Environmental Sustainability and Green Technology

Course Overview

This IEMA accredited interdisciplinary postgraduate course is for students from any undergraduate degree discipline and provides a broad understanding of environmental problems whilst embedding the appropriate specialist scientific, managerial and generic skills for a career in the environmental sustainability sector.

The course incorporates Keele University’s internationally recognised expertise in research and teaching on environmental issues. It is taught by a team of environmental specialists working in the fields of environmental technologies, biological sciences, chemical science, project management, and environmental policy and politics.

Luke Bellamy - Doctoral Student Researcher

"Keele focuses greatly on interdisciplinary approaches to research, and the MSc is no different in this regard. I have used these interdisciplinary research skills to explore two distinct topic areas, which requires the “out-of-the-box” thinking that this MSc instilled in me"

JAMES MOTHERSHAW - Account Executive

"Make sure you take all the advice you can from those around you. All the staff show real care towards the students on the course and want everyone to reach their true potential."

JAMES GRAHAM - PhD student

"The MSc ESGT taught me what I was capable of. It also taught me that working really hard on something you’re passionate about pays off."

SEN WANG

"The design of the entire course, not just the content taught in the classroom, has been very helpful for my work."

NATHAN WALKER - PhD Student/Researcher

"I still use the skills developed on the course now and I expect they will make up the foundation of whatever skills I go onto develop from here. "

OLUMUYIWA AAKINMOJU

"Every bit of information you get on the MSc ESGT course comes in handy sooner or later; join or read of environmental discussions as much as you can…..the first question I was asked at my interview was on an environmental issue I read on the MSc ESGT’s Facebook page two days earlier! "

AUSTIN OMUTTO - project officer

"The MSc ESGT provided me with knowledge and understanding on key fields such as international environmental law, environmental diplomacy, sustainable technologies, research and project management. In the organizations I have worked in, I found these to be the most applicable fields mainly due to the changes Kenya is undergoing as a country and Africa as a continent."

SHANSHAN WEI - Assistant Engineer

"Since I started the course in January, I had to integrate into the group of students who had started in September. The most valuable things I’ve learned in Keele are independence and how to cooperate positively with others. These skills also help me a lot now when I am doing my job."

RAUL GUERRA SALINAS

"Build relationships, get involved, participate in events, get to know and understand what is happening around the globe. Good grades can only take you so far!"

About the course

***As part of the SEND project at Keele University, there is an exciting opportunity to undertake a paid three-month project and is suitable for prospective students studying for an MSc during 2020. This opportunity is open to both UK and International students. Further information can be found below.***

Overview

The MSc in Environmental Sustainability and Green Technology is designed to provide an interdisciplinary understanding of environmental challenges whilst giving you the opportunity to specialise in several sustainability themes related to geosciences, energy generation, ecology, green information technology, environmental policy and politics, and project management.

As a student on the course you’ll gain

An understanding of knowledge in the areas of science, technology, policy and green political theory relevant to environmental sustainability
Experience in analytical and computer techniques to equip you with the skills to contribute to the solving of environmental challenges
A conceptual understanding to critically evaluate current research and advance scholarship in environmental sustainability
A comprehensive understanding of experimental design, planning and scientific techniques within your research project
Problem-solving and team-working skills relevant to the implementation of sustainable technologies and policies.

Your Research Project

Your research project is the time for you to focus on your own interests and to develop and expand your knowledge in areas that will help with your future career. You could have the opportunity to collaborate with an external organisation and work with them on a real life issue, giving you valuable experience and something really interesting to talk about at interview! Recently, the students organized their own incredibly successful Masters Research Conference to showcase their work and to network with potential employers, attended by project supervisors, external collaborators and other businesses. Students have written theses on diverse topics from nuclear energy development to community education.

KRISP Placements

Some of our students from the programme have collaborated and provided their expertise to local businesses as part of the Keele Research and Innovation Support Programme (KRISP). Click the links below to find out more about the types of projects our students have been involved with.

SEND Project

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As part of the SEND project at Keele University, this is an exciting opportunity to undertake a paid three-month project and is suitable for prospective students studying for an MSc during 2020. This opportunity is open to both UK and International students, and there are three paid opportunities available.

This fixed term employment is open to students on the MSc Environmental Sustainability and Green Technology course starting in October 2019, working with a local Small to Medium Enterprise (SME) based in Staffordshire on a project related to smart energy and/or sustainability running from March 2020. This will give the successful candidate(s) the opportunity to gain valuable experience in a rapidly growing field alongside studying for your MSc. If you are interested in this opportunity and would like to learn more, please contact to arrange an informal discussion: Dr Sharon George (MSc Environmental Sustainability and Green Technology Course Director)

About the SEND Project

A European first, this world-class demonstrator facility for smart energy research and development will enable the testing and evaluation of new and evolving energy technologies. Working collaboratively with local partner companies, the programme will provide the opportunity to assess the efficiency of these new technologies in terms of energy reduction, cost and CO 2 emissions.

The Smart Energy Network Demonstrator project (ref 32R16P00706) is part-funded through the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) as part of the England 2014 to 2020 European Structural and Investment Funds (ESIF) Growth Programme. It is also part-funded by the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS).

For information on current SEND projects, please see the SEND Projects Tab.

Teaching facilities

The Keele Sustainability Hub site contains both academic buildings and buildings for technological companies. Renewable energy sources are integrated into these buildings, incorporating:

Solar thermal
Solar PV
Climate control and underfloor heating
Smart lighting systems
Rainwater harvesting
Ground source heat
Bio-fuel woodchip burner
Wind turbine

The main focus of the site is the specialist Hub for Sustainability building. The Sustainability Hub acts as a focus for the research into, teaching of, and management of sustainability and green technology that takes place at Keele University. It’s a means to bring all these different activities together and then to communicate the innovations and implications out to the rest of campus, schools, businesses and the wider community.

As a student on the MSc in Environmental Sustainability and Green Technology programme a lot of your teaching will take place at the Hub, and you’ll have direct access to these environmental developments first hand. The students use the Hub and its facilities as their base - a place to meet and to study - during their year at Keele.

For more information on the Keele Hub and Keele’s energy plans see here.

If you’d like an informal chat about the course, please send an email to Jamie Pringle, Senior Lecturer in Engineering & Environmental Geosciences.

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Grid Edge Estates are a sustainable property development company using modern methods of construction and renewable energy sources, developing affordable smart homes that strive towards being carbon neutral. The mission of 'Positive Energy Homes' is to prove that the homes of the future can be delivered with zero bills and not only this, that home owners (or housing managers) can generate income from the excess energy produced from each home as an individual 'power plant'. We will use sustainable off site modern methods of construction, i.e. Modular Homes, to achieve this.

This project will help to develop our renewable energy packages and will include examining the energy produced from Solar Tiles per home (& potentially Wind) throughout the year firstly on a typical home then site wide development, and to map how this can be stored during off peak periods in batteries and deployed during peak periods. It will also examine the income generated for the homeowner or development manager from the excess energy using integrated optimisation software to manage smart storage and deployment and look into how this can be traded on the Micro Grid on site between homeowners (AI and Block chain potentially required).

Course structure

The MSc in Environmental Sustainability and Green Technology is a 180 credit course running full time over 12 months, or part time over 2 years. The main intake is in September and there is also the opportunity to start the course in January.

How the course is taught

We employ a wide variety of teaching and learning strategies including lectures, guest lectures from industry specialists and group discussions. The 60-credit research project is preceded by a Research Skills module.

Assessment

Modules are assessed by assignment, such as poster and oral presentations; media articles; reflective reports; essays, and/or examination. The research project is based on the submission of a 15 - 20,000 word report that is undertaken by the student in conjunction with an academic supervisor and, where appropriate, an industrial collaborator.

Course content

The MSc programme comprises 8 taught 15-credit modules and a 60-credit research project.

This structure allows students to obtain a postgraduate certificate (60 credits) or a postgraduate diploma (120 credits) depending on the number of modules studied.

The four core modules provide an overview of important key concepts and principles around sustainability and green technology, and skills to carry out the research project. You can choose an additional four optional modules to tailor the programme to topics you are most interested in and fit with your career goals.

Core Taught Modules

Core modules

ESC-40034 – An Introduction to Sustainable Technologies (15 credits)

This module provides students from diverse entry disciplines with an overview of key concepts, debates, processes and discourses with regard to the main clean(er) and sustainable technologies, which will be covered in detail in optional modules. In addition, the key process and issues involved in using resources and the effects both now and in the future will be considered.

Topics will include:

Energy security
Power distribution and storage
Renewable sources of energy and their exploitation for power generation
Conventional and Unconventional hydrocarbons
Nuclear energy
Geological, Biological and Ocean Sequestration
Climate Change, greenhouse gases and the greenhouse effect
Protecting and Managing Water and food resources
Biodiversity and biosecurity

Students will cover topics across the field, which will prepare them to specialise in greater depth in one or more areas through later optional modules and in their dissertation.

PIR-40106 Dimensions of Environmental Politics (15 credits)

This module aims to provide students with an overview of key concepts, debates, processes and discourses in relation to the political dynamics of ‘the environment’. It aims to be a broad introduction to the main facets of environmental politics and covers a substantial amount of ground in a relatively short amount of time. The seminars therefore provide breadth rather than depth. The aim is that students will gain a good general understanding across the field, which will prepare them to specialise in greater depth in one or more areas in other optional modules and their dissertation. Students will explore the following three key questions in environmental politics: - How did ‘the environment’ come to be seen as a political question? - How have political institutions responded to what have been called environmental problems? - What are the challenges such problems individually or collectively pose for existing political structures, institutions, and practices, and the theoretical presumptions underlying them? However in writing the assessed essay students will chose a question that requires in depth research on a specific aspect of the module. Students will also have the opportunity to develop their research and communication skills by participating in weekly debates.

ESC-40030 Case Studies in Sustainability (15 credits)

This highly interactive module allows students to specialise in aspects of topics they find interesting. Subjects covered include topical and often controversial issues of technology development and sustainable living. Important employability skills are developed as the abilities to assimilate data, work as a team and solve problems are practised. In this module you will work as a member of a team to consider complex scientific, political, management and ethical issues relating to problems in the environmental sustainability and green technology sectors. This will involve you improving your professional negotiation and presentation skills as you review case studies and consult widely and engage in student-led debates in controversial and topical issues around sustainability and energy supply and demand.

ESC-40048 Research and Business Skills, Project and Portfolio Management (15 credits)

Research funding bodies have identified a need at the postgraduate level to provide training in generic research skills and for students to develop a skills base that would enable them to fulfil their career aspirations. This module encourages postgraduates to develop research and communication skills for research and commercial environments. The module includes experimental design and data analysis for science and social science, project management, communication skills, public understanding of science, career management, intellectual property rights, and the role of ethics. Commercial aspects are a key factor in project management and decision making. Students learn how to put together professional project planning documents including a project scope and business plan incorporating a detailed implementation, resource, and financial management plan.

ESC-40029 Research Project (60 credits)

Students develop their research, problem-solving skills and independence by undertaking a research project based on real-world challenges in sustainability, either at Keele or in collaboration with an associated academic, private or public sector organisation. Research projects proposed by Keele researchers and partnering organisations and companies, and made available to students. Students are also encouraged to propose project ideas of their own. Projects can be based on any relevant area of interest as long as it’s agreed with a Keele supervisor. Students submit a 15-20,000 word dissertation outlining the aims and objectives, background and context of the research, methods and results. The report will include discussion of the significance of findings and any implications and recommendations in the context of wider research and/or application of the knowledge into practice.