In the age of the Anthropocene – during which most of our actions and designs serve the needs and desires of the human population – this course invites students to consider relational ecology between human creativity and sustainable urbanism, with a special focus on connection to and with non-human animals and plants in seemingly human-dominated spaces. Through a variety of creative communication exercises, students will practice various forms of advocacy and intervention regarding contemporary rhetorics of ‘sustainability’.
The class will be structured as a series of projects encouraging students to explore different approaches, concepts, and practices relating to sustainability in urban contexts. The course is interdisciplinary and requires no particular background: after introducing the design thinking process as a way to build empathy and understand diverse needs, the class will examine a wide variety of approaches – considering architecture, music, history, creative writing, performance studies, geography, filmmaking, photography, and more to address problem-solving, critical thinking, and representation within sustainability urbanism.
May also be registered as CRS 300.4
Department: Geography
Location: London
Semesters: Fall, Spring
Credits: 3