Crises are endemic to national security policymaking. The modern era is punctuated by crises emanating from the natural and social worlds that threaten local, national and international security. This course considers this backdrop of threats alongside changing notions of ‘threat’, ‘risk’ and ‘crisis’ and challenges participants to determine how leadership and policymaking can reconcile the competing imperatives of national security and the public interest in the midst of crisis. This course introduces students to this important and challenging field through: (1) exploration of definitions and theories of national security and approaches to leadership, risk assessment/mitigation and crisis management; and (2) the application of this conceptual material to empirical cases of domestic, international and transnational crises. Conceptual approaches are complemented by insights from policy practitioners with extensive experience of crisis response.

Learning Outcomes

Upon successful completion, students will have the knowledge and skills to:

1. Understand concepts related to leadership, crisis and risk;
2. Evaluate historical and contemporary approaches to managing national security risks and crises;
3. Apply concepts of risk and crisis management within the scholarly literature to the analysis of contemporary/future national security challenges and formulation of policy responses;
4. Conduct independent research that demonstrates both scholarly and policy-focused engagement with the subject matter.
5. Communicate ideas, analysis and argument for scholarly and professional audiences, with effective use of terminology related to crisis response and risk management.

Research-Led Teaching

Crises are endemic to national security policy-making. The modern era is frequently punctuated by crises emanating from the natural and social worlds that threaten local, national and international security. This course considers this backdrop of threats alongside changing notions of ‘threat’, ‘risk’ and ‘crisis’ and challenges participants to determine how policymaking can reconcile the competing imperatives of national security and the public interest in the midst of crisis. This course introduces students to this important and challenging field through: (1) exploration of definitions and theories of national security and approaches to risk assessment/mitigation and crisis management; and (2) the application of this conceptual material to empirical cases of domestic, international and transnational crises.

Recommended Resources

Indicative reading list (weekly reading list and PDFs of required readings will be posted to the course Wattle site)

UK Department of International Development, Defining Disaster Resilience, pages 5-9, https://reliefweb.int/sites/reliefweb.int/files/resources/Defining-Disaster-Resilience-summary_0.pdf.

Karin de Bruijna et al, Resilience in practice: Five principles to enable societies to cope with extreme weather events, Environmental Science & Policy 70 (2017) 21–30.

Chris Cook, “The NHS at Capacity,” Tortoise Media, March 30, 2020, https://members.tortoisemedia.com/2020/03/30/chris-cook-coronavirus-nhs-at-capacity/content.html.

Resilience narrative: extracts from Roberts’s new book, ch 7.

James Rogers, Dr. Andrew Foxall, Matthew Henderson & Sam Armstrong, Breaking the China Supply Chain: How the “Five Eyes” Can Decouple from Strategic Dependency, Henry Jackson Society (May, 2020), https://henryjacksonsociety.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/Breaking-the-China-Chain.pdf, pages 5-24, 34-37.

Rickards, L., Wiseman, J. & Kashima, Y. 2014. Barriers to effective climate change mitigation: the case of senior government and business decision makers: Barriers to effective mitigation actions on climate change. Wiley Interdisciplinary Reviews: Climate Change, 5, 753-773.

Kelman, I., Gaillard, J. & Mercer, J. 2015. Climate Change's Role in Disaster Risk Reduction's Future: Beyond Vulnerability and Resilience. International Journal of Disaster Risk Science, 6, 21-27.

Gilson, E. 2011. Vulnerability, Ignorance, and Oppression. Hypatia, 26, 308-332.

Applebaum, B. 2017. Comforting Discomfort as Complicity: White Fragility and the Pursuit of Invulnerability. Hypatia, 32, 862-875.

Mclennan, B. J. & Handmer, J. 2012. Reframing responsibility-sharing for bushfire risk management in Australia after Black Saturday. Environmental Hazards, 11, 1-15.

Mclennan, B. J. & Handmer, J. 2014. Sharing responsibility in Australian disaster management: Final report for the sharing responsibility project. In: CENTRE, B. C. R. (ed.). East Melbourne, Victoria.

Mackinnon, D. & Derickson, K. D. 2013. From resilience to resourcefulness. Progress in Human Geography, 37, 253-270.

Ted G. Lewis, Critical Infrastructure Protection in Homeland Security: Defending a Networked Nation (2006), 3-8, 12 (Implementing a Risk Strategy)-42.

US National Infrastructure Protection Plan 2013: Partnering for Critical Infrastructure Security and Resilience, https://www.cisa.gov/sites/default/files/publications/national-infrastructure-protection-plan-2013-508.pdf.

Renn, O. (2008) Concepts of Risk: An Interdisciplinary Review – Part 1: Disciplinary Risk Concepts GAIA 17/1 50 – 66. 

Staff Feedback

Students will be given feedback in the following forms in this course:

• Written comments
• Verbal comments
• Feedback to the whole class, to groups, to individuals, focus groups

Student Feedback

ANU is committed to the demonstration of educational excellence and regularly seeks feedback from students. Students are encouraged to offer feedback directly to their Course Convener or through their College and Course representatives (if applicable). The feedback given in these surveys is anonymous and provides the Colleges, University Education Committee and Academic Board with opportunities to recognise excellent teaching, and opportunities for improvement. The Surveys and Evaluation website provides more information on student surveys at ANU and reports on the feedback provided on ANU courses.

Class Schedule

Week/Session	Summary of Activities	Assessment
1	Introduction: Risks, Crises and Complexity
2	Frameworks: Threats, Hazards and Risks
3	Frameworks: Risk and Resilience
4	Perspectives from Practice: Vulnerability and Climate Change
5	Perspectives from Practice: Resilience and Crisis Management
6	Perspectives from Practice: Ethics in Leadership	Assessment 1: Risk Communication Exercise Due
7	Geoeconomics, Weaponised Interdependence and the 5G Debate
8	Geoeconomic Crises: Indo-Pacific Responses to China’s Economic Coercion
9	The Communist Party of China’s Perception and Prioritisation of Risk
10	Globalization: Connectivity, Contagion and Catastrophe	Assessment 2: Scenario Report: Management of a Future Crisis Due
11	Public Health Crises: From SARs to Covid-19
12	Risk Management or Threat Inflation? Countering Terrorism
13	Exam period	Assessment 3: Research Essay Due

Assessment Summary

Assessment task	Value	Due Date	Return of assessment	Learning Outcomes
Risk communication exercise (1,500 words)	30 %	07/04/2021	21/04/2021	1, 2, 3
Scenario Report: Management of a Future Crisis (1,500 words)	30 %	12/05/2021	26/05/2021	1, 2, 3, 4
Research Essay (3,000 words)	40 %	04/06/2021	18/06/2021	1, 2, 4

* If the Due Date and Return of Assessment date are blank, see the Assessment Tab for specific Assessment Task details

Policies

ANU has educational policies, procedures and guidelines, which are designed to ensure that staff and students are aware of the University’s academic standards, and implement them. Students are expected to have read the Academic Misconduct Rule before the commencement of their course. Other key policies and guidelines include:

• Student Assessment (Coursework) Policy and Procedure
• Special Assessment Consideration Policy and General Information
• Student Surveys and Evaluations
• Deferred Examinations
• Student Complaint Resolution Policy and Procedure

Assessment Requirements

The ANU is using Turnitin to enhance student citation and referencing techniques, and to assess assignment submissions as a component of the University's approach to managing Academic Integrity. For additional information regarding Turnitin please visit the ANU Online website Students may choose not to submit assessment items through Turnitin. In this instance you will be required to submit, alongside the assessment item itself, hard copies of all references included in the assessment item.

Moderation of Assessment

Marks that are allocated during Semester are to be considered provisional until formalised by the College examiners meeting at the end of each Semester. If appropriate, some moderation of marks might be applied prior to final results being released.

Assessment Task 1

Risk communication exercise (1,500 words)

This assessment item requires students to identify a contemporary or emergent national security risk and develop a risk communication strategy to address it. They will write a short paper (1,500 words) addressing the following:

•      Justify the choice of contemporary (or emergent) risk as warranting a discrete risk communication strategy in the national security context;

•      Identify how the narrative seeks to engage the target audience (for instance, by promoting or undermining a particular view;

    

The purpose of this assessment is to develop each student’s understanding of concepts related to leadership, crisis and risk (LO1), their ability to apply concepts of risk and crisis management to the analysis of contemporary/future national security challenges (LO3) and conduct independent research that demonstrates both scholarly and policy-focused engagement with the subject matter (LO4). A policy practitioner will provide advice in the preparation and assessment of this assignment.

Assessment Task 2

Scenario Report: Management of a Future Crisis (1,500 words)

This task requires students to respond to a hypothetical future national security crisis. Each student will be provided with a list of scenarios that they will need to provide advice to decision makers on, in their role as a national security policy practitioner. Part of the ‘quality’ of this learning criterion is associated with developing students’ capacity to determine the key issues in a given piece of information, and develop policy recommendations on the basis of the knowledge and skills they have acquired during the course (LO1, 4). They will also have to draw on their knowledge of existing policy on a given security issue (LO 3), as well as key debates in the field (LO1, 2, 4). The objective is for students to be able to demonstrate their capacity to synthesize and analyze the scenario in a way that demonstrates not only their knowledge base, but the capacity to defend their chosen policy recommendations on the basis of evidence and critical reasoning. A policy practitioner will provide advice in the preparation and assessment of this assignment.

Assessment Task 3

Research Essay (3,000 words)

In this assessment item students will produce a research paper (3,000 words) on one of the domestic, international or transnational crisis case studies examined during the course. They will develop and present an analysis that: (a) examines crisis/risk management strategy adopted to prevent/mitigate the crisis in question; (b) critically evaluates the effectiveness of the crisis/risk management strategy in light of theoretical and conceptual literature; and (c) develops an alternate crisis/risk management strategy.

The assessment piece has four aims directly associated with the course Learning Outcomes. First it will challenge students to: (i) demonstrate their understanding of key concepts of leadership, risk and crisis management (LO1); (ii) evaluate historical and contemporary approaches to managing national security risks and crises (LO2); (iii) apply concepts of risk and crisis management within the scholarly literature to the analysis of contemporary/future national security challenges (LO3); and (iv) conduct independent research that demonstrates both scholarly and policy-focused engagement with the subject matter (LO4).

Academic Integrity

Academic integrity is a core part of our culture as a community of scholars. At its heart, academic integrity is about behaving ethically. This means that all members of the community commit to honest and responsible scholarly practice and to upholding these values with respect and fairness. The Australian National University commits to embedding the values of academic integrity in our teaching and learning. We ensure that all members of our community understand how to engage in academic work in ways that are consistent with, and actively support academic integrity. The ANU expects staff and students to uphold high standards of academic integrity and act ethically and honestly, to ensure the quality and value of the qualification that you will graduate with. The University has policies and procedures in place to promote academic integrity and manage academic misconduct. Visit the following Academic honesty & plagiarism website for more information about academic integrity and what the ANU considers academic misconduct. The ANU offers a number of services to assist students with their assignments, examinations, and other learning activities. The Academic Skills and Learning Centre offers a number of workshops and seminars that you may find useful for your studies.

Online Submission

The ANU uses Turnitin to enhance student citation and referencing techniques, and to assess assignment submissions as a component of the University's approach to managing Academic Integrity. While the use of Turnitin is not mandatory, the ANU highly recommends Turnitin is used by both teaching staff and students. For additional information regarding Turnitin please visit the ANU Online website.

Hardcopy Submission

N/A

Late Submission

Late submission of assessment tasks without an extension are penalised at the rate of 5% of the possible marks available per working day or part thereof. Late submission of assessment tasks is not accepted after 10 working days after the due date, or on or after the date specified in the course outline for the return of the assessment item. Late submission is not accepted for take-home examinations.

Referencing Requirements

Accepted academic practice for referencing sources that you use in presentations can be found via the links on the Wattle site, under the file named “ANU and College Policies, Program Information, Student Support Services and Assessment”. Alternatively, you can seek help through the Students Learning Development website.

Extensions and Penalties

Extensions and late submission of assessment pieces are covered by the Student Assessment (Coursework) Policy and Procedure The Course Convener may grant extensions for assessment pieces that are not examinations or take-home examinations. If you need an extension, you must request an extension in writing on or before the due date. If you have documented and appropriate medical evidence that demonstrates you were not able to request an extension on or before the due date, you may be able to request it after the due date.

Privacy Notice

The ANU has made a number of third party, online, databases available for students to use. Use of each online database is conditional on student end users first agreeing to the database licensor’s terms of service and/or privacy policy. Students should read these carefully. In some cases student end users will be required to register an account with the database licensor and submit personal information, including their: first name; last name; ANU email address; and other information. In cases where student end users are asked to submit ‘content’ to a database, such as an assignment or short answers, the database licensor may only use the student’s ‘content’ in accordance with the terms of service — including any (copyright) licence the student grants to the database licensor. Any personal information or content a student submits may be stored by the licensor, potentially offshore, and will be used to process the database service in accordance with the licensors terms of service and/or privacy policy. If any student chooses not to agree to the database licensor’s terms of service or privacy policy, the student will not be able to access and use the database. In these circumstances students should contact their lecturer to enquire about alternative arrangements that are available.

Distribution of grades policy

Academic Quality Assurance Committee monitors the performance of students, including attrition, further study and employment rates and grade distribution, and College reports on quality assurance processes for assessment activities, including alignment with national and international disciplinary and interdisciplinary standards, as well as qualification type learning outcomes. Since first semester 1994, ANU uses a grading scale for all courses. This grading scale is used by all academic areas of the University.

Support for students

The University offers students support through several different services. You may contact the services listed below directly or seek advice from your Course Convener, Student Administrators, or your College and Course representatives (if applicable).

• ANU Health, safety & wellbeing for medical services, counselling, mental health and spiritual support
• ANU Diversity and inclusion for students with a disability or ongoing or chronic illness
• ANU Dean of Students for confidential, impartial advice and help to resolve problems between students and the academic or administrative areas of the University
• ANU Academic Skills and Learning Centre supports you make your own decisions about how you learn and manage your workload.
• ANU Counselling Centre promotes, supports and enhances mental health and wellbeing within the University student community.
• ANUSA supports and represents undergraduate and ANU College students
• PARSA supports and represents postgraduate and research students