Sustainability is a prominent concept at both the national and international level. The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) formulated in 2015 are one way to operationalise sustainable development and measure progress worldwide. This course provides an overall orientation regarding this policy agenda and links it to underlying problems and patterns of unsustainable development connected with economic growth and an extensive resource use. This critical contextualisation is complemented by a discussion of to what extent law can promote sustainability but also interfere with the implementation of sustainable development. For this purpose, the course zooms into a number of SDGs and specifically considers the role of law therein, be it on the national, European or international level.

This course provides an integrative perspective on law and sustainability, which enables students:

• to describe the concept of sustainable development in its different dimensions, to illustrate its translation into sustainable development goals, and to take stock of progress made, or a lack thereof
• to elaborate on the challenges of sustainable development given engrained production, consumption and exchange patterns in contemporary societies and the global political economy
• to discuss how different aspects of (un)sustainable development are linked with socioeconomic constellations, in which law may either act as a catalyst for change or a consolidator of existing policies and practices
•  to critically reflect on their own professional role in society and both the possibilities and limitations of law as an instrument of change

This course is classified as 'Examination-immanent' (in German, 'Prüfungsimmanent,' often abbreviated as 'PI'). As a general rule, PI courses have compulsory attendance. However, one class can be missed without negatively affecting the grade. If known in advance, absences must be announced by email to the lecturer ahead of time (e.g., in cases of conflicting class schedules). Missing class for medical reasons (e.g., accident or illness) will not count against the participation requirements as long as a doctor's note can be provided. No makeup assignments will be provided in case of missed assessments. More details on absenteeism rules will be explained in the first class.

Learning activities consist in preparatory readings, teacher’s input, discussions and other activities in class, small written assignments throughout the course, and a final essay. The aim is to further critical thinking, argumentation and writing skills in dealing with matters beyond the law and requiring the consideration of different perspectives.

This is a course with continuous assessment (PI).  

The following course performance components will be evaluated separately:

• active participation and contributions to the discussion (20%),
• small written assignments throughout the course (40%),
• final essay to be submitted at the end of the course (40%). 

Grading scale: ≥ 60 % grade 4, ≥ 70 % grade 3, ≥ 80 % grade 2, ≥ 90 % grade 1

Course enrollment is based on the '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 place is available to students on the waiting list. If there is a waiting list for enrollment in the course, students on 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 progress in their studies, not by their rank on the waiting list. This procedure, however, is not to be understood as a guarantee of class space.

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