Course introduction MVEN10

Ullrika Sahlin

2024-09-02

Welcome to Risk Assessment in Environment and Public Health

Why study risk assessment

  • To be competitive on the job market

    • there are a lot of experts, but fewer experts on risk assessment

  • To better understand what expertise is required when assessing risk

    • motivation to become an expert
    • strengthen your interdisciplinary perspective

  • To be able to contribute to better management, including assessment and communication, of things that matter

  • To become a better decision maker

Risk assessment types

  • Human health Risk Assessment (HRA)

  • Environmental/Ecological Risk Assessment (ERA)

  • Red List Assessment (RLA)

  • Pest Risk Assessment (PRA)

Lectures

  • Eleven lectures
  • Occupational and Health Medicine
  • Environmental Science (CEC)
  • Biology

Book and seminars

  • Three book seminars
  • Two literature seminars
  • One Role play seminar
  • Seminars are compulsory
  • Report according to instructions
  • Come prepared!

Exercises

  • Ten exercise occasions
  • You are expected to use your own computer (notify!)
  • Material published on canvas
  • Exercises are compulsory
  • Report according to instructions

Team Based Learning and Case studies

  • Case studies: Risk assessments of the four different types

  • First TBL activity in class:

    • Become familiar with four assessment types
    • Report reflections on your own learning

  • Second TBL activity:

    • Deepen your understanding of one of the assessment types
    • Report as a presentation and written report to be shared with all students using the Padlet
    • Learn from the other groups

Individual project

  • Reproduce parts of an existing risk assessment, but with a slight modification.
  • Assess uncertainty in the conclusion by expert judgement for communication to risk managers
  • Written report
  • Student peer-review

Tools

  • Open source tools for scientific assessment
    • Excel
    • R
    • Tool of your own choice

Course literature

  • Burgman, Mark. Risks and decisions for conservation and environmental management. Cambridge University Press, 2005.

  • Literature for seminars

  • Other material handed out during the course

  • Explicit references from lectures

Non-scheduled time

  • This course is 15 credits and assumes 100% study pace

  • 8 hours per day

  • Non-scheduled time implies self studies

Grading and compulsory work

  • Written exam corresponding to 7.5 hp, Grading scale: Fail, Pass, Pass with distinction

  • Exercises and Assignments corresponding to 4.5 hp, Grading scale: Fail, Pass

  • Project work corresponding to 3.0 hp, Grading scale: Fail, Pass

  • Participation in written assignments, exercises, project work and associated parts is compulsory

    • Seminars and literature seminars are compulsory
    • Lectures are not compulsory, but highly recommended

Todo

  1. Choose a course representative

  2. Inform me if you need to borrow a computer during class