Urban Citizenship and Sustainability GEOS3520: Essay
Word Length: 2000 word maximum, not including references
Due Date: 11.59pm, May 1
Weight: 35%
Referencing: In-text citations plus alphabetised reference list
Submission instructions:
• Your essay should be uploaded to Canvas as a Word or PDF document by the due date,
to avoid a penalty of 5% per day late.
• Do not put your name on your essay, so that we can ensure anonymous marking.
• Include a total word count (excluding the reference list) on the front cover of your essay.
• Include a note on use of AI text generators like ChatGPT: We recognise that the
widespread availability of free Artificial Intelligence text generators like ChatGPT has
probably changed the way we will all write. At the end of your essay (after the reference
list), we would like you to write a paragraph on if/how you have used AI in your essay-
writing.
You have a choice of two questions for your essay assignment – answer ONE of the
following questions.
Essay Question 1: Urban Energy Transitions
Background:
Over the last five years, Australia has undergone a globally significant renewable energy
transformation. In 2022, renewables powered up to 70% of the national energy grid, driven
by rapid growth in large-scale solar and wind installations and sustained growth in the
rooftop solar market. In cities like Sydney, this has involved households becoming
‘prosumers’, new connections to Renewable Energy Zones in regional areas, and reworking
existing energy sources and infrastructures in the nearby Hunter and Illawarra.
Regulators and market bodies whose goal it is to govern this transition are working towards
supplying affordable, reliable and low-emissions to the electricity grid. But, despite efforts
to ensure the transition is smooth and fast, a number of fundamental challenges are arising,
ranging from technical issues with transmission to social legitimacy challenges of where and
how to site renewable infrastructures.
Your Task:
Identify and critically discuss the challenges that are emerging in the renewable energy
transition in a city of your choice. Your answer should draw from themes and analytical
lenses introduced in this class. For example, you might consider engaging with ideas such
as socionature, metabolism, justice and citizenship, or examining tensions like urban-
rural, state-market. Your focus should be on ONE form of renewable energy (i.e. large
scale wind or hydro, or distributed solar) and ONE particular location.
Essay Question 2: Urban Metabolism
Background:
We asked ChatGPT to answer the question “How useful is the concept of ‘urban
metabolism’ for understanding the relationship between sustainability and politics in urban
environmental governance?”. Here’s what it had to say:
The concept of ‘urban metabolism’ can be very useful for understanding the relationship
between sustainability and politics in urban environmental governance. Urban metabolism
refers to the flow of energy, materials and resources into and out of a city, and the
transformations that occur as a result. By considering the metabolic processes of a city,
policymakers and urban planners can better understand the city’s environmental impacts
and develop strategies for reducing waste, increasing resource efficiency, and promoting
sustainability.
Urban metabolism also highlights the interdependence between urban and rural areas, as
cities depend on resources and food supplies from the surrounding rural areas, and in turn
contribute to environmental degradation in those areas through their waste and pollution.
This perspective can inform the development of integrated, sustainable regional
development plans that take into account the needs of both urban and rural areas.
In terms of politics, the concept of urban metabolism can help to frame environmental policy
debates and decisions in terms of the tangible flows of resources and waste, rather than
abstract concepts. This can make environmental issues more concrete and accessible to a
wider range of stakeholders, and can facilitate the development of solutions that are both
environmentally and economically viable.
Overall, the concept of urban metabolism is a valuable tool for understanding the complex
relationships between sustainability, politics, and the environment in urban areas, and can
help to inform the development of more effective and integrated urban environmental
policies.
Your task:
Using the academic literature on urban metabolism and urban political ecology, critically
assess ChatGPT’s answer to the question about urban metabolism posed above.
In order to complete this task, you should identify the core elements of ChatGPT’s answer:
how did it define urban metabolism? In what ways did it think that concept was useful in
understanding the relationship between sustainability and politics in urban environmental
governance? Then, drawing on the literature, work through how you would answer this
question differently, and offer some reflections on the adequacy (or otherwise) of
ChatGPT’s response (Hint: we think it missed a few pretty important points!).