Environmental Justice module

Education for Sustainable Development (ESD)

Course content related to sustainable development

Developed to address the urgent need to educate social science students about the intersection of environmental issues and social inequalities, this module prepares students for careers in a world where sustainability and equity are paramount. It enables them to drive positive change and advocate for a more sustainable and equitable future. The module was a finalist in the 2025 Green Gown Awards Next Generation Learning and Skills category.

The module addresses environmental issues at multiple scales, exploring the interconnectedness of social, economic, and environmental factors and their implications for policy and practice at hyper-local (campus), local, regional, national, and global levels. Topics such as food policy, migration, waste and climate activism are explored, as well as diverse perspectives such as Game Theory and Eco-Fascism, to understand different ideological approaches to environmental justice.

Students learn about planning and management strategies for environmental projects, particularly the importance of community-based solutions. Issues of exploitation and how policy can shape the future are examined, with a strong emphasis on equity, diversity, and inclusion. 

Competencies for sustainability

A key element of ESD is supporting learners to develop competencies that will help them to tackle and cope with sustainability challenges. Within the Environmental Justice module the key competencies developed are: 

• Systems thinking: Understanding the complex interdependencies within environmental systems, including between the campus and wider environments.
• Critical thinking: Analysing and evaluating information to make informed decisions. Students are encouraged to critically examine the anthropocentric impacts on both the local and global environment and the resulting (in)justice issues. They learn to critically assess and develop policies that promote social and environmental justice.
• Empathy: Learning about environmental injustices at all scales and their impacts on the people and the planet.
• Communication and collaboration: Working effectively with each other and industry professionals to achieve a goal and presenting research and project suggestions. 

Pedagogical approaches

ESD uses action-orientated and transformative pedagogical approaches to facilitate taking sustainability knowledge and competencies into practice. Teaching methods and pedagogical practices used in the Environmental Justice module include:

• Problem-based learning: For the assessments, students engage with live briefs provided by the University’s Sustainability Team allowing them the opportunity to address real-world problems in collaboration with the University.
• Case studies: By analysing local and global case studies such as Deepwater Horizon and Just Stop Oil sentencing, and engaging in discussions, students develop a nuanced understanding of how human activities contribute to environmental degradation and social inequities. 
• Collaboration and group-based work: Part of the assessment involves working as a team to deliver a group presentation. 
• Hands-on experiences and field trips: Students visited Greater Manchester Recycling Centre, allowing them to see environmental justice, planning, policy and delivery in action and understand the practical challenges and solutions of waste production and policy. 
• Real-world research: Students were exposed to current research by The Sustainable Housing & Urban Studies Unit on interdisciplinary research related to fuel, transport, and energy poverty, integrating diverse perspectives and expertise into the module. 

Questions to Dr Dave Beck

Is ESD is embedded in any assessments in the module?

Following a live brief session delivered by the University’s Sustainability Team about campus sustainability challenges, students work in teams as consultants to research a challenge and develop innovative solutions through a sociological or criminological lens, delivering a group presentation and individual report. These assessments are designed to evaluate students' understanding and application of environmental justice concepts, ensuring they can critically engage with and address real-world issues. 

One group assessment involved students designing a theoretical app which would allow students and graduates to reuse old course materials, by connecting old and new users of these materials and facilitating exchange via campus-based lockers. This project ‘RE:SAL’ is being progressed through the SHAPE Sustainability Impact Projects initiative, to which the University successfully applied in 2025.

What advice do you have for other academics looking to embed ESD into teaching?

Embedding Education for Sustainable Development starts with helping students see how the key issues in their discipline connect to environmental, social and economic sustainability. In sociology, criminology and social policy, this means encouraging students to critically examine how inequalities, power relations, environmental harms and questions of justice shape people’s lives, both locally and globally. Rather than treating sustainability as an additional topic, it can be woven through existing teaching by using real-world case studies, fostering systems thinking, and enabling students to explore how their future professional and civic roles can contribute to creating a more just, sustainable and equitable society.

Feedback from students about the module

• "This module was by far my favourite, helping me also adjust my daily life to better help the environment and critically think about my actions. Each lecture tested the ways I thought."
• "Interesting and broad variation of topics discussed weekly; have learnt about things I have never learnt about before.’ 
• ‘I really enjoyed the trip, and the presentation groupwork element of the module was enjoyable."
• "Environmental impacts are very important in today’s society so having environmental studies in universities and in my personal studies has helped me to understand the needs when I move into my career."
• "The opportunity of going to the recycling factory was something that I will never be able to do again…These are amazing opportunities that we are able to access through this course…"