GEOG 202 Climate Emergency

Description

We are in a climate emergency. Imagining and enacting a just and sustainable future requires an understanding of what makes up the emergency, the challenge it presents and the set of strategies that already exist to address it. This course takes a critical approach to examining the state of scientific knowledge about the climate emergency and the policy challenges and pathways it presents. We will engage in topics such as impacts and associated emissions scenarios; the development of global climate change agreements; the challenge of decarbonization and how this transition must be shaped by equitable, socially just outcomes; the role of the courts and legal strategies in achieving climate mitigation and climate justice, and more. The course will draw on current state of knowledge and policy on key issues and will feature a series of guest speakers with expertise in relevant topics. The course is interdisciplinary, addressing elements of, and interactions among, climate science (e.g., impacts of 1.5 degree temperature rise), social science, and policy (e.g., mitigation, adaptation).

Beyond being a source of knowledge about the climate emergency this course actively teaches climate action. There will be opportunities to develop skills, engage with organizations in the climate community and hear from leaders. This course prepares students to be hopeful, positive agents of change in their communities and the larger climate movement.