Postgraduate - CourseMaster of Environmental Management and Sustainability

This interdisciplinary course is designed to meet the needs of graduates from a wide range of backgrounds who wish to enhance their qualifications for careers in environmental governance, corporate sustainability management, or international development, encompassing policy and analysis, planning, consulting, education, advocacy and targeting areas such as water management, natural resource management and climate change. It is also designed for those who wish to broaden and deepen their understanding and experience to enable societal, organisational and individual change and foster responsible action to support sustainability both domestically and internationally. The course comprises three distinct streams, focusing on environment and governance, corporate sustainability management, and international development and environmental analysis. All three streams offer potential for a research or internship project component, providing students the opportunity to work in interdisciplinary real-world contexts to combine theory and practice in responding to local and global issues at community, corporate and government levels.

Streams

Environment and governance

Stream coordinator: Dr Ruth Lane

This stream is for students who wish to broaden and deepen their understanding and experience to enable societal and governmental change to support sustainability, and to enhance their qualifications for careers in environmental policy and analysis, planning, consulting, education, advocacy and management. Core units provide knowledge and skills to critically analyse problems of environmental governance and sustainability and to propose realistic solutions.

Corporate environmental and sustainability management

Stream coordinator: Dr Wendy Stubbs

This stream is designed to meet the growing need for skilled professionals that have competencies in both business and environmental/sustainability management and who understand the nexus between the two. It is vocationally oriented and flexible, to accommodate students who have only business or environmental backgrounds, people with significant industry experience, and people wishing to move into the field.

International development and environmental analysis

Stream coordinator: Dr Craig Thorburn

This stream is for students who wish to pursue careers or enhance their professional skills in international development and environmental management. Core units introduce students to comparative perspectives on development and environment, and integrative approaches to management of natural resources and landscapes. The stream provides rigorous theoretical and practical training in analysis of international development policies and programs targeting urban and rural environments, climate change, biodiversity conservation, food security, management of rural livelihoods and commons resources, and privatisation of ecosystem services.

These course outcomes are aligned with the Australian Qualifications Framework level 9, the Bologna Cycle 2 and Monash Graduate AttributesAustralian Qualifications Framework level 9, the Bologna Cycle 2 and Monash Graduate Attributes (http://monash.edu/pubs/handbooks/alignmentofoutcomes.html).

Upon successful completion of this course it is expected that graduates will be able to:

• demonstrate a critical understanding of the political, economic, cultural and environmental challenges and debates contributing to sustainable environmental policy across in a range of geo-political contexts
• articulate and apply an understanding of the world view of environmental management and sustainability
• demonstrate a critical appreciation of the secondary literature in the field of environmental management and sustainability
• apply a critical familiarity with many of the key texts and cultural products pertaining to the field ofenvironmental management and sustainability
• apply advanced reading, analytical and communication skills, both written and verbal
• demonstrate a thorough understanding of research methodology and ethics, and an ability to undertake an independent research project .

Students may be eligible for credit to a maximum of 50 per cent of the course requirements for previous graduate-level studies.

Credit or exemptions up to a maximum of 24 points is available for a bachelor degree level qualification in a related discipline, and a further 24 points is available for honours degree level qualification in a related discipline.

Therefore, students who have completed an:

• undergraduate degree and a graduate certificate (or equivalent) in a relevant discipline* must complete 72 points as outlined in Structure 2 under 'Requirements'.
• honours degree with a major in a relevant discipline* must complete 48 points as outlined in Structure 3 under 'Requirements'.

* Relevant disciplines include humanities or social sciences.

48 credit points

student to demonstrate their understanding of the course and the skills they have acquired.

Students complete one of the following structures as determined by any credit granted for prior studies:

• Structure 1: 96 points over two years full-time, or part-time equivalent
• Structure 2: 72 points over one and a half years full-time, or part-time equivalent
• Structure 3: 48 points over one year full-time, or part-time equivalent.

Note: Students eligible for credit for prior studies may elect not to receive the credit and complete one of the higher credit-point options if they choose.

All students must complete a minimum of 48 credit points at level 5, and so should take care when choosing between units offered at level 4 and 5 (where this option is offered).

Units are 6 credit points unless otherwise stated.

Structure 1 - 96 credit points

Students must complete:

(a.) in their first year of study, two of the following 6-point preparatory units (12 points):

• ATS2490 Advanced professional writing
• ATS2548 Environmental policy and management
• APG4554 Resource evaluation and management

b.) The following core units depending on study stream chosen:

Environment and governance

The following core units (18 points):

• APG5425 Perspectives on environment and sustainability
• APG5426 Environmental analysis
• APG5428 Environmental governance and citizenship

Corporate environmental and sustainability management

The following core units (24 points):

• APG5425 Perspectives on environment and sustainability
• APG5433 Corporate sustainability management
• APG5434 Sustainability measurement
• BTF5910 Sustainability Regulation

International development and environmental analysis

The following core units (24 points):

• APG5627 Research in political ecology
• APG5804 Environmental revolutions
• APG5805 Project planning and management in international development (12 points)

(c.) one of the following capstone/research options (24 points)

(i.) a capstone unit chosen form the following:

• APG5044 Professional internship (12 points)
• APG5856 Research project (12 points)

plus:

• 12 points of electives from the list below

(ii.) the following research unit/s:

• APG5848 Research thesis (24 points) or APG5849 Research thesis A (12 points) and APG5850 Research thesis B (12 points)

(d.) electives as follows for their chosen stream:

• 36 points for students completing the corporate environmental and sustainability management and international development and environmental analysis streams
• 42 points for students completing the environment and governance stream

Students must include at least 12 points of level-5 elective units.

Electives

• APG4281 Cultural landscape, environment and sustainability in Italy
• APG4552 Remote sensing of the environment
• APG4553 Field studies in regional sustainability
• APG4554 Resource evaluation and management
• APG4556 Urbanisation and regional development in the Indo-Pacific ocean rims
• APG4887 Designing urban futures: Urban climate, water and adaptation
• APG5229 Prosperity, poverty and sustainability in a globalised world
• APG5230 Ecosystems and environmental management
• APG5258 Geographical information systems (GIS) for environmental science
• MGX5030 Managing corporate social responsibility
• APG5372 Community development in a globalising world
• APG5628 Doctrines of development (12 pts)
• APG5804 Environmental revolutions
• BTF5910 Sustainability regulation
• MGF5020 Business ethics in a global environment
• any capstone unit/s not completed at (c.) above

Structure 2: 72 points

Students must complete from the requirements listed in structure 1:

• units in (b.), (c.)(i.) or (ii.)

plus electives as follows:

• 24 points for students completing the corporate environmental and sustainability management and international development and environmental analysis streams
• 30 points for students completing the environment and governance stream

Structure 3: 48 points

Students must complete from the requirements listed in structure 1:

• units in (b.), one capstone unit

plus electives as follows:

• 12 points for students completing the corporate environmental and sustainability management and international development and environmental analysis streams
• 18 points for students completing the environment and governance stream

Master of Environmental Management and Sustainability