Număr de credite: 3

Cod: ALR3414

Predare: curs 2h

Limba de predare: engleză

Tip: disciplină opțională, semestrul 4, 6, nivel licenţă, specializarea Antropologie, Sociologie, Resurse Umane

1. Introduction: Framing Sustainability from a social and policy perspective. 
2. Society and Sustainability: Theoretical Foundations 
3. Power, Politics and Inequality: Who benefits and who bears the cost? 
4. Policy Frameworks for Sustainability: Actors, Institutions and Policy Design 
5. From Global Frameworks to Local Adaptation: Translating global agendas into local practices. 
6. Environment, Society and Policies 
7. Sustainable Cities and Communities 
8. Circular Economy and Waste Governance 
9. AI, Technology, and Sustainability 
10. Participation, Partnerships, and Strong Institutions 
11. From Knowledge to Action: Designing Policy Interventions 
12. Future of Sustainable Societies 
13. Wrap Up: From Policy to Practice: Designing Sustainable Societies 
14. Final Examination: A policy paper and a presentation 

• Raworth, K. (2012). A safe and just space for humanity: Can we live within the doughnut? (Oxfam Discussion Paper). Oxfam International. https://www-cdn.oxfam.org/s3fs-public/file_attachments/dp-a-safe-and-just-space-for-humanity-130212-en_5.pdf 

• Barron, P., Cord, L., Cuesta, J., Espinoza, S. A., Larson, G., & Woolcock, M. (2025). Social sustainability and the development process: What is it, why does it matter, and how can it be enhanced? Oxford Development Studies, 53(3), 222–237. https://doi.org/10.1080/13600818.2025.2502971 

• Boyce, J. K. (2021). The environmental cost of inequality. Scientific American. https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5c33dbd69d5abbfa584fc9d2/t/60d621b612efc560376c57f6/1624646071242/Boyce+Scientific+American+2021.pdf 

• Oregon State University. (n.d.). Chapter 4: Key actors and the policy process. In State and local government and politics. https://open.oregonstate.education/government/chapter/chapter-4/ 

• Coger, T., Lonsdale, J., & Milman, A. (2022). Getting locally led adaptation right: Examples from around the world. World Resources Institute. https://www.wri.org/insights/getting-locally-led-adaptation-right-examples-around-world 

• Aftab, K., Sadaf, F., Sharif, A., & Ahmed, A. A. (2024). Reclaiming public spaces: Experiences of social exclusion of female sanitary workers in public spaces in Lahore, Pakistan. Gender & Development, 32(1–2), 311–332. https://doi.org/10.1080/13552074.2024.2348399 

• UN-Habitat. (2020). World cities report 2020: The value of sustainable urbanization (abridged version). https://unhabitat.org/sites/default/files/2020/11/world_cities_report_2020_abridged_version.pdf 

• Global Alliance on Circular Economy and Resource Efficiency. (2024). Circular economy and solid waste – Working paper. United Nations Industrial Development Organization. https://www.unido.org/sites/default/files/unido-publications/2024-06/Working%20Paper_Circular%20Economy%20and%20Solid%20Waste.pdf 

• SustainAbility. (2019). AI and the Sustainable Development Goals: The state of play. https://www.sustainability.com/globalassets/sustainability.com/thinking/pdfs/2030vision-stateofplay.pdf 

• Nelson, J. (2017). Partnerships for sustainable development: Collective action by business, governments and civil society to achieve scale and transform markets (Executive summary). Harvard Kennedy School. https://www.hks.harvard.edu/sites/default/files/centers/mrcbg/programs/cri/files/PforSD(Exec_Summary).pdf 

• Kumar, A., & Singh, R. (2024). Designing effective policy interventions for sustainable consumption and production: Insights from a life-course approach. Stockholm Environment Institute. https://www.sei.org/wp-content/uploads/pdfs/177856/designing-effective-policy-interventions-for-sustainable-consumption-and-production-insights-from-a-lifecourse-approach.pdf 

• SPREAD Sustainable Lifestyles 2050. (2012). Emerging visions for future sustainable lifestyles (Policy brief). European Commission. https://www.sustainable-lifestyles.eu/fileadmin/images/content/D3.2_PolicyBrief_SustainableLifestyles.pdf 

• United Nations. (2022). SDG good practices: A compilation of success stories and lessons learned in SDG implementation (2nd ed.). https://www.greenpolicyplatform.org/sites/default/files/downloads/best-practices/SDGs%20Good%20Practices%20-%20second%20edition%20-%20FINAL%20FEB092022.pdf 

Other Useful Recommended Resources: 

• Carrosio, G. (2024). Framing Sustainability. In S. Fantoni et al. (Eds.), Quantitative Sustainability (pp. 139–150). Springer. Available at: https://link.springer.com/content/pdf/10.1007/978-3-031-39311-2_9.pdf 

• Ly, A. M., & Cope, M. R. (2023). New conceptual model of social sustainability: Review from past concepts and ideas. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 20(7), 5350. Available at: https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/20/7/5350/pdf 

• Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. (2024). Environmental Justice: Context, Challenges and National Approaches. OECD Publishing, Paris. Available at: https://www.oecd.org/content/dam/oecd/en/publications/reports/2024/05/environmental-justice_466cb9e2/57616eb4-en.pdf 

• United Nations Development Programme. (2014). Governance for Sustainable Development: Integrating Governance in the Post-2015 Development Framework. UNDP Discussion Paper. Available at: http://www.undp.org/sites/g/files/zskgke326/files/publications/Discussion-Paper–Governance-for-Sustainable-Development.pdf 

• TWI2050 (The World in 2050 initiative). (2018). Transformations to Achieve the Sustainable Development Goals. Laxenburg, Austria: International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA). Available at: https://pure.iiasa.ac.at/id/eprint/15347/1/TWI2050_Report081118-web-new.pdf 

• World Bank. (2018). What a waste 2.0: A global snapshot of solid waste management to 2050. World Bank. https://documents1.worldbank.org/curated/en/697271544470229584/pdf/What-a-Waste-2-0-A-Global-Snapshot-of-Solid-Waste-Management-to-2050.pdf 

Resources for writing Policy Papers: 

• https://law.stanford.edu/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/White-Papers-Guidelines.pdf 
• Young, E. & Quinn, L. (2002). Writing effective public policy papers: A guide to policy advisers in Central and Eastern Europe.  
• https://odi.cdn.ngo/media/documents/7235.pdf 
• https://www.nccmt.ca/registry/resource/pdf/94.pdf 

Useful Links for Policy Papers (Examples): 

• https://www.oecd.org/en/publications/the-many-faces-of-adult-learners_a5a1893a-en/full-report.html 
• https://www.wbgu.de/en/publications/policy-papers 

70% A one-pager outline of the topic and a final policy paper (50%), followed by a presentation (20%) and Q&A. (scores from min 0p to max 10p)

30% Active participation (0.3p/ active participation) 

General objective of the course: To develop students’ understanding of how sustainability is shaped by the interaction among society, policies, and everyday practices.

Specific objective of the course: By the end of the course, students will be able to strengthen their ability to critically analyse and evaluate sustainability initiatives using interdisciplinary theories and real-life case studies; and to design and justify a sustainability policy or practice-based intervention for a selected societal issue, using evidence, implementation, and stakeholder analysis.