Unit convenor and teaching staff |
Unit convenor and teaching staff
Unit Convenor
James Hazelton
Contact via james.hazelton@mq.edu.au
4ER, Room 326
See Consultation Schedule on iLearn
Unit Moderator
Rahat Munir
Contact via rahat.munir@mq.edu.au
4ER, Room 312
N/A
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Credit points |
Credit points
10
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Prerequisites |
Prerequisites
Admission to MAccg or MCom or MProfAcc or MSusDev or MEnv
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Corequisites |
Corequisites
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Co-badged status |
Co-badged status
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Unit description |
Unit description
This unit considers the theory and practice of how sustainability is accounted and reported on from organisational, governmental, and personal perspectives. This includes reporting in relation to sustainability issues such as carbon emissions, water, equity, modern slavery and engagement with First Nations peoples. Students will discuss the broader relevance of sustainability accounting and apply a range of real-world sustainability accounting techniques. By the end of the unit, students will be able to both analyse and produce sustainability reports. |
Information about important academic dates including deadlines for withdrawing from units are available at https://www.mq.edu.au/study/calendar-of-dates
On successful completion of this unit, you will be able to:
Submission of assessment tasks
All applicable text based assessments must be submitted through Turnitin. It is the student’s responsibility to ensure that work is submitted correctly prior to the due date. No hard copies of assessments will be accepted and only Turnitin records will be taken as records of submission.
Multiple submissions may be possible in some units via Turnitin prior to the final due date and time of an assessment task and originality reports may be made available to students to view and check their work. All identified matching text will be reconsidered carefully. Students should note that the system will not immediately produce the similarity score on a second or subsequent submission - it takes approximately 24 hours for the report to be generated. This may be after the due date so students should plan any resubmissions carefully. Please refer to instructions on how to submit your assignment through Turnitin and access similarity reports and feedback provided by teaching staff and available here. Should you have questions about Turnitin or experience issues submitting through the system, you must inform unit staff by emailing us at accg3040@mq.edu.au. If the issue is technical in nature may also lodge OneHelp Ticket, refer to the IT help page.
It is the responsibility of the student to retain a copy of any work submitted. Students must produce these documents upon request. Copies should be retained until the end of the grade appeal period each term. In the event that a student is asked to produce another copy of work submitted and is unable to do so, they may be awarded zero (0) for that particular assessment task.
Late Assessment Submission Penalty
Unless an application for Special Consideration has been submitted and approved, a 5% penalty (of the total possible mark) will be applied each day a written assessment is not submitted, up until the 7th day (including weekends). After the 7th day, a grade of ‘0’ will be awarded even if the assessment is submitted. Submission time for all written assessments is set at 11.55pm. A 1-hour grace period is provided to students who experience a technical concern.
For any late submissions of time-sensitive tasks, such as scheduled tests, exams, performance assessments, and/or scheduled practical assessments/labs, students need to submit an application for Special Consideration
Name | Weighting | Hurdle | Due |
---|---|---|---|
Essay | 20% | No | Week 5 (11:55pm Friday 22nd March) |
Sustainability report preparation and presenetation | 40% | No | Week 14 (11:55pm Monday 3rd June) |
Report | 40% | No | Week 10 (11:55pm Monday 6th May) |
Assessment Type 1: Essay
Indicative Time on Task 2: 10 hours
Due: Week 5 (11:55pm Friday 22nd March)
Weighting: 20%
This essay is approximately 750 words relating to selected sustainability issues.
Assessment Type 1: Practice-based task
Indicative Time on Task 2: 30 hours
Due: Week 14 (11:55pm Monday 3rd June)
Weighting: 40%
Collate and analyse sustainability data to prepare and present a sustainability report
Assessment Type 1: Report
Indicative Time on Task 2: 30 hours
Due: Week 10 (11:55pm Monday 6th May)
Weighting: 40%
This report is approximately 1,500 words and students would undertake a critical review of existing sustainability reports against international recognised standards and sector-specific guidelines.
1 If you need help with your assignment, please contact:
2 Indicative time-on-task is an estimate of the time required for completion of the assessment task and is subject to individual variation
Unit delivery and learning resources
Students are required to attend a weekly seminar, commencing in Week 1. There are also online learning resources that students are required to engage with to complement the weekly seminar.
Seminars are interactive and are designed to facilitate further discussion of concepts covered in online learning resources and their application to practical cases.
The timetable for classes can be found on the University website at: https://publish.mq.edu.au/
Changes to student timetables may only be made through eStudent.
Required and Recommended Texts and/or Materials
Due to the dynamic nature of sustainability reporting, there is no required text. Each week the required readings will be made available on iLearn.
Technology Used and Required
Students will need access to a personal computer and the internet to review and complete online learning activities, including videos, slide decks, podcasts, additional readings, assessment details and notices from the ACCG8052 iLearn site, as well as to complete and make submissions for the assessment tasks in this Unit.
We will also be making use of Generative Artificial Intelligence Technologies (GAIT) such as ChatGPT, so familiarity with these technologies will be useful. A paid subscription to a particular GAIT service provider is not required.
Further information on any specific technology requirements will be made available on the unit iLearn site.
The unit iLearn can be found at: http://iLearn.mq.edu.au.
You are strongly encouraged to regularly visit the website to check for important announcements and use it as a resource to enhance your learning experience.
What is required to complete this unit satisfactorily
In addition to the requirements outlined in the Unit Assessment Guide available on iLearn, students are required to achieve an overall pass for the unit to achieve a passing grade in this unit, students are expected to be independent learners who assume personal responsibility for their learning and take a pro‐active approach to addressing any deficiencies in their understanding of the course material through independent research and inquiry and consultations with peers and instructors as appropriate. A detailed learning approach is provided in the Unit Weekly Guide available on iLearn.
Wk |
Topics |
Week Commencing |
1 |
Introduction to sustainability accounting and accountability |
19 Feb |
2 |
Imagining a better world - visions of utopia |
26 Feb |
3 |
Sustainability and the SDGs |
4 Mar |
4 |
Corporate accounting and accountability |
11 Mar |
5 |
Corporate sustainability accounting - introduction ESSAY DUE (11:55pm 22 March) |
18 Mar |
6 |
Corporate climate change accounting |
25 Mar* |
7 |
Corporate water accounting |
1 April* |
8 | Corporate modern slavery reporting | 8 April |
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MID-SESSION BREAK | 15 April |
9 |
Other approaches to accountability - Databases and pollution accounting | 29 April |
10 |
Users of sustainability reports: investors, activists, consumers, and employees REPORT DUE (11:55pm Monday 6th May) |
6 May |
11 |
Putting it all together - practical considerations in sustainability reporting |
13 May |
12 |
Current and emerging issues in sustainability accounting |
20 May |
13 |
Course review and revision: |
27 May |
14 |
FINAL REPORT DUE (11:55pm Monday 3rd June) |
3 June |
* Note that Friday 29 March and Monday 1 April are Public Holidays. Refer to iLearn for alternative arrangements for scheduled classes.
Macquarie University policies and procedures are accessible from Policy Central (https://policies.mq.edu.au). Students should be aware of the following policies in particular with regard to Learning and Teaching:
Students seeking more policy resources can visit Student Policies (https://students.mq.edu.au/support/study/policies). It is your one-stop-shop for the key policies you need to know about throughout your undergraduate student journey.
To find other policies relating to Teaching and Learning, visit Policy Central (https://policies.mq.edu.au) and use the search tool.
Macquarie University students have a responsibility to be familiar with the Student Code of Conduct: https://students.mq.edu.au/admin/other-resources/student-conduct
Results published on platform other than eStudent, (eg. iLearn, Coursera etc.) or released directly by your Unit Convenor, are not confirmed as they are subject to final approval by the University. Once approved, final results will be sent to your student email address and will be made available in eStudent. For more information visit connect.mq.edu.au or if you are a Global MBA student contact globalmba.support@mq.edu.au
At Macquarie, we believe academic integrity – honesty, respect, trust, responsibility, fairness and courage – is at the core of learning, teaching and research. We recognise that meeting the expectations required to complete your assessments can be challenging. So, we offer you a range of resources and services to help you reach your potential, including free online writing and maths support, academic skills development and wellbeing consultations.
Macquarie University provides a range of support services for students. For details, visit http://students.mq.edu.au/support/
The Writing Centre provides resources to develop your English language proficiency, academic writing, and communication skills.
The Library provides online and face to face support to help you find and use relevant information resources.
Macquarie University offers a range of Student Support Services including:
Got a question? Ask us via the Service Connect Portal, or contact Service Connect.
For help with University computer systems and technology, visit http://www.mq.edu.au/about_us/offices_and_units/information_technology/help/.
When using the University's IT, you must adhere to the Acceptable Use of IT Resources Policy. The policy applies to all who connect to the MQ network including students.
N/A - ACCG 8052 is being offered for the first time in 2024.
Unit information based on version 2024.03 of the Handbook