Otaniemi Upper Secondary School – Sustainable Future Project
Course code, full name, and status (C/EC/OP)
HI1: Human, Environment and Economy (C)
Topic
Environmental Change in Economic History
Duration
30-75min
Objectives (directly from the National Core Curriculum):
The objective of the module is that the student
- understand and produce non-fiction text typical of history as a field of knowledge and master the skill of reading statistics
- understand the nature of historical knowledge and are able to use and evaluate critically historical sources
- are familiar with the key processes that led to the formation of European societies and the global economic system
- understand the development that has led to today’s economic, societal, and demographic phenomena and are able to analyse the factors that influenced it
- are able to analyse development of population, the economy and social structures and their dependence on the environment
- are able to evaluate critically the role the transformation of technology and information in shaping people’s living conditions.
Content (directly from the National Core Curriculum):
Agriculture as the foundation for societal development
- human environmental impact in different periods
- agriculture, division of work, and the origins of culture
- population growth, development of societies and states
- development of the monetary system and trade
Origins of world trade and increasing interaction
- Europeans’ world explorations and conquests
- diversification of international trade and its impacts on society and the environment
Role of industrialisation in changing the relationship between humans and nature
- preconditions for industrialisation and its impact on society and the environment
- demographic development and migrations
- post-industrial society and the global economy
More detailed description of content if necessary
European and Global Economic History and Its Impact on the Environment and Climate How key turning points in economic activity have shaped the environment, housing, and labor. How perceptions of nature have changed throughout history.
Key concepts
environmental and climate change in history, erosion, monetary economy, feudalism, mercantilism, mechanistic view of nature, population history, industrialization, imperialism, colonialism, nuclear power, green transition, sustainable development, ecological disasters, natural disasters, epidemics, renewable energy sources, circular economy, artificial intelligence, robotics
Connections within the subject
HI2, HI3, YH1, YH2,
Possible model pathways related to the content
Agenda 2030: 11 Sustainable Cities and Communities population history, green transition, economic and environmental history