Sustainability and Climate Changes

Code:

M.EC054

Acronym:

SAC

Keywords
Classification	Keyword
OFICIAL	Hydraulics

Instance: 2024/2025 - 2S

Active?	Yes
Responsible unit:	Department of Civil and Georesources Engineering
Course/CS Responsible:	Master in Civil Engineering

Cycles of Study/Courses

Acronym	No. of Students	Study Plan	Curricular Years	Credits UCN	Credits ECTS	Contact hours	Total Time
M.EC	22	Syllabus	1	-	6	45,5	162

Teaching language

English

Objectives

Sustainability and Climate Change comprises the integration of the concepts of sustainability and resilience into engineering practice and aims at providing the first foundations for understanding the impact of climate change on this practice. The integrated approach of these two aspects, Sustainability and Climate Change, is aligned with the goals of the European Green Deal, the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the Paris Agreement on climate, at national, European and international level.

Thus, the main objectives of the six double sessions of the UC are:

• Analyse the principles and practices of sustainable development and understand the impacts on human, economic and environmental systems.
• To know the general lines of the international agenda for sustainable development and climate change post-2015, and understand their scope and strong alignment that exists across the several international agreements.
• To know the most significant instruments for sustainable finance and understand their scope.
• Know how to distinguish and characterise scenarios of climate variability and climate change, as well as understand the basis of the modeling of extreme phenomena and their influence on the practice of engineering and management of assets built or to be built.
• Know how to distinguish and characterise the different components of risk (hazard, exposure and vulnerability) and apply risk assessment methodologies.
• Acquire knowledge for the development of adaptation strategies in the short, medium and long term.

Learning outcomes and competences

• Understand the principles of the transition to a sustainable economy.


• To know and deepen the content and objectives of the international agenda for sustainable development and climate change post-2015.


• Learn how to use climate change data and monitoring services.


• Acquire knowledge for the assessment of hydro-meteorological risks (floods, droughts, coastal erosion, temperature, rise in mean sea level, etc.) present and future at different spatial and temporal scales and this for different sectors.


• Learn how to use existing numerical tools and methodologies to assess the impact of climate risk adaptation and mitigation strategies.


• Acquire knowledge to evaluate the impact of adaptation strategies on the reduction of hydro-meteorological risks.

Working method

Presencial

Pre-requirements (prior knowledge) and co-requirements (common knowledge)

This UC is oriented to students with an interest in the development of a sustainable economy, that is, that combines economic growth with the preservation and regeneration of natural capital. It will be desirable for students to have some knowledge of hydraulics and mathematics - basic knowledge necessary for the application of calculation methodologies.

Program

1. Module 1: Sustainability and resilience. International agenda for sustainable development and climate change post-2015.


2. Module 2: Financial instruments for sustainable development.


3. Module 3: Climate change mitigation. Energy transition and carbon neutrality.


4. Module 4: Climate variability and climate change scenarios.


5. Module 5: Assessment and prediction of climate risks.


6. Module 6: Strategies and pathways for adapting to climate change.

Mandatory literature

Tiago Ferradosa; Luciana das Neves; Apontamentos de Sustentabilidade e Alterações Climáticas, 2022

Teaching methods and learning activities

The UC combines theoretical classes and practical cases to discuss different types of measures to solve critical societal challenges such as the impact of climate change on the intensification of inequalities and existing poverty situations and the importance of the preservation and regeneration of nature in the response to the climate emergency. The practical cases taught will focus mainly on the characterization and management of climate risks at regional/national or sectoral level (energy, transport, tourism, etc.).

keywords

Physical sciences
Technological sciences
Natural sciences

Evaluation Type

Distributed evaluation without final exam

Assessment Components

Designation	Weight (%)
Participação presencial	20,00
Trabalho escrito	80,00
Total:	100,00

Amount of time allocated to each course unit

Designation	Time (hours)
Estudo autónomo	116,50
Frequência das aulas	45,50
Total:	162,00

Eligibility for exams

Obtaining the final classification requires compliance with attendance to the curricular unit, as established in the rules of evaluation of the M.EC. A student is considered to have attended a course if, having been regularly enrolled, does not exceed the limit number of absences corresponding to 25% of  each of the types of classes planned.

Calculation formula of final grade

The final classification is defined on the basis of four individual assignments and one group assignment. These components have a weight of 15% (first two individual assignments), 20% (for the remaining two individual assignment) and 20% for group assignment.

The scope of each assignment will be defined yearly and communicated in a timely manner to the students. The final classification, CF, results from the following calculation formula:


CF = 0.30(TP1+TP2)+0.40(TP3+TP4)+0.20(TG1), scale 0 to 20 values, rounded to the unit.

where

TP1 – classification of individual assignment 1 to be carried out by approximately the end of the first third of the semester on a date to be defined in each year,

TP2 – classification of individual assignment 2 to be carried out by  approximately at mid of the second third of the semester on a date to be defined in each year,

TP3 – classification of individual assignment 3 to be carried out by approximately the end of the  second third of the semester on a date to be defined in each year,

TP4 - classification of individual assignment 1 to be carried out up to approximately at mid of the final third of the semester on a date to be defined in each year,

TG – classification of the group work to be carried out until the end of the semester.

 

NOTE 1: ALL students enrolled in the UC are classified according to this method.

NOTE 2: The Requisite Season (RE) consists of an evaluation test with a theoretical and practical component, to be held during the exam season, on a date to be defined.

NOTE 3: Students who fail the Distributed Assessment, or those who wish to make a grade improvement, may choose to take the assessment test mentioned in grade 2, being considered the highest grade for the purpose of final classification. To do so, they must formalise the request for this option up to 48 hours before the Appeal Examination.  The classification of assignment and group work cannot be improved.

NOTE 4: special exams comprise the TOTALITY of the subjects of the course.

Examinations or Special Assignments

Not applicable.

Internship work/project

Not applicable.

Special assessment (TE, DA, ...)

Students with Special Statutes are classified according to the method established in "Calculation of Final Grade", EXCEPT when they submit to examination in Special Season. In this case, the Students are evaluated in a single moment, which will consist of an exam classified from 0 to 20 values encompassing the TOTALITY of the subjects of the course (marks: Theoretical – 10 values; Practice – 10 values).

Classification improvement

Students who have already obtained approval may make CLASSIFICATION IMPROVEMENT, only once, under the following conditions:

(i) performing the evaluation test (classified from 0 to 20 values) of the RE of the year in which they obtained approval to the UC. The classification of assignment cannot be improved;

(ii) performing an evaluation test encompassing the TOTALITY of the subject (classified from 0 to 20 values) after the ER of the academic year in which they obtained approval to the UC;

The Final Classification in the Curricular Unit is the highest, between the one that had been obtained initially and the one that resulted from the classification improvement made.

Observations

SPECIAL RULES FOR MOBILE STUDENTS:

Frequency of undergraduate courses introductory to the themes versed in this curricular unit.

ESTIMATED WORKING TIME OUTSIDE OF CLASSES:

4 hours/week.

Bibliography

UC materials, along with the mandatory and optional bibliography, are provided online by session-by-session modules. A detailed list of books for further reading is also provided online for interested students.

Observações Bibliográficas

The bibliography references are presented for each topic taught.

Bibliography references are provided to students in digital format (page of the contents of the Curricular Unit in SIGARRA).