Module: Marketing for Sustainable & Ethical Development

Latest Module Specifications

Current Academic Year 2025 - 2026

Module Title	Marketing for Sustainable & Ethical Development
Module Code	MAD1015 (ITS: MG343)
Faculty	DCU Business School	School	DCU Business School
NFQ level	8	Credit Rating	5

Description

MG343 analyses how marketing has contributed to accelerating climate change and its potential role in the global response to the crisis. Emphasis will be placed on the critical analysis of prominent theoretical frameworks (e.g. corporate social responsibility, social marketing) and their use for navigating key questions concerning ethics, equality, individual responsibility and sustainability within the contemporary marketing process.

Learning Outcomes

1. Develop a critical literacy in order to analyse the challenges and ethics of sustainable marketing practice
2. Identify the roles that marketers, consumers and broader figurations play in promoting sustainability in both local and international markets
3. Develop solutions for fostering sustainability and ethical lenses in the marketing process
4. Communicate and apply academic literature concerning framing of sustainable marketing practice in efficient and engaging way

*Type*	*Hours*	*Description*
Workload	Full time hours per semester
Assessment Feedback	2	No Description
Lecture	22	No Description
Group work	20	No Description
Independent Study	81	Asynchronous recordings, assigned readings and study and synthesis of course materials
Total Workload: 125

Section Breakdown
CRN	20675	Part of Term	Semester 2
Coursework	0%	Examination Weight	0%
Grade Scale	40PASS	Pass Both Elements	Y
Resit Category	RC1	Best Mark	N
Module Co-ordinator	Gary Sinclair	Module Teacher

Type	Description	% of total	Assessment Date
Assessment Breakdown
Essay	n/a	70%	Sem 2 End
Group project	n/a	30%	Every Second Week

Reassessment Requirement Type
Resit arrangements are explained by the following categories; RC1: A resit is available for both^* components of the module. RC2: No resit is available for a 100% coursework module. RC3: No resit is available for the coursework component where there is a coursework and summative examination element. ^* ‘Both’ is used in the context of the module having a coursework/summative examination split; where the module is 100% coursework, there will also be a resit of the assessment

Pre-requisite	None
Co-requisite	None
Compatibles	None
Incompatibles	None

All module information is indicative and subject to change. For further information,students are advised to refer to the University's Marks and Standards and Programme Specific Regulations at: http://www.dcu.ie/registry/examinations/index.shtml

Indicative Content and Learning Activities

What is sustainability?

Critical marketing

Corporate Social Responsibility

Principles of social marketing

Evolution of the sustainable marketplace

Consumer activism

Indicative Reading List

Books:

Hastings, G: 2022, Hyperconsumption: Corporate Marketing vs. the Planet.,
Peterson, M: 2021, Sustainable Marketing: A Holistic Approach.,
Wallace-Well, D: 2019, The Uninhabitable Earth,

Articles:
None

Other Resources

None