Related:

We spend the vast majority of our lives within buildings and the built environment has a significant impact on the quality of human life and the healthy and sustainable development of society. With increasing environmental crises caused by the extremely dense urban situation, people in Hong Kong are becoming more and more concerned about the present and future living conditions.

Educational Objectives:

This course aims to develop better understanding of sustainability in the context of built environment for students in all disciplines and all years. It focuses on raising the awareness of the built world's connection to environmental issues, examining the principles and tools for sustainable architecture and exploring the methods for reducing the environmental impact. The objective is not only to ensure the students are environmentally literate, but also to help them integrate sustainability concerns into their own discipline creatively and persistently.

The course also introduces students to a general approach for solving problems and show how it can be applied to real world problems through the description and discussion of case studies. It is hoped that after going through this course, students would strengthen their problem-solving and communication skills, working both individually and in multidisciplinary groups.

Course Content:

This course is intended to develop students' interests and enhance their competencies in the broader area of environmental thinking by relating the issues to the built environment surrounding every one of us. Students will have the opportunity to study the concepts and issues, define what sustainability means (to them) and discuss the barriers to and potentials of sustainable building and living. It is hoped that regardless of their fields of study the students are able to develop critical thinking through investigation of the diverse theories, opinions and examples about sustainable architecture found in the local and global communities.

The course is designed with an emphasis on interdisciplinary reflection, systems thinking and sharing of students' own experience. The teaching/learning will be supported by video presentations, seminars, Web-based resources, site visit and group investigations/discussions. The course is not limited to students with a building design or construction background. There are no prerequisites for this course and all undergraduate students who are interested may take this class.

Lectures and Assigned Readings

The detailed list of lecture/discussion topics is contained in the Course Schedule. The lectures provide the conceptual framework for the course and will also be supplemented with assigned readings if necessary. Students are recommended to complete all the assigned readings on their own time so that questions which may arise can be discussed more fully. Students are expected to have a working understanding of the lecture and reading materials, whether they are present in class or not.

Attendance and Class Participation

Satisfactory attendance rate and active class participation are expected and required, since the course will include extensive in-class interactions and discussions. This part will account for twenty (20) percent of the final course grade. Different ways of participating in the course include, but are not limited to: 1) contributing in an active way to class discussion of concepts and ideas; 2) presenting a brief summary and/or personal interpretation of reading materials upon the lecturer's request; and 3) presenting issues from out-of-class studies.

Assignments

Students are required to submit assignments at the end of certain lectures. The purpose is to encourage you to: 1) absorb the information disseminated in class; 2) reflect on this information and consider how it may be applied in your philosophies and practices; and 3) articulate the outcome of these reflections in written form. Two (2) assignments will be required over the course. Completion of the assignments will account for thirty (30) percent of the final course grade.

Group Project

There will be one group project to be completed over the course. The purpose of the project is to provide students with an opportunity to apply the knowledge to real world problems. The project will also provide a chance for students to strengthen their general thinking, organisational, and written and oral communication skills. The group project shall be carried out by about four (4) students and will comprise forty (40) percent of the final grade for the course. Additional information about the nature and scope of the project will be provided over the course.

To provide students with an opportunity to develop their presentation and oral communication skills, a presentation session of the group project will be conducted at the end of the course. The presentation will be assessed and it will constitute ten (10) percent of the final course grade.

Course Website

Updated information of the course can be found on the course website. Students are encouraged to visit and make use of the website to support their learning. They may review the lecture materials online and study the linked references when reviewing the topics.

Assessment Method:

Assessment will be based on a continuous method with the following components:

(a) Attendance+Participation (20%)

(b) Assignments (30%)

(c) Group Project (40%)

(d) Presentation (10%)

Submissions of assignments and projects should be punctual. Late submission may receive reduction in marks.

The lecturers will make every attempt to provide feedback on the student submissions, either written, electronically or orally.

References:

There is no required textbooks for this course. Some useful books and general documents that the students may like to study are provided in the course website. Additional references and materials on the course topics will be provided over the course.

There is no required textbooks for this course. The followings are some useful books and documents that the students may study in order to understand better the main theme. Additional references on the course topics will be provided over the course.