HKU Common Core Course

Our interdisciplinary Common Core Course aims at enhancing the water literacy of students from various disciplinary backgrounds. Utilising innovative curriculum design and impactful learning methods, the course intends to broaden students’ understanding and awareness of critical urban water management issues at the global and local scale.

Course Description:
“Ensure access to water and sanitation for all” is one of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals adopted by the United Nations in 2015. Water is the most essential resource for sustaining the development of human society. Its true value, however, is not fully reflected in its price tag in many economies; long-term water sustainability therefore has been often compromised in many parts of the world. Strengthening interdisciplinary dialogues and nurturing intersectoral collaborations are essential to achieving important global and local water sustainability goals. This course will provide students with a comprehensive understanding of the technologies relating to water supply and wastewater treatment systems in both developed and developing countries. Key policy issues and major debates on how to structure institutional framework conducive to effective water governance of this most vital resource on earth will also be deliberated.

The contents and the pedagogical approach of this course are purposefully designed to:

1. provide students with a comprehensive understanding of the most pertinent technological and policy issues relating to global water resources;
2. evaluate how different cultures may have affected people’s attitudes towards water;
3. equip students with a critical perspective on how to assess the importance of the most vital resource on the planet so that they will reflect on their role as a global citizen; and
4. enhance students’ communication skills so that they could effectively collaborate with people of diverse backgrounds, values and outlooks.