- Make sense of the conflicting views of Sustainable Development.
- Find out what is expected of business
- Learn how to make your organisation effective
“Every decision maker/policy maker should be made to attend. I also learned a great deal about myself and it’s great to be able to put our jobs and lives back in perspective with what I learned on the course. All the people on the course including the tutors were really great to work with. Such interesting and diverse backgrounds and so open minded and inspirational. Thanks very much. I feel privileged to have had such a great learning experience” (Environment Agency Waste Licensing Officer).
This workshop which takes place at Schumacher College in Devon aims to explode the myth that sustainable development is well-understood and can be explained as a single coherent concept. Experts and practioners will present students with three mutually conflicting perspectives, each of which is shown to be justified, credible and sincerely held:
(i) The radical environmentalist emphasises respect for the Earth as a living system (Gaia theory), humility and admiration for the complexity and beauty of living systems and a return to a more traditional view of humans as a part of a greater anima mundi (the soul of the world). This is presented by Schumacher College’s resident ecologist Stephan Harding through a series of seminars and a trip into the adjacent countryside.
(ii) The poverty action activist stresses how closely connected the developed world is to the developing through trade, markets, colonial history, tourism and travel. Poverty is explored as well as the future potential for conflict driven by inequity and the need for global cooperation to address environmental problems. These sessions are led by Dr James Copestake Reader in Economics of Development and director of the Centre for Development Studies at the University of Bath.
(iii) The ‘Skeptical Environmentalist’ believes that careful stewardship of our natural capital, international cooperation and continued technological development is easily capable of delivering to the developing world the astonishing improvements in living standards that it has already provided to the developed world over the last millennium.
By being persuaded into these viewpoints in turn, students will come to respect and listen to the views of others in the recognition that their own view is only one amongst many equally sincerely held, an essential key for effective stakeholder engagement.
There will also be sessions on Corporate Social Responsibility and Organisational Culture Change which focus on the practical ways in which businesses can contribute to sustainable development.
Students will also have the opportunity to consolidate what they learn by working through a case study designed to illustrate how these issues influence the decision making process in an organisation.
This workshop provides the opportunity to alter the way that decision-makers, and those in positions of responsibility, perceive sustainable development and the roles that they and their organisations have to play in it. Through encouraging their staff to gain a deeper appreciation of the range of issues and conflicts involved, organisations should be better able to contribute to sustainable development in a more active and effective manner.
To achieve these aims the workshop needs to incorporate the emotional and spiritual aspects of sustainable development essential to a full understanding. For this reason the workshop is held at Schumacher College where the ethos allows for discussion and interaction amongst the group and with others.
“The context of individual and group learning provides a powerful platform for deep and holistic engagement with transformative learning for sustainable living.”
The fee for the workshop is £700which includes basic accommodation and all meals. To apply please complete the CPD application form which is available at http://www.bath.ac.uk/iem/cpd/cpdapply.html .
This workshop can be studied as a stand-alone workshop or as part of the credit rated Continuing Professional Development short course in Sustainable Development, see http://www.bath.ac.uk/iem/cpd/modules.html#sd