LW3GRE: Green Criminology: Environmental Crime and Climate Justice

Module code: LW3GRE

Module provider: School of Law

Credits: 20

Level: 6

When you’ll be taught: Semester 2

Module convenor: Jo Phoenix , email: j.b.m.phoenix@reading.ac.uk

Pre-requisite module(s):

Co-requisite module(s):

Pre-requisite or Co-requisite module(s):

Module(s) excluded:

Placement information: NA

Academic year: 2025/6

Available to visiting students: Yes

Talis reading list: No

Last updated: 29 April 2025

Overview

Module aims and purpose

Green criminology is about understanding environmental harm through a criminological lens. It asks questions about what forms of harm are being done to the environment, and where, by whom, to what effect, and with what consequences and responses. Whilst these questions have direct and important implications for how we think about the environment as a subject of criminal justice, they also beg further, broader and deeper questions regarding humans’ relationship to nature, and the underlying economic, political, social and cultural determinants of humans’ (ab)uses of the natural world (including amongst other things pollution, species injustice, biodiversity loss).

Module learning outcomes

By the end of the module, it is expected that students will be able to:

1. Critically interrogate and selectively apply key theoretical and conceptual tools for the understanding of environmental harm
2. Explore and evaluate the role played by the economic, political, social and cultural drivers of environmental harm
3. Critically examine selected issues of crime and justice in the context of environmental harm

Module content

• Understanding the Ecological Crisis, and its Criminological Dimensions
• Green Criminology – Theories, Concepts and Issues
• Understanding the Causes of Environmental Crime - Ecological Justice and Ecocide
• Climate-related Conflict (from resource wars to climate migration)
• Species Injustice – Harm and Rights Biodiversity Loss as a Crime
• Pollution and Waste as a Crime
• Environmental Law and Regulation
• Environmental Crime Prevention

Structure

Teaching and learning methods

A combination of lectures and seminar. Lectures provide students with a framework of understanding for the concepts and theories that will be discussed in the seminars. Students will be expected to undertake independent research in addition to the guided reading. Online sessions will provide assessment preparation ‘surgeries’ for students and other material to support their learning.

Study hours

At least 32 hours of scheduled teaching and learning activities will be delivered in person, with the remaining hours for scheduled and self-scheduled teaching and learning activities delivered either in person or online. You will receive further details about how these hours will be delivered before the start of the module.

Please note the independent study hours above are notional numbers of hours; each student will approach studying in different ways. We would advise you to reflect on your learning and the number of hours you are allocating to these tasks.

Semester 1 The hours in this column may include hours during the Christmas holiday period.

Semester 2 The hours in this column may include hours during the Easter holiday period.

Summer The hours in this column will take place during the summer holidays and may be at the start and/or end of the module.

Assessment

Requirements for a pass

Students need to achieve an overall module mark of 40% to pass this module.

Summative assessment

Penalties for late submission of summative assessment

The Support Centres will apply the following penalties for work submitted late:

Assessments with numerical marks

• where the piece of work is submitted after the original deadline (or any formally agreed extension to the deadline): 10% of the total marks available for that piece of work will be deducted from the mark for each working day (or part thereof) following the deadline up to a total of three working days;
• the mark awarded due to the imposition of the penalty shall not fall below the threshold pass mark, namely 40% in the case of modules at Level 3 (i.e. foundation modules for Part 0) and Levels 4-6 (i.e. undergraduate modules for Parts 1-3) and 50% in the case of Level 7 modules offered as part of an Integrated Masters or taught postgraduate degree programme;
• where the piece of work is awarded a mark below the threshold pass mark prior to any penalty being imposed, and is submitted up to three working days after the original deadline (or any formally agreed extension to the deadline), no penalty shall be imposed;
• where the piece of work is submitted more than three working days after the original deadline (or any formally agreed extension to the deadline): a mark of zero will be recorded.

Assessments marked Pass/Fail

• where the piece of work is submitted within three working days of the deadline (or any formally agreed extension of the deadline): no penalty will be applied;
• where the piece of work is submitted more than three working days after the original deadline (or any formally agreed extension of the deadline): a grade of Fail will be awarded.

The University policy statement on penalties for late submission can be found at: /cqsd/-/media/project/functions/cqsd/documents/qap/penaltiesforlatesubmission.pdf

You are strongly advised to ensure that coursework is submitted by the relevant deadline. You should note that it is advisable to submit work in an unfinished state rather than to fail to submit any work.

Formative assessment

Formative assessment is any task or activity which creates feedback (or feedforward) for you about your learning, but which does not contribute towards your overall module mark.

Case study draft

Reassessment

Additional costs