• University of Exeter Business School
• Module

Environmental Analytics

Module description

This module will cover key analytical principles that enable businesses to manage their relationship with the environment. It will include situations in which the environment impacts upon business – such as natural hazard risk management and managing natural resources in the supply chain for renewable energy and food; and situations in which businesses impact upon the environment – such as managing carbon emissions and waste management.  You will learn about key environmental datasets, including their structure, uncertainties and sources, and techniques for using these datasets to create actionable intelligence for businesses.

Module aims - intentions of the module

There are increasing pressures for businesses to better understand their interactions with the environment.  This module aims to equip you with the knowledge and skills required to understand:

• The key ways in which businesses impact upon the environment
• The key ways in which the environment impacts upon businesses
• Key topics in environmental corporate responsibility
• How environmental data and analytics can support businesses in managing their interaction with the environment

Intended Learning Outcomes (ILOs)

ILO: Module-specific skills

On successfully completing the module you will be able to...

• 1. P2: Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of key business processes and structures, and the role of business analytics in decision support.
• 2. P3: Critically analyse and discuss current issues and influences relevant to the ongoing development of business analytics, and its application.
• 3. P4: Draw on knowledge of current research and practice to identify and apply appropriate analytics methods and tools to a range of business situations.
• 4. P5: Create, manage, interrogate, interpret and visualise data from a wide range of different sources, types and including structured and unstructured forms.

ILO: Discipline-specific skills

On successfully completing the module you will be able to...

• 5. P6: Critically analyse the use of data within a business context, identifying strengths and limitations.
• 6. P8: Work with stakeholders from a range of backgrounds to identify the need for, design, develop, and deploy, analytics solutions within a business environment
• 7. P10: Contribute effectively to managerial decision processes within a business context.

ILO: Personal and key skills

On successfully completing the module you will be able to...

• 8. P13: An ethical ethos: Our graduates understand the social, financial and environmental factors that can impact on corporate sustainability and are able to make decisions openly and responsibly.

Syllabus plan

The following content will be covered in an integrated fashion throughout the course

• Sources and nature of environmental data, and their relevance to business
• Introduction to working with geospatial-temporal data, and applications in business
• Descriptive analytics, metrics and indicators for environmental reporting and corporate responsibility
• Climate change, waste and natural resources
• Environmental analytics applications – for example, natural hazard management and green finance

Learning activities and teaching methods (given in hours of study time)

Details of learning activities and teaching methods

Formative assessment

Summative assessment (% of credit)

Details of summative assessment

Details of re-assessment (where required by referral or deferral)

Re-assessment notes

Re-assessment will be in nature to the original assessment, but the topic, data, and materials must be new.

Deferral – if you miss an assessment for certificated reasons judged acceptable by the Mitigation Committee, you will normally be either deferred in the assessment or an extension may be granted. The mark given for a reassessment taken as a result of deferral will not be capped and will be treated as it would be if it were your first attempt at the assessment.

Referral – if you have failed the module overall (i.e. a final overall module mark of less than 50%) you will be required to re-take some or all parts of the assessment, as decided by the Module Convenor. The final mark given for a module where re-assessment was taken as a result of referral will be capped at 50%.

Indicative learning resources - Basic reading

Guided reading will be provided via module ELE pages in advance of scheduled lectures and workshops and will include a diverse range of materials.  The following resources, available via the University Library, are indicative of the type and level of information you should expect to review.

• Henry, C., & Tubiana, L.  (2018). Earth at risk: natural capital and the quest for sustainability. New York and Chichester: Columbia University Press.
• Stahel, W. R. (2019). The circular economy: A user’s guide. New York: Routledge.
• Haining, R, P. (2003). Spatial data analysis: theory and practice. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
• Stern, N. H. (2007). The economics of climate change: The Stern review. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

You should also expect to review materials from academic journals such as Nature, and non-academic publications by organisations such as World Economic Forum, United Nations Environment Programme, Bank of England and Ellen Macarthur Foundation.   

Key words search

Environmental analytics, climate change, circular economy, sustainability, environmental data