How can we shape our urban development towards sustainable and prosperous futures?
This course explores sustainable cities as engines for greening the economy in Europe and around the world. We place cities in the context of sustainable urban transformation and climate change. We connect the key trends of urbanization, decarbonisation and sustainability. We examine how visions, experiments and innovations can transform urban areas. And we look at practices (what is happening in cities at present) and opportunities (what are the possibilities for cities going forwards into the future).
This course was launched in January 2016, and it was updated in September 2021 with new podcasts, films and publications. The course is produced by Lund University in cooperation with WWF and ICLEI – Local Governments for Sustainability who work with creating sustainable cities. The course features researchers, practitioners and entrepreneurs from a range organisations.
Overview
Syllabus
- Urban Transformation
- By studying this module you can gain an increased knowledge and a deeper understanding of sustainable urban transformation and sustainable cities
- Urban Infrastructure
- By studying this module you can gain an increased knowledge and a deeper understanding of the role of infrastructure and planning in creating sustainable cities.
- Urban Experimentation
- By studying this module you can gain an increased knowledge and a deeper understanding of urban living labs and the role of experiments in sustainable cities.
- Urban Lifestyles
- By studying this module you can gain an increased knowledge and a deeper understanding of the relationship between sustainable urban lifestyles and sustainable cities.
- Urban Visions
- By studying this module you can gain an increased knowledge and a deeper understanding of visions for sustainable cities.
Taught by
Prof. Lena Neij, Kes McCormick, Prof. Harriet Bulkeley and Prof. James Evans
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Reviews
4.9 rating, based on 53 Class Central reviews
4.7 rating at Coursera based on 2429 ratings
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This is given in the same style as 'Lessons from Scandinavia' and has the same difficulty. I really liked it because it makes emphasis on what we can accomplish from the cities and gives examples from different continents.
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This course gave me a deeper insight into sustainable cities and helped to view them from a different perspective than conventional urban planning. The course provides rich thoughts not only about sustainability but also about the economies of scale, urban resilience, integrated planning, and futuristic urban aspects. I strongly recommend it for students of the built environment particularly urban planning, architecture, landscape architecture, and also social sciences.
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In a time when the definition of a city is reduced to very few valourized identities, this MOOC course on 'Sustainable Cities' retells and confirms that it is not the case. Cities are lived by and for all. Not just human beings who seems to be the 'be all and end all'. It is precisely this realization content which the syllabus carries with that also makes this course something that really needs to be attempted and more importantly executed in everyday city life.
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This was a very enjoyable course which I found enlightening and inspiring compared to others on a similar subject. The short films were supplemented with readings that encourage you to go deeper than the time allows in this MOOC. A more advanced course would be very helpful. Thank you to the profs!
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This course was a very interesting introduction into what steps cities are and must be taking to tackle climate change. The quizzes were relatively easy and just there to ensure you had read the material. Maybe could be more interesting with a few more peer-reviewed projects. I would recommend this course for those wanting to get an understanding of projects going on in different cities around the world that can be inspiring.
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Excelente curso, fácil de entender y con elementos didácticos.
debo de mencionar que tienen docentes de calidad que organizan la información de forma correcta en exponer desde una forma explicativa. hay entrevistas con expertos reconocidos a nivel mundial y ejemplificación mostrada de las acciones de mitigación y extraordinario trabajo realizado por la universidad en este curso. -
Excellent course! I highly recommend this course to anyone who is interested in a sustainable future. The transition from polluting to clean energy will be won or lost in the cities. Not in the mega cities but in the smaller ones. The course is very inspiring and shows a lot of sustainable cases from around the world.
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This is a great course to introduce yourself to the topic of sustainable cities and green economics, this course will give you a good amount of examples of initiatives that are currently changing the world. Actually this is a good course for everyone if you are looking for guides and first impressions in this topic.
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Greening the economy:Sustainable cities is a course that gives you a better knowledge on what is going on in your country and how to develop solutions to tackle them in order to build a sustainable environment...The course is in promoting SDGs goals on sustainable cities.
I would advice you to take the course, it is easily understandable. -
Excellent course! The teaching material is high-quality and accessible at the same time. I really enjoyed this course. The lessons are very suitable for beginners and if you are already more experienced on the topic there are lots of links, websites, reports and additional information available.
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Great course that allows you to see how cities are managing sustainably around the world. I am signed up for an email list from this course that provides other information (articles, webinars, etc) that has also been enlightening.
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The course has a lot of topics so interesting and helps you to think of new ways to do cities sustainable.
The way to teach is good and the add articles complement the presented information. -
Excellent course!!!! If you are interested in our planet, in the SDG's and NAture based solutions I highly recommend this course . Bravo and greetings from Honduras, Central America
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Mustapha MakhdoomGood BEGINNER level course. Lots of great and relevant information, good reading material and instruction, great pace and overall really well done. The only thing to keep in mind is that it is a beginner level, so if you're already working in the field of sustainable cities you may find you know a lot of the material. Nonetheless, it is still worth taking as it's free and you'll still learn something! -
The course is really good! And the information they provide is clear an precise. The topics are split in easy to understand lessons which makes them fun to watch.
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Leonardo Eiji KawamotoLund University courses are marvelous. I did both Circular Economy - sustainable materials management and Greening the Economy - Sustainable Cities and they were very important to help with the comprehension of how integrated environment and devel… -
Excellent learning platform. This course was a great and very interesting to learn about cities taking to tackle climate change. Reading materials, videos, webinars lead me to dive-deep into the matter and create ideas from insight . The quizzes were interesting and relatively easy and just there to ensure one had read the material. I would recommend this course for those wanting to get an understanding of projects going on in different cities around the world that can be inspiring. The more you know , the more you grow. I strongly believe that the lesson learned from this course will positively enrich my knowledge that will ultimately help me in my career in the future ahead also add a jewel in the crown.
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Great for catching up with updated and innovative ways for rethinking our urban future. Accurate general overview of our global present addressing challenges and questioning what actions and decisions do we must take towards achiving sustainable development Friendly and easy multimedia materials which explain theoretical concepts and shows in real life practical examples that are happening today in many cities around the globe. Not over loading or time consuming at all
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Fascinating Five Shades of Green:
Transformation, Infrastructure, Experimentation, Life Styles, Visions
Five-pronged greening of the economy and quality of life
Not hit and run, but sustainable in an on-going fashion
Thank you Lund. Thank you Coursera.
Thank you IIIEE MOOC Team
And a request for a MOOC on individual level contribution towards a Global Greening Mission - a practical program on VSL (voluntary simplicity lifestyle)
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Good course on the huge impact cities have on the planet's sustainability. Currently 55% of the planet's population live in cities and that percentage is growing rapidly.
A strong focus of the course is governance and influencing change, rather than listing "technical" solutions. It also brings into question the "smart city" solutions pushed by corporate players.
If you are interested in urban sustainability, I would recommend it.
