Admission requirements
This course is only available for students in the BA Urban Studies programme. Please note that passing this course is an entry requirement for starting the Urban Environmental Science graduation project in the third year.
Description
Biodiversity is the diversity of life on Earth in all its forms, from genes and species to ecosystems. It is essential for sustainable development and human well-being, and maintaining high biodiversity on Earth should be one of the most urgent challenges to address today, on par with global warming. As an increasing part of Earth’s terrestrial surface is becoming urbanized, habitat destruction by urbanization is one of the major causes of biodiversity decline worldwide. Yet, this also makes it increasingly important to look into the chances for biodiversity and novel ecosystems in cities. There is a lot more to a city than the parts built with steel and concrete; they are rife with thriving and quickly changing “natural” habitats in which nature not only persists but thrives. Some animal and plant species have so successfully exploited the urban environment that you can see them virtually everywhere you look. Sometimes you just need to know where to look.
In the Elective Sustainable City: Biodiversity in the City, we will introduce these aspects through the evolving discipline of urban ecology:
How cities are emerging as “novel” ecosystems where urban structures and human behaviours drive ecological change;
How cities are changing the evolution of life around us, and how plants and animals are evolving in cities around the world to adapt to human activity;
How every decision made in urban planning, from building materials to park design, carries ecological weight, and how to manage all these elements to create an optimal urban environment that fosters and supports biodiversity and benefits human society
This is the Sustainable City Thematic Elective.
Course objectives
General learning outcomes
See tab Additional information for the overview of the programme's general learning outcomes. In the assessment methods below is outlined which general learning outcome will be tested through which method.
Course objectives, pertaining to this course
The student:
1) has acquired a deepening knowledge of urban landscapes, biodiversity, ecology, and evolution;
2) is able to explain ecosystem services and disservices in cities and how nature-based solutions and nature-inclusive design can support biodiversity in cities;
3) can critically assess urban greening initiatives and apply that knowledge to a specific challenge from The Hague, and is able to discuss solutions to support the city in enhancing and restoring its urban nature and biodiversity.
Timetable
The timetables are available through My Timetable.
Mode of instruction
Lecture (compulsory attendance)
This means that students have to attend every session of the course. If a student is unable to attend a lecture or tutorial, they should inform the teacher in advance, providing a valid reason for absence. The teacher will determine if and how the missed session can be compensated by an additional assignment. If they are absent from a session without a valid reason, they can be excluded from the final exam.Field excursions in The Hague.
Assessment method
Assessment
Individual assignment: essay on course books.
Group assignment: investigative journalism article and video pitch.
Final exam.
Weighing
| Partial grade | Weighing |
|---|---|
| Individual assigment | 30% |
| Group assignment | 35% |
| Final exam | 35% |
End grade
To successfully complete the course, please take note of the following:
The end grade of the course is established by determining the weighted average of the individual assignment grade, group assignment grade, and final exam grade.
The final exam grade needs to be 5.50 or higher. This means that failing the final exam grade cannot be compensated with a high grade for the other assessment components.
Resit
Students who have actively participated in class but scored an overall insufficient mark (lower than a 6.0), or if the exam grade is lower than 5.50, are entitled to retake the written examination material, replacing the previous exam grade. No resit for the individual essay or group assignment grades is possible.
Students who need to retake the course should check the course retake requirements with the lecturer, to determine whether all assessment components must be retaken.
Faculty regulations concerning participation in resits are listed in article 4.1 of the Faculty Course and Examination Regulations.
Exam review
How and when an exam review will take place will be disclosed together with the publication of the exam results at the latest. If a student requests a review within 30 days after publication of the exam results, an exam review will have to be organized.
Reading list
Darwin Comes to Town, by Menno Schilthuizen.
Making Urban Nature or Building Urban Nature, by Jacques Vink, Piet Vollaard, and Niels de Zwarte.
Additional academic readings are listed in the Syllabus and available through Brightspace.
Registration
- Enrolment through My Studymap is mandatory.
General information about course and exam enrolment is available on the website.
Registration Exchange
For the registration of exchange students contact Humanities International Office.
Contact
For substantive questions, contact the lecturer listed in the right information bar.
For questions about enrolment, admission, etc, contact the Education Administration Office: Student Affairs Office for BA Urban Studies
Remarks
You may only sign up for one thematic and one methodological elective in each semester of the second year (via MyStudyMap). Only if there is place left, you can take up a second Thematic and/or Methodological elective. A week before the start of the semester, you will receive an email from the administration which will indicate if any spots are still available. If this is the case, you can enroll by replying to this message. If more students show interest in a second elective than the number of places available, students will be selected via a lottery.