AANA18143U Anthropology of Nature, Environment and Climate

Volume 2026/2027
Education

The course is open to:

  • Exchange and Guest students from abroad
  • Credit students from Danish Universities

 

Full-degree students enrolled at the Faculty of Social Science, UCPH 

  • Master Programmes in Social Data Science
  • Bachelor Programmes in Sociology
  • Bachelor and Master Programmes in Psychology 
  • Master Programmes in Political Science and Social Science

 

Please note that this course replaces the previously offered AANA18137U Climate, Nature, Environment: Basic Concepts and New Trends. This means that you may not enrol in Anthropology of Nature, Environment and Climate if you have already passed Climate, Nature, Environment: Basic Concepts and New Trends.

 

Enrolled students register for the course through Self-Service. Please contact the study administration of the individual programs for questions regarding registration.

Content

This course is an introduction to how anthropological analysis can contribute to an understanding of climate change, environmental relations and human perceptions of nature. Environmental anthropology has historically been preoccupied with the interaction between natural and social processes, including by exploring more-than-human relations. Through a mix of theory and ethnographic examples from around the globe, the course introduces different perspectives on for example landscape, cosmology, multispecies relations, and political ecology.

 

The course includes collective readings of a central author within environmental anthropology, group work around self-selected themes, student presentations and peer feedback.

Learning Outcome

At the end of the course students must be able to:

 

Skills:

  • be able to present and describe central themes and analytical insights within the course topics
  • be able to analyze connections between climate, nature and environmental problems be able to apply the acquired analytical skills in relation to a self-selected theme

 

Knowledge:

  • demonstrate knowledge and understanding of central themes in environmental anthropology;
  • demonstrate knowledge of new anthropological approaches and anthropological concepts about climate, environment and nature;

 

Competences:

  • collaborate with other students, including giving and receiving feedback;
  • theorize about the interaction between natural and social processes;
  • reflect on the required readings and situate the literature in a wider societal context.

Undergraduate and graduate students: 500 pages of required reading.

Teacher posts 100-200 pages of supplementary literature.

MA students must include supplementary literature in the exam, which the student selects.

Basic knowledge of social science research methods and theoretical approaches in anthropology are recommended.
The course consists of lectures, group work and joint discussions. Students’ participation is encouraged in order to create a dialogical learning space.
Please note that this course replaces the previously offered AANA18137U Climate, Nature, Environment: Basic Concepts and New Trends. This means that you may not enrol in Anthropology of Nature, Environment and Climate if you have already passed Climate, Nature, Environment: Basic Concepts and New Trends.
  • Category
  • Hours
  • Lectures
  • 42
  • Preparation
  • 122
  • Exam
  • 42
  • Total
  • 206
Oral
Collective
Continuous feedback during the course of the semester
Peer feedback (Students give each other feedback)
Credit
7,5 ECTS
Type of assessment
Home assignment
Type of assessment details
Free written home assignment

The assignment can be done in groups of up to 4 people. In group assignments, each student’s contribution must be clearly marked in the assignment. The length of the assignment must be a maximum of 10 pages for BA students and a maximum of 12 pages for MA students. For group submissions, an additional 3 pages per extra BA student and an additional 3 pages per extra MA student are allowed. For groups where BA and MA students write together, the page limit corresponds to that of MA students.

Students must indicate on the first page of the assignment whether they are BA or MA students. In the case of a group assignment, the individual student's contribution must be clearly marked in the assignment.

The number of standard pages is calculated according to the assumption that a standard page is defined as 2,400 keystrokes including spaces. Read further about Formal requirements for written assignments and exams in Curricula’s Common Part for the Faculty of Social Sciences
Aid
All aids allowed
Marking scale
7-point grading scale
Censorship form
No external censorship
Re-exam

Free written home assignment

1st re-exam: A new written assignment submitted. The new assignment must be submitted by the deadline for the re-exam. 

 

2nd re-exam: A new written assignment submitted. The new assignment must be submitted by the deadline for the re-exam. 

Criteria for exam assesment

See learning objectives