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Apr 16, 2024
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2022-2023 Undergraduate Catalog [ARCHIVED CATALOG]
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US 231 Climate Change: Science and Policy
This course will cover the current understanding of the earth’s climate, the changes the climate is undergoing, and how U.S. and world-wide policies are developing to address the changes. Coverage will commence with an overview of the earth sciences and climate sciences and the scientific evidence for climate change, including historical evidence of previous climate changes. An understanding of the science and data sets the stage for an understanding of the political battle in the U.S. over what, if anything, should be done. Because climate science is not a core undergraduate science, it is necessary to present it first. This will serve as a basis for a rational discussion of the generation of policy, which depends so much on the trends that the climate data indicates have already started. How other nations are being affected by and responding to climate changes will also start with the climate changes impacting them, and thereby, policy development responding to these changes. Downstream impacts can include economics, geography, social disruptions, food security, and others. Students will also evaluate how the data has translated (or not) to policy implementation.
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