combination of both, sufficient to engage in interdisciplinary research projects. Prior experience with basic research methods (as worked on in methods courses in the CCAST Master), data analysis and/or sustainability concepts is recommended, as the course builds directly on these skills for independent group work and mini research projects.
Lehrziel

After completing the course, students will be able to:

Discuss and argue (inter)disciplinary perspectives on sustainable cities, urban metabolism and climate change challenges.

Formulate research questions, design research and conduct research in small, (inter)disciplinary group teams.

Apply methods from natural and/or social sciences to analyse urban problems.

Present research findings and communicate them effectively to an academic audience, producing concise reports that synthesise results and develop evidence-based arguments.
Noch mehr Informationen zur Lehrveranstaltung, wie Termine oder Informationen zu Prüfungen, usw. finden Sie auf der Lehrveranstaltungsseite in BOKUonline.