Study Guide

Objective

Overarching learning goal is being able to mitigate and solve sustainability problems. Learning takes place in a variety of ways: by self-study but also by learning from peers.

It comprises of five key competencies to be developed and assessed during the course:
1.Creativity competence: Having completed the course, the student is able to combine knowledge from different fields to come up with novel solutions to sustainability problems. Student is familiar with different creative problem-solving tools.
2. Initiative competence: This project course is a flexible model for learning that does not offer straightforward answers but motivates the students to work towards goals and take responsibility of their work and learning.
3. Systems thinking competence: Having completed the course, the student is able to understand structure and dynamics of complex systems related to solving sustainability challenges in a real-life project. Student can describe given sustainability challenges from multiple perspectives. Students have improved their critical thinking.
4. Strategic competence: Having completed the course, the student is able to create transition and intervention strategies to enact change. Student understands the basic principles of project management and can plan and lead a project from beginning to end. Student feels comfortable using different project management tools and understands the basics of working with companies and other stakeholders. Student is able to reflect on, and deal with, possible risks. Student is able to manage expectations and anticipated results of projects.
5. Interpersonal competence: After the course, the student has developed his/her communicative and collaborative skills. Student is able to organize and manage working in a multi-disciplinary team of individuals. Student understands the basics of projects’ internal and external communications. Student can apply collaborative working methods in his/her work.

Content

Climate change, depleting natural resources, pollution and urbanization pose some of the greatest challenges in the history of humankind. Good solutions are needed now! These so-called wicked problems are so complex that they need actors from all levels of our society working together. Wicked problems are turned into wicked solutions only by strong collaboration between companies, universities, cities and non-governmental organizations (NGOs). This means that future problem-solvers need to know how to work in the middle ground between the business, research and decision-making sectors. On Solutions.now course it is time to put the knowledge learned from books into practice by solving real life challenges related to sustainability issues. The challenges on the course are given by real companies, who want to make a positive impact with their business.
Much of today’s work consists of working in and leading multidisciplinary projects. However, practical project management courses and company collaborations are non-existent in many university studies. Solutions.now course combines problem- and project-based learning methods with sustainability issues, to let students learn the most critical project management skills while gaining valuable working-life experience. At the same time students learn valuable future skills such as tolerating uncertainties and conflicts and balancing with the knowledge learned from the literature and the frame given by the company.
This course is ideally taken after other sustainability courses such as Leadership for Sustainable Change, Sustainable.now and Climate.now so that the students already have some basic knowledge of the complexity of sustainability issues. This course offers a practical way to use that knowledge in real life as well as learn new skills in planning and executing sustainability projects. Students work in multi-disciplinary teams, each team dedicated to one sustainability project. They get to experience how it feels like to use their knowledge to make a positive impact on the world.

Further information

Online teaching

Evaluation scale

0-5

Assessment criteria, satisfactory (1)

Students are able to
· to actively participate in the work of the project group according to the agreed roles
· evaluate and advance the progress of the project and the accomplishment of the targets
· participate in project reporting

Assessment criteria, good (3)

Students are able to
· analyse and plan the actions of the project
· to participate in the work of the project group according to the agreed roles
· evaluate the progress of the project and the accomplishment of the targets
· participate in project communications and reporting

Assessment criteria, excellent (5)

Students are able to
· analyse and plan the actions of the project and implement its activities and outputs
· to actively participate in and develop the work of the project group
· take responsibility of the project progress and the accomplishment of targets develop project reporting
· initiate and maintain active communication between the project group members

Assessment criteria, approved/failed

Students are able to
· to actively participate in the work of the project group according to the agreed roles
· evaluate and advance the progress of the project and the accomplishment of the targets
· participate in project reporting

Prerequisites

Some studies on climate issues, circular economy, sustainable development or such

Further information

Sopii AMK- ja YAMK-opiskelijoille