Material Flow Analysis for Resilient Societies

Course goals

Content

People know natural resource consumption and impacts of human activities continue to grow. Where do they come from? How do they evolve over time? How do the products we consume and the way we use resources to make them relate to global flows of materials, waste and emissions? How do materials such as metals in personal electronics or other infrastructures accumulate in our cities? The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), national governments and NGOs know that you cannot manage what you cannot measure. They are increasingly interested in tracing the flows from the places of extraction through to our factories and cities.
 
In this course (previously called Sustainable Resource Use – SRU), students will examine underlying concepts of sustainable use of resources and energy. Students will learn methods for assessing flows and stocks of materials, wastes, emissions, and for establishing the links between products consumed in one country, manufactured in another one using resources of yet another one.
 
The key skill students acquire is Material Flow Analysis (MFA), as it is used by organisations such as the International Resource Panel (which is to resource use what the IPCC is to climate change). By tracing the raw materials of the everyday products, students can analyse solutions at different scales, from an entire value chain to a single company or home. Students will use MFA to identify hotspots of extraction, waste or emissions. In this way they can identify what stakeholders like companies, regional governments, NGOs, scientists, consumers and governments can do. The analysis reveals what their responsibilities, influence and interests are in minimising emissions, resource depletion or damage to habitats. Students will identify points in the value chain where new policies or technical innovation are needed, and they can make initial recommendations, which is a crucial skill in jobs within ministries, NGOs, responsible investment and consultancy.