Description
This course is focused on the sustainable governance of our global water resources. Sustainable
management of global water resources is one of the most pressing environmental challenges of the
21st century. The basics of the course will link our current understanding on key aquatic ecological
processes, and how these processes are currently affected by anthropogenic contaminants, with a
focus on aquatic toxicity. At the same time, it will explicitly situate the basic analysis within an
governance context. The course will demonstrate how scientific analyses are used in political debates
and policy making and how policy framing and political choices constrain and enable research in the
domain of water and toxicity.
During the course we will study a wide range of different subjects that are needed to analyse water
and toxicity problems and make policy decisions to address these issues in the context of multiple
policy frames. The subject analysis ranges from ecological topics (e.g., resilience theory, alternative
stable states, nutrient cycling, hydrological cycle) to stressors as studied within ecotoxicology (e.g.,
various contaminations’ fate and accumulation, effects as well as different ways of determining the
health of an organism or ecosystem. The governance subjects range from the introduction of the
legal frameworks (e.g. water framework directive, nitrates directive and waste water directive), to
the framing analysis of policy debates (e.g. policy discourses in media and political arenas, boundary
work, rhetoric, policy integration and policy images) and stakeholders perspectives (actors
involvement).
Learning goals
Can understand basic ecological concepts on the functioning of aquatic ecological systems and discuss how impacts should be assessed related to the key anthropogenic treats to these systems.
Can identify different methodologies to study impacts on aquatic systems and apply these techniques to study impacts in different scenarios
Can identify the basic legal frameworks that govern water resource management
Can understand and discuss trade-offs related to decision making on the various functions that are expected from aquatic ecosystems
Are able to compose and apply a framing analysis of policy documents, media, and political statements
Teaching methods / mode of instruction
Lectures
Field components (excursion, field site to perform research on)
Presentation
Written assignments
Type of assessments
-Assignment 1) 20%: Presentation of field results
-Assignment 2) 15%: Press release text based on the field results
-Assignment 3) 20%: Policy framing paper
-Assignment 4) 15%: Peer review
-Assignment 5) 25%: Exam
-Participation 5%
Course materials / reading list
Course materials will consist of amongst all academic journal article, regulatory guidance documents
and parts of reports. The readings will be integrated into the lectures or will be used within the
assignments done by the students. The link to articles will be provides. Students also need to find
literature via Web of Knowledge themselves.