Money plays a fundamental role in the economy - From day-to-day activities, to business decisions, to shaping government policy, and, to a large extent, to shaping what options are possible for us in our lives. The goal of this course is for students to gain a more fundamental understanding of the role of money in the economy, including the role it plays in shaping social relationships and hierarchies, and in mediating the relationship between society and nature. The aim is to understand: What is money? How does the monetary system work? How does it affect us?

The first question is aided by a historical review of the development of money, the different forms it has taken, and the relationship between money and the state in these contexts. The forms money takes from primitive ‘social’ currencies to bank loans and digital fiat currency will be traced. This builds the groundwork for the present-day analysis that follows. Understanding ‘How it works’ requires an understanding of the modern institutional structure of money, dominated by the state, the banking system and the financial system. Focus will include the role of central banks, financialization, the international monetary system, and the role of debt. Public banking and alternative forms of money will be considered. Finally, the role of money is critical to understand and address in the context of a climate transition. This includes, among other things, ‘green’ finance in a climate transition.

This course will pull on literature from sociology, anthropology and political economy, in addition to economics.

Language of instruction: English.

After taking this course, students are able to:

• Understand both the economy and society as embedded in biophysical systems.
• Understand the institutional context of the monetary system.
• Critically analyze and act to address challenges on the intersection between social, ecological and economic systems. 
• Challenges include inequality, environmental pollution and exploitation, growth dependency, and facilitating a climate transition. 
• Perceive necessities, and conceive options for change towards social prosperity and environmental sustainability. 

The seminar promotes students to:

• Analyze and critically reflect on the framing of social and ecological challenges and policies. 
• Select and apply theoretical concepts in the context of ecological economics. 
• Critically reflect on current debates taking place in media and political discourse, particularly around money and finance.
• Engage in open discussion, conceive their own opinion based on academic research and give substantial-constructive feedback.
• Conduct team projects effectively, to listen attentively and to present their ideas in convincing ways.

Feedback from both the course instructor and peers helps students to understand shortcomings and to improve.

• Please make sure you arrive/login on time. 
• You may miss one of the eight sessions. 
• For exceptional reasons it is possible to miss another session. In that case please contact the lecturer.

• Input by lecturer.
• Discussions and critical reflection of academic, news and magazine articles in leading international and social reviews and media.  
• Variety of group exercises including different styles of discussions, collective reflection exercise, panel discussions, group presentations and role games.
• Use of videos, film clips, lecture casts and podcasts.
• Engagement in digital media and reflection on online debates taking place, for instance, on blogs and twitter.

Weekly literature questions: 30%

Six written assignments addressing the weekly reading are required through the class. These may take the form of a ‘question paper’ or a ‘position paper’.

Question paper: These papers ask 2-3 questions about the readings, or the relationship between the readings. Each question is accompanied by a brief expository paragraph explaining the origin and context of the question.

Position paper: These papers can compare the readings to other readings of the class, or apply the readings to an empirical case. The position should relate to a key claim or assertion made in the readings, and that position should be contextualized and justified.  

 Submission on @Learn of no more than 1 page, due by noon on Monday before each class.

Class participation: 15%

Participate in small group and plenary discussions. Active participation in group work during class. Raise feedback or questions to student presentations.

Topical group presentation: 25%

This will be a group presentation that will take place in class to compliment the topic for that week. Topics will be fixed for each week, and students will choose which topic/week they would like to present. The presentation should summarize the salient points of the presentation literature, connect it to the issues discussed in class, and to real-world events. Students should critically assess the literature, in addition to presenting the most relevant information within it. More information will be provided in class. In-class presentation, 15 mins maximum in length.

Monetary contestation project: 30%

This is a group project that will focus on proposing an alternative currency or alteration to the existing monetary system (eg. IMF debt forgiveness, carbon currency, local currency, ECB regulations, etc.). Groups of 2-4 people. There will be an in-class presentation at the end of the semester and a paper, 4,000-6,00 words, submitted as a group. Additional information will be provided in class.

Course enrollment is on the basis of "first-come, first-served” principle. If you have registered but cannot participate in the course, please de-register via LPIS during the registration period so that your course is available to students on the waiting list. If there is a waiting list for enrollment in the course, students at the waiting list will be notified after the end of the enrollment period, and will be allocated to available places. Students will be ranked by their study progress not by their rank on the waiting list. This procedure, however, is not to be understood as a place guarantee.

No previous knowledge specific to the monetary system is required.