SFB70022 Sustainable Leadership (Spring 2023)

The course is connected to the following study programs

The course is available as elective course for all students at the Department of Economics, Innovation, and Society.

The course is also available for other students at the Faculty of Computer Science, Engineering and Economics, and can after prequalification or by application be accepted as elective course or extra-curricular course.

Absolute requirements

The student must have successfully completed all 1st year courses.

Lecture Semester

Spring

The student's learning outcomes after completing the course

Knowledge

The student has

• good knowledge about the circular economy and how this differs from traditional economic thinking.

• good knowledge of target UNSDGs and insight into their practical implications.

• good knowledge about Chinese culture and socioeconomic conditions.

• good knowledge about different perspectives on leadership across cultures (China and Norway).

• basic knowledge about institutional preconditions for international cooperation.

• basic knowledge about the problems related to climate change.

• Basic knowledge about systems and systems thinking.

• General knowledge about leadership.

• Knowledge about academic writing.

Skills

The student has

• good skills relating to discussing practical academic subjects.

• good cooperation skills and cross cultural skills.

• the ability to discuss and debated issues in the context of social interaction.

• the ability to imagine a and relate to an uncertain and partially unknown future.

• the ability to structure problems

• good academic writing skills.

General competencies

The student has

• competencies in problem solving, with particular focus on particular UNSDGs.

• intercultural competencies, with special focus on China and Chinese culture.

Competencies relating to manage different institutional preconditions in international cooperation.

Content

The topic of this course is sustainable leadership and circular economics, across cultural contexts, specifically in China P.R.C. and Norway.

The course is a combination of theory and practical applications. In terms of theory, the academic pillar of the course is the notion of a circular economy, in connection to and illustrated by specific goals among the UN Sustainable Development Goals (UNSDGs). The course furthermore also discussions different approaches to leadership and Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR). Sustainable leadership is presented from different theoretical perspectives. The course also gives an overview of the central problems relating to climate change. In terms of practical application, specific cases and examples from China and Norway relating to sustainable development and the circular economy will be presented and discussed.

The students will get an opportunity to work and discuss across cultural contexts, get to familiar with Chinese culture as well as current socioeconomic and institutional conditions in China. The students will be familiarized with different approaches to solving problems connected with specific UNSDGs.

Forms of teaching and learning

The students following the course in Norway will have ordinary classroom education, while our partners in China will participate by digital conference whenever relevant. There will be a variety to lecturers contributing to the course.

The students will be divided into groups together with their Chinese counter parts so that they will have the opportunity to get to know one another and cooperate across cultures.

The classroom sessions will be a combination of ordinary teaching, discussions, problem solving sessions, and counselling sessions. Between classroom sessions, there will be periods allocated to student group work and feedback.

Feedback sessions with teachers for individual groups will ordinarily take place digitally (allocated digital rooms, at prespecified time slots).

Teaching and feedback sessions will be given in English.

Workload

Approx. 280 hours.

Examination

A written report will be handed in for exam evaluation. The written report will be delivered by 4 students, 2 from China and 2 from Norway. It will also be possible to hand in the written report in smaller groups or individually.

The written exam report will be of maximum 4000 words, excluding reference list. The report must include correct citation of all sources.

The assignment of the written report will concern the comparison of two different cases, of which both concern solutions to problmes represented by the focal UNSDGs.

The course will offer academic guidance on a continuous basis.

The evaluation of the course emphasizes the ability to present relevant problems and solutions, disciplinary anchoring, the usage of empirical information, reflections and argumentation, structure and completeness, and well as norms for academic writing.

The assignment shall be written in English.

Grading scale: A - F

Examiners

One external and one internal examiner or two internal examiners.

Course evaluation

The course is evaluated according to the rules for quality work at Østfold University College.

Literature

In relation to the topic that the students choose to focus on, they prepare a literature and reference list that should follow the submitted work.