Alternative Mobility Narratives (Coursera)

Alternative Mobility Narratives (Coursera)

Ready to imagine a radically different mobility future? This course is about the stories that we tell ourselves about why and how we move. By critically examining our current narratives, we help you think about mobility in a new way. Using systems dynamics modelling, we explore how a mobility innovation (of your choice) impacts our mobility system as a whole, for better or for worse. This course will invite you to reflect on our mainstream mobility narrative built on engineering and economics. But warning: you may end up never looking at mobility in the same way again!

Class Deals by MOOC List - Click here and see Coursera's Active Discounts, Deals, and Promo Codes.

This online course is supported by the EIT Urban Mobility’s Competence Hub. EIT Urban Mobility is an initiative of the European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT) that has been working since January 2019 to encourage positive changes in the way people move around cities in order to make them more sustainable and liveable places.
What You Will Learn

  • We will reflect on the role of language and narratives in shaping our views on mobility, transport policy and mobility innovation
  • You will learn about the implied (but invisible) homo-economicus in our thinking about mobility and our transportation system
  • We present 4 alternatives to the homo-economicus model: 1)mobility as unnecessity 2)mobility as commons 3)mobility as play 4)mobility as interaction
  • In the final project, you will choose a mobility innovation and critically reflect on it from these alternative and meaningful perspectives.

Syllabus

WEEK 1: Why Mobility Language Matters
WEEK 2: The Dominant Narrative: Mobility as Disutility
WEEK 3: Alternative 1: Mobility as Unnecessity
WEEK 4: Alternative 2: Commoning Mobility
WEEK 5: Alternative 3: Mobility as Play
WEEK 6: Alternative 4: Mobility as Interaction
WEEK 7: Final Assignment

Go to Class
MOOC List is learner-supported. When you buy through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.

Related Courses

Use Generative AI as Your Thought Partner (Coursera) Coursera
Coursera Instructor Network

Use Generative AI as Your Thought Partner (Coursera)

This is a lesson from the comprehensive program, Navigating Generative AI for Leaders. In this lesson, you’ll learn how Coursera CEO, Jeff Maggioncalda, leverages generative AI models to be a more effective CEO. Jeff will discuss how he uses AI covering everything from his set up and model choices, through hands-on prompting examples.

Nov 9th 2026
1 Week
Exercer son esprit critique à l’ère informationnelle (Coursera) Coursera
University of Geneva

Exercer son esprit critique à l’ère informationnelle (Coursera)

Aujourd’hui, notamment du fait de l’essor des technologies, nous sommes en permanence assaillis par une multitude d'informations. Pourtant, beaucoup d’entre elles semblent peu fiables voire volontairement mensongères, comme les fake news. Ainsi, même si nous n’avons jamais été aussi bien informés qu’avec Internet et les réseaux sociaux, la société fait paradoxalement face à un phénomène de désinformation.

Nov 9th 2026
5-12 Weeks
ODS y sostenibilidad: una mirada desde los colegios (Coursera) Coursera
Universidad de los Andes

ODS y sostenibilidad: una mirada desde los colegios (Coursera)

En este curso veremos cómo podemos generar cambios y transformaciones (a nivel individual, organizacional y social) para la sostenibilidad desde la educación formal y no-formal. Partiremos del concepto de los Objetivos de Desarrollo Sostenible (ODS) como un marco potente para generar reflexiones críticas, que nos lleven a generar acciones colectivas desde la escuela en pro de la sostenibilidad.

Oct 26th 2026
4 Weeks
Introduction to Engineering Design (Coursera) Coursera
Starweaver

Introduction to Engineering Design (Coursera)

In today's fast-paced technological environment, understanding the fundamentals of engineering design is crucial for aspiring engineers and professionals alike. This comprehensive course serves as a primer, introducing participants to key concepts and methodologies essential for designing innovative solutions to complex problems. It provides an overview of the engineering design process, emphasizing the integration of creativity and functionality in problem-solving.

Nov 9th 2026
4 Weeks
Fandom, Community, and Identity in Popular Music (Coursera) Coursera
University of Colorado Boulder

Fandom, Community, and Identity in Popular Music (Coursera)

In "Fandom, Community, and Identity in Popular Music," you will explore the intersections of fandom and popular culture using pop music as a framework. You will apply your skills of self-reflection and close reading/analysis to a few case studies of pop musicians and the ways in which their art inhabits and evolves in pop culture spaces. You will learn about what it means to be a music fan, and therefore to be a fan in general. Along the way, you’ll have the chance to express your creativity as a fan by making something to contribute back into your fandom.

Oct 26th 2026
3 Weeks
Population Health: Alternative Payment Models (Coursera) Coursera
Leiden University

Population Health: Alternative Payment Models (Coursera)

The way we currently pay our care providers lead to suboptimal outcomes and unnecessary spending. Consequently, we fail to maximize the value of our health care services. We need to change provider payment models in order to keep health care systems financial sustainability. Doing nothing is not an option. But the question is, how do we do it?

Nov 2nd 2026
4 Weeks
English and Academic Preparation - Grad Track (Coursera) Coursera
Rice University

English and Academic Preparation - Grad Track (Coursera)

The English and Academic Preparation – Grad Track course is for students with a (minimum) advanced level of English. It is designed to help international students strengthen their English while developing academic skills necessary for success in graduate studies at an American university. Ideally, prospective students have completed or are near completion of a bachelor’s degree in their country and would like to come to the United States to study for a master’s or doctorate degree.

Nov 2nd 2026
4 Weeks
3D Interaction Design in Virtual Reality (Coursera) Coursera
University of London,Goldsmiths, University of London

3D Interaction Design in Virtual Reality (Coursera)

This course will teach you about one of the most important aspects of VR, how you interact with a VR world. Virtual Reality is completely different from an on screen app or game. You are completely immersed in a VR world, so it doesn't make sense to interact only through buttons or menus. You will get the most out of VR if you can interact with the world just as you would with the real world: with your natural body movements.

Oct 26th 2026
4 Weeks
Conflict Transformation (Coursera) Coursera
Emory University

Conflict Transformation (Coursera)

This course introduces you to the concept of conflict transformation and how it differs from conflict resolution, management, and prevention. We’ll see how conflict offers opportunities for constructive change, and we'll explore different tools and methods for engaging conflict constructively.

Oct 26th 2026
5-12 Weeks
Cómo resolver problemas y tomar decisiones con eficacia (Coursera) Coursera
University of California, Irvine

Cómo resolver problemas y tomar decisiones con eficacia (Coursera)

El pensamiento crítico (la aplicación de métodos científicos y del razonamiento lógico) constituye la base para resolver problemas y tomar decisiones con eficacia. El pensamiento crítico nos permite evitar escollos frecuentes, verificar la validez de nuestras creencias y suposiciones y corregir las distorsiones que pueden haberse producido en nuestros procesos mentales.

Oct 26th 2026
4 Weeks