Understanding Sustainability: Sustainable Transitions in Policy, Business and Society 2400-OG-EN-US

The course aims to introduce students from all disciplines to the field of sustainability transitions, with a special focus on the shift toward a climate-neutral economy. It is interactive and project-based, using real case studies and examples from both Polish and international contexts.
The course is structured around five four-hour interactive workshop sessions (5x4h onsite). Each session is preceded by an independent learning module providing deeper context and conceptual tools (5x2h online). Through real-life case studies, group-based problem solving, and critical discussion, participants will engage with both the promises and contradictions of sustainable transformation. Each module combines expository teaching methods with interactive discussions. The course integrates lecture-style teaching with group work.

Modules:

1. Introduction into the topic: sustainability and climate-neutral transitions. Key concepts such as sustainability, and socio-technical transition. Overview of climate neutrality in economic and institutional contexts. Course structure, workload, and project expectations.
2. Governance frameworks: institutions, stakeholders, and tensions. How sustainability transitions are shaped by institutional structures, power, and stakeholder interests. Introduction to the multi-level perspective and stakeholder analysis. The costs and risks of the green transition.
3. Corporate responsibility and climate risk: ESG and green finance. The role of the private sector in sustainable transitions. Analysis of ESG reporting, climate risk, and sustainable finance using real-world examples.
4. Justice and power in sustainability transitions. Who wins, who loses, and who decides? Focus on power asymmetries, just transitions, and global/local inequalities in climate policy and implementation.
5. Planning low-carbon futures. Strategic foresight tools for transition planning. Scenario development and technology assessment to address long-term uncertainty.

The core of the course is the preparation of projects by groups of 4–5 students. The projects should contain a critical analysis of a specific sustainability transition case. The analysis should include key stakeholders, institutional constraints, and a proposed pathway for achieving climate-neutral outcomes. Consultation on the students’ work will be an important part of each meeting (outline has to be consulted with the lecturer at the last meeting before the final one).