Ignazio Musu (Scientific Coordinator), Venice International University

Globalization has important impacts on the environment, that must beconsidered in order to achieve sustainable development. Environmental issueshave gained center-stage in economic analysis and policy-making, and theirurgency has opened new opportunities in terms of technological innovation andentrepreneurship.

The course will cover different themes, starting from the introductionof the sustainable development concept and the illustration of the Millennium Development Goals. The case study of China will be considered as representative of the relationship between economic development andenvironmental issues.
The course will also explore the role of firms forsustainable development, considering Corporate Social Responsibility and Industrial ecology. Finally the course will study, from different perspectives, climate change as one of the main global environmental issue, consideringscientific evidences, energy implications and policies in climate change.

Through an interdisciplinary perspective, the course will providestudents with key competences and instruments for the analysis of natural and environmental resources in a sustainable perspective and for the development of policies oriented towards the promotion of sustainable development processesboth at a national and international level.

Course organization and requirements
Students will be expected to do the required readings and to attend class regularly. Attendance is compulsory for all students. Required readings will be designated on a weekly basis according to the themes listed in the course outline. Students will be also encouraged to find additional material for their papers by searching the Internet and accessing suggested websites.
Field trips and seminars related to the course will be arranged.

Orientation Week: Introduction to the Course

Theme I – Sustainable development and Globalization

Week 1

Lecture 1: Interaction Between Society and Environment – part I. Prof. Margherita Turvani

Required Readings: Book Ecological Economics, by Michael Common and Sigrid Stagl, Chapters 3-4.

Lecture 2: Interaction Between Society and Environment – part II. Prof. Margherita Turvani

Required Readings: Book Ecological Economics, by Michael Common and Sigrid Stagl, Chapter 5: 5.5.6.2, 5.4; Chapter 6: 6.1, 6.2, 6.3.6-6.6.3; Chapter 7.

Week 2

Lecture 1: Introduction to Sustainable Development. Prof. Margherita Turvani

Required Readings: Book Ecological Economics, by Michael Common and Sigrid Stagl, Chapter 10.1, 10.4

Lecture 2: Globalization and Sustainable Development: Millennium Development Goals. Prof. Margherita Turvani

Required Readings: http://www.undp.org/mdg/, www.MAweb.org

FIELD TRIP – full day

Theme II – Policies for sustainable development

Week 3

Lecture 1: How Markets Work. Prof. Ignazio Musu

Required Readings: Book Ecological Economics, by Michael Common and Sigrid Stagl, Chapter 8.

Lecture 2: Market Failures. Prof. Ignazio Musu

Required Readings: Book Ecological Economics, by Michael Common and Sigrid Stagl, Chapter 9.

Week 4

Lecture 1: Economic Instruments for Environmental Policies. Prof. Ignazio Musu

Required Readings: Book Ecological Economics, by Michael Common and Sigrid Stagl, Chapter 11.

Lecture 2: International Aspects of Environmental Policies for Sustainable Development. Prof. Ignazio Musu

Required Readings: Book Ecological Economics, by Michael Common and Sigrid Stagl, Chapter 12.

Theme III – Sustainable urban development

Week 5

Lecture 1: Trends in Urban Population Growth and Urbanization. Prof. Margherita Turvani

Required Readings: UN-HABITAT, 2009, State of the world's cities (2008/2009), Part 1 (1.1;1.2;1.3) Spatial Harmony, ISBN: 978-92-1-132010-7; UN-HABITAT 2010 , State of the World's Cities 2010/2011, Bridging The Urban Divide, Part 1 (1.1; 1.2) Urban Trends, ISBN: 978-92-113-2211-8; M. E. Kahn, 2006, Green Cities: Urban Growth and the Environment , Brookings Institution Press, Cap. 6,8.

Lecture 2: Cities and the Environment. Prof. Margherita Turvani

Required Readings: UN-HABITAT, 2009, State of the world's cities (2008/2009), Part 3 Environmental Harmony, ISBN: 978-92-1-132010-7; M. E. Kahn, 2006, Green Cities: Urban Growth and the Environment, Brookings Institution Press, Cap. 2, 3, 4.

Seminar on Sustainable Urban Development

Theme IV – The role of  corporate social  responsability in promoting sustainable development

Week 6

Lecture 1: Business Ethics and CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility): Why Companies Ask for Ethic. Prof. Chiara Mio (Ca' Foscari University)

Required Readings: Fee (2008). Discussion Paper Sustainability Information in Annual Reports. Building on Implementation of Modernization Directive; GRI Guidelines last version.

Lecture 2: TBL (Triple Bottom Line): Environment, Ethic and Economic. Prof. Chiara Mio (Ca' Foscari University)

Required Readings: Ernst & Young (2008) Keep the Balance Steady. Survey on the quality of sustainability reports 2007.

Week 7

Lecture 1: Measuring Environmental Costs. Prof. Chiara Mio (Ca' Foscari University)

Required Readings: Adams C.A., Mcnicholas P. (2007) "Making a difference. Sustainability reporting, accountability and organizational change" in Accounting, Auditing and Accountability Journal, Vol 20, N 3, 2007 p 382; Gray R. (2006). Does Sustainability reporting improve corporate behaviour? Wrong Question? Right time?, in Accounting and Business Research, International Accounting Policy Forum, pp 65 -88

Lecture 2: Measuring Environmental Performances. Prof. Chiara Mio (Ca' Foscari University)

Required Readings: Schaltegger S., Wagner M. (2006) Integrative management of sustainability performance, measurement and reporting, in International Journal Accounting, Auditing and Performance Evaluation, vol. 3, N. 1, 2006 pp 1-19; Waddock S., McIntosh M (2009) Beyond Corporate Responsibility: Implications for Management Development" in Business and Society Review, N. 1:3, pp 295-325.

Seminar

Midterm Exam

Midterm Break

Theme V – Environment and Development: China's challenge

Week 8

Lecture 1: The Sustainable Development Paradox in China – What is Behind the 10% Annual Growth Rate in GDP? Helen Ding (FEEM and Ca' Foscari University)

Required Readings: Holz C.A. (2005). China's Economic Growth 1978-2025: What We Know Today about China's Economic Growth Tomorrow. Zhang A., Economic Growth and Human Development in China; OECD (2005). Economic Survey of China, 2005; East-West Centre (1996). Environmental Problems in China: Estimates of Economic Costs.

Week 9

Lecture 1: The Main Features of Chinese Development – Case Study. Helen Ding (FEEM and Ca' Foscari University)

Required Readings: Nature (2005). China's Place in the World. Environmental impact of a giant; Zhang J., vanWitteloostuijn A., Zhou C. (2005). Chinese Bilateral Intra-Industry Trade: A Panel Data Study for 50 Countries in the 1992–2001 Period, Kiel Institute for World Economics; Hu V. (2005). The Chinese Economic Reform and Chinese Entrepreneurship; Xu B, Lu J.(2009)- "Foreign direct investment, processing trade, and the sophistication of China's exports", China Economic Review; Liu J., Diamond J. (2005). "China's environment in a globalizing world", Nature, Vol 435|30; Fung K.C., Iizaka H., Tong S. (2002). Foreign Trade of China, international conference on "China's Economy in the 21st Century", June 24-25, 2002, Hong Kong.

Lecture 2: Overview on Environmental Issues and Governance in China. Helen Ding (FEEM and Ca' Foscari University)

Required Readings: OECD (2006). Working Party on Environmental Performance Environmental Performance Review of China Conclusions and Recommendations. Zhang J. (2002). Environmental Protection and Legal System Construction in China; Li D. D., "China's Advantage in International Environmental Concerns", China and World Affairs.

Seminar

Theme VI – A global Challenge to sustainable development: climate change

Week 10

Lecture 1: Introduction to Climate Change. Prof. S. Gualdi (Euro-Mediterranean Centre on Climate Change)

Required Readings: IPCC (2007).Climate Change 2007: Synthesis Report Synthesis Report;

Lecture 2: Mitigation and Adaptation to Climate Change. Prof. Carlo Giupponi (Ca' Foscari University)

Required Readings: IPCC (2007). Working Group I - Summary for Policymakers; IPCC (2007). Working Group II - Summary for Policymakers; IPCC (2007). Working Group III - Summary for Policymakers.

Week 11

Lecture 1: Energy Issue and Climate Change. Prof. Arturo Lorenzoni (University of Padua)

Lecture 2: International Environmental Agreements and Climate Change. Dr. Simona Pinton (University of Padua)

Required Readings: United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (1992); Danish K. W. (2007). Exploring how Today's Development Affects Future Generations around the Globe: in this Issue: Climate Law Reporter: an Overview of the International Regime Addressing Climate Change, 667 of 998 DOCUMENTS, Sustainable Dev. L. & Pol'y, 10; Ackerly B., Vandenbergh M. P. (2008). "Climate Change Justice: The Challenge for Global Governance", 589 of 998 DOCUMENTS, 20 Geo. Int'l Envtl. L. Rev. 553. Kyoto Protocol to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (1998).

Week 12

Lecture 1: International Environmental Agreements and Climate Change. Dr. Simona Pinton (University of Padua)

Required Readings: United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (1992); Danish K. W. (2007). Exploring how Today's Development Affects Future Generations around the Globe: in this Issue: Climate Law Reporter: an Overview of the International Regime Addressing Climate Change, 667 of 998 DOCUMENTS, Sustainable Dev. L. & Pol'y, 10; Ackerly B., Vandenbergh M. P. (2008). "Climate Change Justice: The Challenge for Global Governance", 589 of 998 DOCUMENTS, 20 Geo. Int'l Envtl. L. Rev. 553. Kyoto Protocol to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (1998).

Seminar

FIELD TRIP full day

Lecture 2: Presentation of the research papers and team projects.

Exam Week

VIU Lectures

VIULECTURES is an initiative promoted by VIU to provide a platform for international and local professors to discuss key and current issues.

Recent Lectures have been:

When and Where did Globalization Begin?

David Northrup, Boston College and Stefano Micelli, VIU/Ca' Foscari

From Property to Development. Chinese Economic Growth in a Historical Perspective

Bozhong Li, Tsinghua University and Ignazio Musu, VIU-TEN Center/Ca' Foscari

Participation in the VIULECTURES can be counted towards 40 hours of seminars/field trips for students of Globalization Program

The increasing inter-city competition, due to the effects of globalization, de-industrialization, the contraction of public funding and the emergence of new economies, has put pressure on city governments which are in search of new strategies to boost local development. Environmental, economic and social urgencies, together with sustainability requirements, are moving to the forefront of planning policy and programs of cities and communities of all sizes.

The inclusion of "culture" in the sustainability dialogue is emerging, as isevident from the variety of tools and programs for city development and growth,ranging from world-wide mega-events (sport events, flagships projects, Expos), international cultural development programs (Cultural Capitals; recovery programs) to urban marketing promotion at a local level.

This course aims to provide a critical introduction to the role of culture as a driver of innovation and urban change, enhancing social, economic, and environmental sustainability in cities and specifically considering how design, planning and urban marketing connected with the topics of events (moving hugepublic-private investments), leisure and recreation in the urban setting can be effective. A number of case studies (especially related to Venice and the Veneto) will be used to illustrate key developments (large-scale sport and cultural events, repackaging of cultural heritage, display of public art and the like) and to highlight whether and how sustainability issues have been tackled. Field trips related to the course shall be organized.

The globalization theme involves not just political-economic aspects, but enlightens the central role that culture plays in the international scenery. Today our perception of Cultural Heritage is changing amongthe rush of images and sights offered by an interactive world. Our observation must be redefined in the new global cultural commons, in which the traditional meanings offered by different cultures are being rewoven.

To understand this, many people are looking toward the site where culture and history intersect – that is toward Cultural Heritage.Venice is not just the setting of the course but represents the perfect living case study, the ground where experimentation of new solutions is possible through innovation, since Cultural Heritage is also a process and subjected to modifications.

For this purpose the course will cover different themes that analyze several issues regarding Cultural Heritage.The object of the course is to provide a general overview of the complexity of the matter. Starting with a new definition of the fruition of Cultural Heritage that deals with the narration of cultural subjects, the course will address the themes of institutional governance of cultural organizations, of the experiential marketing approach and of the role played by new technologies in the supply and consumption of arts and culture.

The case studies of the major cultural institutions within the city of Venice will be discussed as examples of critical aspects, in order to give a close understanding of the changes occurring in the field of Cultural Heritage management.

During the Fall semester the Globalization Program of the School of Humanities and Social Sciences focuses on Cultural Heritage, offering a set of advanced courses on the issues related to Cultural Heritage Management, Innovation and Urban Cultural Policy.

The Globalization Program aims to give VIU students the chance to take part in a study and research experience in an international context.

The aim of the program is to develop an interdisciplinary in depth examination on the themes of Cultural Heritage Management, Innovation and Urban Policy.

The program offers:

Courses: on the theme of Cultural Heritage