Module details for State, Environment and Crime

Description

This Module is based on critically engaging with crimes and harm against the natural environment, generally referred to as ‘green crime’. It does so by focusing on competing theoretical tools that aim to discern issues pertinent to green crime and environmental harm. Theoretical propositions discussed will include: environmental risk, environmental rights and ecological justice, while in doing so the issues like climate change, land reform, and wildlife conservation, will be analyzed. Where appropriate case studies local to Scotland will be used in analytically engaging with these issues.

Aims

The aim of this Module is to provide the student with an overview of the emerging, increasingly important and often competing criminological and sociological perspectives and frameworks regarding the issue of crimes and harms against the environment. It does so by discerning the ‘offence’ (what crimes and harms are inflicted on the environment, why and how); the ‘offenders’ (who commits the crime against the environment, and why); and, the ‘victims’ (who suffers as a result of environmental damage, and how).

Learning Outcomes

By the end of this module the student should be able to:

1.  Critically outline and discuss the range of criminological and sociological perspectives on environmental hurt and crime.

2.  Understand why green crime is as important as other more traditional forms of crime.

3.  Understand the linkages between green crime and traditional forms of crime.

Indicative Content

1 Contextualizing green criminology

Here we will introduce the module and discuss traditional theoretical tools as regards Sociology and Criminology and their development as theoretical frameworks in understanding environmental crime and harm.

2 The risk society, the precariat and green harm crime

This lecture talks to the rise of the risk society and in association with this the idea of the precariat as a vulnerable class of global peoples.

3 Animal rights, species justice and animism

During this lecture, we discuss the rise of the ‘environmental paradigm’ as an all-embracing theoretical concept in helping us understand environmental harm and crime. Using the theoretical idea the ‘new-materialism’, non-human agency as regards animal rights and species justice will be explained in relation to contemporary environmental degradation

4 Ecological victims: confronting the effect of crimes and harms against the environment

This lecture looks at the developing concept of ‘green victimology’. Using concepts like poverty, class and gender, it will look at those affected by environmental crime and other environmentally damaging activities, and begin to outline the role of criminal justice in ameliorating these problems

5 The regulation of environmental harm: Environmental crime and governance

This lecture explores the extent to which law and governance contribute to the protection of the environment. In doing so the interlinked concepts of environmental governance and environmental law will be discussed and terms such as deliberative democracy will be introduced

6 Environmental citizenship and ecological justice as a green panacea

7 Wildlife crime and field sports: The case of wildlife hunting

This lecture looks at the case of wildlife crime in Scotland, exploring the management of parts of Scotland as grouse moors and the issue of stalking.

8 Land-Reform and environmental rights

This lecture looks at the topical issues of land-reform in Scotland and its embodiment of land rights in relation to environmental justice, as regards Scottish legislation.

9 Resource depletion, oil peak and the circular economy

In this lecture, we look at the harms caused by our continuing exploitation of oil, gas and other natural resources into the twenty-first century. And we will explore the idea of the circular economy in Scotland, as a policy aimed at addressing the environmental harms caused by resource exploitation.

10 Policing the environment: NGOs and environmental enforcers

Here the concept of the ‘green movement’ will be discussed and its role, especially that of NGOs, in regulating environmental crime and harm will be examined. In doing so, theoretical concepts such as ‘Regulation theory’, will be introduced.

Teaching and Learning Work Loads