IREn5023 Sustainable Development, Climate Change and Innovation – Practitioner’s Perspective

Faculty of Social Studies
Autumn 2024
Extent and Intensity
1/1/0. 4 credit(s). Type of Completion: zk (examination).
In-person direct teaching
Teacher(s)
prof. PhDr. Zdeněk Kříž, Ph.D. (lecturer)
Rastislav Vrbenský, MSc, Ph.D. (lecturer), Mgr. Martin Chovančík, Ph.D. (deputy)
Ing. Mgr. Adriana Ilavská, Ph.D. (assistant)
Guaranteed by
prof. PhDr. Zdeněk Kříž, Ph.D.
Department of International Relations and European Studies – Faculty of Social Studies
Contact Person: Olga Cídlová, DiS.
Supplier department: Department of International Relations and European Studies – Faculty of Social Studies
Timetable
Wed 16. 10. 14:00–17:40 U41, Thu 17. 10. 8:00–11:40 U53, Wed 6. 11. 14:00–15:40 P22, 16:00–17:40 U43, Thu 7. 11. 8:00–11:40 U53, Wed 4. 12. 14:00–15:40 P22, 16:00–17:40 U43, Thu 5. 12. 8:00–11:40 U53
Course Enrolment Limitations
The course is only offered to the students of the study fields the course is directly associated with.

The capacity limit for the course is 12 student(s).
Current registration and enrolment status: enrolled: 13/12, only registered: 1/12
fields of study / plans the course is directly associated with
Course objectives
The course introduces and analyses the concepts of sustainable development, Agenda 2030 and SDGs along with the approaches and tools for their implementation, monitoring and financing at the global, regional and national levels. Special attention will be given to the region of Eastern Europe and Central Asia. This overall framework will be illustrated by in-depth analyses of development system response to selected SDG – namely SDG 13 on Climate Action, with particular attention to climate science, key drivers of climate change, climate-related impacts, vulnerabilities as well as international agreements as well as importance of climate finance. The ability to innovate and continuous change management has been recognized as one of the key aspects of successful implementation of Agenda 2030/ SDGs. The course will therefore explain the role of innovation in public sector. This will include theoretical and methodological underpinnings of innovation, the skills, attitudes and behaviors required for promoting innovation as well as concrete toolkits used by key public sector actors. Further attention will be given to understanding of innovation ecosystem and real-life examples of building the culture of innovation in UN and other international organizations. Last part of the course will concentrate on executive aspects of Agenda 2030/ SDGs implementation, such as leadership, organizational and change management, result-based and project management cycle as well as individual career management of professionals working in the public sector. The course puts particular emphasis on combining the understanding of overall concepts and their theoretical underpinnings with practical examples and hands-on experience (provided both by lecturer as well as guest speakers) from practical implementation of public polices and development projects, especially in middle- and low-income countries.
Learning outcomes
Upon successful completion of the course, the students will be able to i) demonstrate comprehensive understanding of genesis and theoretical underpinnings of Agenda 2030/ SDGs framework and challenges of its practical implementation, ii) and specifically illustrate this understanding in one of key SDGs - SDG 13 on Climate Action. They will also iii) understand the role of innovation in promoting sustainable development and public policy, and iv) acquire specific knowledge of diverse innovation approaches and tools. Finally, students will be equipped with v) understanding of key concepts of leadership and organizational and result-based management, project management cycle as well as individual career management in the public sector and development. As the course will use numerous real-life examples, the course learning will lead to understanding of the issues and building practical skills directly applicable in development and public policy related jobs.
Syllabus
  • Block I. Lecture 1: Sustainable Development: From MDGs to Agenda 2030/ SDGs – Conceptual Framework and Related Challenges Lecture 2: Sustainable Development Goals – Implementation, Monitoring and Financing Case Study: Nationalization of SDGs in the Western Balkans Guest Speaker:  Prof. Dr. Igor Luksic, Former Prime Minister, Minister of Finance and Minister of Foreign Affairs of Montenegro, PwC Southeast Europe, ESG Business Development Leader Required literature/ sources:  Georgeson, M., M. Maslin, Mark. 2018. Putting the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals Into Practice: A Review of Implementation, Monitoring, and Finance. Geo: Geography and Environment. 5 https://www.researchgate.net/publication/324547496_Putting_the_United_Nations_Sustainable_Development_Goals_into_practice_A_review_of_implementation_monitoring_and_finance  Langford, M. 2016. Lost in Transformation? The Politics of the Sustainable Development Goals. Ethics & International Affairs, 30, no. 2(2016), pp. 167-176. Carnegie Council for Ethics in International Affairs https://www.jus.uio.no/ior/english/people/aca/malcolml/sdgs-politics-langford.pdf  United Nations. Sustainable Development Goals Report 2022 https://unstats.un.org/sdgs/report/2022/  United Nations. Sustainable Development Goals Report 2021 – especially pages 5-27 https://unstats.un.org/sdgs/report/2021/The-Sustainable-Development-Goals-Report-2021.pdf  SDSN. 2021. Sustainable Development Report 2021: The Decade of Action for SDG . https://s3.amazonaws.com/sustainabledevelopment.report/2021/2021-sustainable-development-report.pdf Recommended literature/ sources:  Video – Nations United: Urgent Solutions for Urgent Times https://www.un.org/sustainabledevelopment/sustainable-development-goals/  Easterly. W. 2015. The SDGs Should Stand for Senseless, Dreamy, Garbled. Foreign Policy https://foreignpolicy.com/2015/09/28/the-sdgs-are-utopian-and-worthless-mdgs-development-rise-of-the-rest/  Devex: UN Chief: ‘We Are in Trouble, and Need to Change Course’ https://www.devex.com/news/un-chief-we-are-in-trouble-and-we-need-to-change-course-98135?access_key=6ptq14KiN8GMNT7L-8nrEOA_D1pdhquk&utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=newswire&utm_campaign=special&utm_content=image&mkt_tok=eyJpIjoiWlRJMFpEQXdZakkxWVRNNSIsInQiOiI0b0FTdFN5T1NLcHRVZ0hmTWhzajBNa00zTW9BMTlvZUVPMGNqVU5EQStPNGwxeFFFSVl6MFBcL2ZYZVBYeFMxck1PamFkenlKY2kxWWtLN25hbnV4RDdjWjNjYTJBMjJOcDZYU2tLRGZvZmhmK240RlFTSDlVaGtBdkQyMVBxclMifQ%3D%3D Block II. Lecture 3: Climate Change: Climate Science, Key Drivers, Impacts and Vulnerabilities Lecture 4: Climate Action: International Agreements, Sources of Climate Finance and Climate Financial Flows Case Study: Understanding the Relations Between Climate and Gender Guest Speaker:  Dr. Aleksandra Novikova, IPCC Lead Author, Senior Expert, IKEM (Institute for Climate, Energy and Mobility), Berlin, Germany Required literature/ sources:  IPPC Sixth Assessment Report – Climate Change 2022: Impacts, Adaptation and Vulnerability https://www.ipcc.ch/report/ar6/wg2/  Global Goals for Sustainable Development. Goal 13: Climate Action https://www.globalgoals.org/13-climate-action  Harvey, H. 2020. The Case for Climate Pragmatism, Foreign Affairs, July/ August 2020 https://www.foreignaffairs.com/reviews/review-essay/2020-06-09/case-climate-pragmatism  IPCC. 2021. Climate Change 2021. Summary for Policymakers. https://www.ipcc.ch/report/ar6/wg1/  CPI. 2017. Global Landscape of Climate Finance 2017 https://www.climatepolicyinitiative.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/2017-Global-Landscape-of-Climate-Finance.pdf  Lukšić, I., Bošković, B., Novikova, A., Vrbensky, R. 2022. Innovative financing of the sustainable development goals in the countries of the Western Balkans. Energ Sustain Soc 12, 15). https://doi.org/10.1186/s13705-022-00340-w Recommended literature/ sources:  CAREC. 2020. Climate Vulnerability, Infrastructure, Finance and Governance in CEREC Region. CAREC Institute Research Report https://www.carecinstitute.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/CI-climate-research-report-29-May-2020.pdf  GCF. 2020. Green Climate Fund Programming manual https://www.greenclimate.fund/sites/default/files/document/gcf-programming-manual.pdf Conference Day Conference 1: Sustainable Development Conference Conference 2: Climate Change Conference During the Conference Day, the students will practice the participation in the public even in various roles using their knowledge gained during the courses as well as self-study. The conferences will be dedicated to specific subjects, namely sustainable development, climate change, innovation and leadership and management. The students will be assigned to perform following roles: - Moderator – 1 student will be a moderator, s/he will introduce the topic of the panel and panel members, ask the questions, keep the flow of the discussion, summarize the presentations and conclude the panel; - Presenters – 4-5 students will be asked to make a short presentation (up-to 7 minutes and 5 slides) answering specific questions (the questions will be assigned in advance allowing for preparation, the questions asked during the conferences will also be used during the final test); - Discussant – 1-2 students will be asked to reflect on the presentations and bring their own perspective on the issues and questions discussed; - Audience – other students, as participants of the conference, will be encouraged to ask questions to the panelists and discussant as well as share their comments. Block III. Lecture 5: Demystifying Innovation in Public Sector – Conceptual and Methodological Underpinnings Lecture 6: Public Innovation – Approaches, Skills and Tools Case Study: Promoting Innovation in UNDP and UN Women Guest Speaker:  Mr. Mikko Annala, Head of Governance Innovation, Demos Helsinki, Finland and/ or Dr. Milica Begovic, Regional Innovation Leader, UNDP Regional Hub Istanbul, Turkey Required literature/ sources:  De Vries, H.A., V.J.J.M. Bekkers, L.G. Tummers. 2015. ‘Innovation in the Public Sector: A Systemic Review and Future Research Agenda’. Public Administration. https://www.dropbox.com/s/jwbql33f3taoizx/InnovationinthePublicSectorASystematicReviewandFutureResearchAgenda-FINAL.pdf?dl=0  Nesta. 2019. 20 Tools for Innovating in Government https://media.nesta.org.uk/documents/20_Tools_Innovating_Government.pdf  States of Change. 2018. What Are the Skills and Attitudes for Successful Public Problem-solving https://states-of-change.org/stories/what-are-the-skills-and-attitudes-for-successful-public-problem-solving Recommended literature/ sources:  States of Change. 2018. Exploring the Unobvious: Six Principles to Establish Experimental Practice https://states-of-change.org/stories/exploring-the-unobvious-six-principles-to-establish-experimental-practices  Nesta. 2006. Development Impact and You: Practical Tools To Trigger&Support Social Innovation https://diytoolkit.org/?cn-reloaded=1  UNDP. 2017. Project Cycle Hackers’ Toolkit https://www.eurasia.undp.org/content/rbec/en/home/library/innovation/hackers-toolkit.html  Demos Helsinki. 2020. Vision Paper: Empowering Governments to Steer in 21st Century https://demoshelsinki.fi/julkaisut/vision-paper-empowering-governments-to-steer-the-21st-century/ Block IV. Lecture 7: Leadership and Change Management in Public Organization, Theory of Change, Result-based Management and Project Management Cycle Lecture 8: Career Management Cycle, Competency Framework, Job Applications and Interview Tips Guest Speaker:  Mr. Olivier Adam, Former UN Volunteer Executive Coordinator, UNDP Deputy Regional Director for Europe and Central Asia, United Nations Resident Coordinator in Ukraine and/or Ms. Afshan Khan, UNICEF Regional Director for Europe and Central Asia, Geneva, Switzerland Required literature/ sources:  Gosling, J., H. Mitzberg. 2003. The Five Minds of a Manager. Harvard Business Review, November 2003 Issue. https://hbr.org/2003/11/the-five-minds-of-a-manager  Vahamaki, J., Ch. Verger. 2019. Learning from Result-Based Management Evaluations and Reviews. OECD Development Cooperation Working Paper. https://www.oecd-ilibrary.org/docserver/3fda0081-en.pdf?expires=1601554653&id=id&accname=guest&checksum=8ED81A139FFF3E77EE92EA07B86AD21B  UNICEF. 2016. Theory of Change. Methodological Briefs. https://www.unicef-irc.org/publications/pdf/brief_2_theoryofchange_eng.pdf Recommended literature/ sources:  Shutt., C. 2016. Towards an Alternative Development Measurement Paradigm https://eba.se/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/Rapport2016_07_webb.pdf  UN Women. Values and Competencies Framework https://www.unwomen.org/-/media/headquarters/attachments/sections/about%20us/employment/un-women-values-and-competencies-framework-en.pdf?la=en&vs=637 Conference Day Wednesday 8 December 2021 – 16:00 – 19:00 (Room M117) Conference 3: Innovation Conference Conference 4: Organizational and Personal Management Conference During the Conference Day, the students will practice the participation in the public even in various roles using their knowledge gained during the courses as well as self-study. The conferences will be dedicated to specific subjects, namely sustainable development, climate change, innovation and leadership and management. The students will be assigned to perform following roles: - Moderator – 1 student will be a moderator, s/he will introduce the topic of the panel and panel members, ask the questions, keep the flow of the discussion, summarize the presentations and conclude the panel; - Presenters – 4-5 students will be asked to make a short presentation (up-to 7 minutes and 5 slides) answering specific questions (the questions will be assigned in advance allowing for preparation, the questions asked during the conferences will also be used during the final test); - Discussant – 1-2 students will be asked to reflect on the presentations and bring their own perspective on the issues and questions discussed; - Audience – other students, as participants of the conference, will be encouraged to ask questions to the panelists and discussant as well as share their comments.
Literature
  •  Langford, M. 2016. Lost in Transformation? The Politics of the Sustainable Development Goals. Ethics & International Affairs, 30, no. 2(2016), pp. 167-176. Carnegie Council for Ethics in International Affairs.
  •  De Vries, H.A., V.J.J.M. Bekkers, L.G. Tummers. 2015. ‘Innovation in the Public Sector: A Systemic Review and Future Research Agenda’. Public Administration.
  •  Gosling, J., H. Mitzberg. 2003. The Five Minds of a Manager. Harvard Business Review, November 2003 Issue.
  •  Georgeson, M., M. Maslin, Mark. 2018. Putting the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals into practice: A review of implementation, monitoring, and finance. Geo: Geography and Environment. 5.
  •  Damanpur, F., M. Schneider. 2009. Characteristics of Innovation and Innovation Adoption in Public Organizations: Assessing the Role of Managers. Journal of Public Administration Research and Theory.
Teaching methods
The course consists of lectures combined with interactive class discussions and 4 conferences dedicated to the key topics/ blocks of the course, special attention will be given to sharing and discussing practical case studies and examples from public sector and development field. In addition, each block will feature host presentation from leading practitioner in specific field, such as scientist, former high-ranking politician, high-level UN official and similar. The presentations and subsequent discussions aim at maximizing learning how to apply acquired knowledge in sustainable development, innovation, leadership and management on concrete, real-life public sector and development issues. Lectures serve as important introduction to the issues of the course, it is however assumed that additional part of subject matter knowledge will be acquired through self-studying of the recommended literature.
Assessment methods
During the course the students need to prepare and present one presentation on assigned topic or perform other role in the conferences as well as successfully complete the written exam.
Language of instruction
English
Further comments (probably available only in Czech)
Study Materials
The course is taught annually.
Teacher's information
Dr. Rastislav Vrbensky (Former UNDP Deputy Regional Director for Europe and Central Asia, UN Resident Coordinator in Montenegro and UNDP Country Director in Tajikistan)
The course is also listed under the following terms Autumn 2020, Autumn 2021, Autumn 2022, Autumn 2023.
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