Climate Change Studies is an inter-disciplinary program open to all majors. The program educates students in three areas of the climate change issue: science, society, and solutions. Coursework in the minor provides a foundation that enables students to engage the scientific, societal, and political dimensions of global climate change. Further, the focus on solutions with its orientation toward applied learning will help students develop critical thinking and problem solving skills. Participating students will enhance their major field of study. They will be better prepared to enter a broad range of professions and graduate programs where they can meet the emerging challenges and opportunities arising from climate change. Climate Change Studies is a joint program between the College of Forestry and Conservation, College of Arts and Sciences, and College of Technology.
To earn a minor in Climate Change Studies, students must successfully complete 21.0 credits: a 3.0 credit interdisciplinary introductory course (CCS 203) and 6.0 credits in each of the three areas listed below.
| Course # and Description | Credits |
|---|---|
| CCS 203 Climate Change: Science & Society | 3 |
| Six credits from the following: Climate Change Science Courses | Credits |
| CCS/GEO 108N (GEOS 108N) Climate Change - Past and Future | 3 |
| CCS/ERTH 303N Weather and Climate | 3 |
| CCS/GEO 382 (GEOS 382) (UG) Global Change | 3 |
| CCS/NRSM 408 (FOR 408/BIOL 408/GEO 408) Global Cycles and the Climate Change | 3 |
| CCS/GEO 488 (GEOS 488) (UG) Snow, Ice and Climate | 3 |
| Six credits from the following: Climate Change Science and Society Courses | Credits |
| CCS 324 Sustainable Climate Policies: China and the USA | 3 |
| CCS/COMM/EVST 379 Communication, Consumption and Climate | 3 |
| CCS/NRSM 449E (RSCN 449) Climate Change Ethics and Policy | 3 |
| CCS/ECNS 445 (ECON 445) International Environmental Economics and Climate Change | 3 |
|
Six credits from the following climate change solutions courses, with at least one course taken in category A, which requires practical application |
Credits |
|
Climate Change Solutions Courses: Category A |
|
| CCS/NRG 298 Energy Internship | 2 |
| CCS 398 Climate Change Internship | 2-4 |
| CCS 391 Climate Change Practicum | 2-4 |
| CCS/ENST 485 (EVST 485) Environmental Citizenship | 3 |
| Category B | |
| CCS/NRG 102 Intro to Energy Systems II | 3 |
| CCS/BGEN 160S (TASK 160S/BUS 160S) Issues in Sustainability | 3 |
| CCS/NRG 191 Energy Practicum | 2 |
| CCS/NRG 235 (CAR 235T) Building Energy Conservation | 3 |
| CCS/NRG 242 Solar & Wind Systems | 3 |
U 102 Introduction to Energy Systems II 3 cr. Offered spring. Same as NRG 102. Prereq., NRG 101 or consent of instructor. A survey of renewable energy systems and technologies. Addresses physical and technical aspects of wind, solar, geothermal, hydro, tidal, biological, and wave energy systems. Consideration is given to engineering, economic, social, environmental, and political factors that determine implementation and sustainability.
U 108N Climate Change - Past and Future 3 cr. Offered autumn. Same as GEO 108N (GEOS 108N). The geoscience perspective on the earth's climate system. Climate processes and feedbacks, climate history from early earth to the ice ages, present and future changes due to natural processes and human activities.
U 160S Issues in Sustainability 3 cr. Offered autumn and spring. Same as BGEN 160S (TASK 160S/BUS 160S). This literature-intensive course is intended to expose the student to a variety of essays addressing the balance of economic development with the principles of sustainability and social equity. The student is offered an introduction to sustainability concepts, natural systems/cycles and environmental economics. Natural capitalism and triple bottom line maximization is explored, along with the role of corporations and small businesses in sustainable development. A survey of issues surrounding corporate social responsibility and sustainability-driven innovation will be conducted.
U 191 Energy Practicum 2 cr. Offered intermittently. Same as NRG 191. Prereq., EET 111 or consent of instructor. A practicum that provides students with a supervised field experience. Students gain hands-on experience with energy specific technologies.
U 203 Climate Change: Science and Society 3 cr. Offered autumn. Foundational course on the scientific and social dimensions of global climate change with the goal of providing students with a basic understanding of the fundamental scientific, social, political and technological issues arising from rapid climatic change.
U 235 Building Energy Conservation 3 cr. Offered spring. Same as CAR 235. Provides an overview of energy efficiency opportunities in residential buildings and prepares the student to take the National RESNET Home Energy Rater Exam. Familiarity with residential construction and basic energy terminology is useful though not required.
U 242 Solar and Wind Systems 3 cr. Offered autumn. Same as NRG 242. Introduction to the fundamentals of solar and wind energy for the design and installation of solar and wind systems. Includes an overview of the physics and chemistry of the resource and the technology, and will prepare students for a career in renewable energy or for installing a renewable energy system on their own home.
U 298 Energy Internship 2 cr. Offered every term. Consent of instructor required. Same as NRG 298. Extended classroom experience providing practical application of classroom learning through on the job training in a student's field of study. This experience increases student skills, prepares them for initial employment, and increases occupational awareness and professionalism.
U 303N Weather and Climate 3cr. Offered autumn. Same as ERTH 303N (GPHY 303N). Prereq., GPHY 111N (GEOG 102N) or consent of instructor. Origin, composition, structure, and dynamics of the atmosphere, gas and radiation laws, energy budget and balance, weather elements and North American weather systems.
U 324 Sustainable Climate Policies: China and the USA 3 cr. Offered summer. Same as PSCI 324. Not open to Fr So. Explores historic, current, and future greenhouse-gas (GHG) emissions of the United States and China, reasons why both are the two largest CO2emitters, and prevailing national and subnational government policies and nongovernmental actions that affect emissions mitigation and adaptation.
U 352 Climate Change Field Studies 2 cr. Offered summer. This is an interdisciplinary field course focused on climate change impacts and adaptation. Through site visits and meetings with key decision-makers, students gain knowledge of projected impacts due to climate change (water availability, wildfire, beetle kill, biodiversity), the impacts to various sectors of human society (land management, food and water security, economic stability, and livelihoods), and different mitigation and adaptation responses.
U 362 Climate Change Lecture Series 1 cr. Offered autumn. The Climate Change Lecture Series explores current issues in climate change. Themes and speakers vary year by year, and the course can be repeated three times for credit.
U 382 Global Change 3 cr. Offered spring. Same as GEO 382 (GEOS 382). Prereq., consent of instructor. Lectures, readings, and discussions on geological and geochemical processes that affect global change using recent literature; carbon dioxide buildup, greenhouse effect, ozone depletion, desertification, ice ages, and other global events.
U 391 Climate Change Practicum 2-4 cr. Offered autumn and spring. Prereq., consent of instructor. Provides an opportunity for students to design and implement a capstone project involving creative solutions to climate change.
U 379 Communication, Consumption, and Climate 3 cr. Offered spring. Same as COMM 379 and EVST 379. Analyzes consumption as a communication practice, investigates discourses that promote consumption, and illuminates environmental impacts on consumption.
U 398 Climate Change Internship 2-4 cr. Offered autumn and spring. Prereq., consent of instructor. Hands-on, "real world" experience working with local, regional, national, or international groups to address climate change. Students gain supervised, practical work experience with specific projects and organizations; create a network of professional contacts; and have an opportunity to apply ideas and approaches studied in the Climate Change Studies minor.
UG 408 Global Cycles and the Climate Change 3 cr. Offered spring even numbered years. Same as NRSM 408 (FOR 408/BIOL 408). Exploration of how variations in the availability or utilization of critical Earth elements influences the atmosphere, the oceans, and the terrestrial biosphere including the natural and agricultural ecosystems on which we depend.
UG 445 International Environmental Economics and Climate Change 3 cr. Offered autumn every other year. Same as ECNS 445 (ECON 445), EVST 445. Prereq., ECNS 201S (ECON 111S). An introduction to the economics of various policy approaches towards climate change and other international environmental issues such as trans-boundary pollution problems, international trade and the environment and pollution haven hypothesis.
UG 449E Climate Change Ethics and Policy 3 cr. Offered Fall. Same as NRSM 449 (RSCN/EVST 449). This course focuses on the ethical dimensions of climate change policy. It covers the following major topics: (1) climate change, personal and collective responsibilities, (2) ethics, climate change and scientific uncertainty, (3) distributive justice and international climate change negotiations, (4) intergenerational justice and climate change policy.
U 485 Environmental Citizenship 3 cr. Offered spring. Same as ENST 485 (EVST485). Open to juniors and seniors only or by permission of instructor. Develops environmental citizenship through student-initiated projects informed by principles of social marketing.
UG 488 Snow, Ice and Climate 3 cr. Offered spring. Same as GEO 488 (GEOS 488). Prereq., M 95 (MAT 100). Study of basic physical processes occurring in snow and ice, and how these processes govern the interaction between frozen water and the climate system.
U 494 Seminar- variable credit 1-4cr. Offered intermittently. A seminar on a current climate change topic.
Dr. Rebecca Bendick, Assistant Professor, Department of Geosciences
Dr. Cory Cleveland, Assistant Professor of Soil Science
Dr. Michael De Grandpre, Professor, Department of Chemistry
Dr. Sarah Halvorson, Associate Professor and Departmental Chair of Geography
Dr. Joel Harper, Associate Professor, Department of Geosciences
Dr. Anna Klene, Associate Professor, Department of Geography
Dr. Scott Mills, Professor of Wildlife Population Ecology
Dr. Curtis Noonan, Associate Professor, Department of Biomedical and Pharmaceutical Sciences
Dr. Steve Running, Regent's Professor of Ecology, Director of Numerical Terradynamics Simulation Group
Dr. Richard Barrett, Emeritus Professor, Department of Economics, State Legislator
Dr. Len Broberg, Professor, Department of Environmental Studies
Dr. James Burchfield, Interim Dean and Research Professor, College of Forestry and Conservation
Dr. Ulrich Kamp, Associate Professor, Department of Geography
Dr. Derek Kellenberg, Assistant Professor, Department of Economics
Dr. Peter Koehn, Professor, Department of Political Science
Dr. Anna Prentiss, Associate Professor, Department of Anthropology
Dr. Christopher Preston, Associate Professor, Department of Philosophy
Dr. Rebecca Richards, Professor, Department of Sociology
Dr. Steve Schwarze, Associate Professor, Department of Communication Studies
Dr. Dane Scott, Director, Center of Ethics, Associate Professor, Department of Society and Conservation
Dr. Terry Weidner, Director, Mansfield Center
Dr. Georgia Cobbs, Associate Professor, Department of Curriculum and Instruction
Dr. Brian Kerns, Engineer, Alternative Energy Technology Program
Dr. Martin Horejsi, Assistant Professor, Department of Curriculum and Instruction
Nicky Phear, Instructor and Program Coordinator, Climate Change Studies
Dr. Bradley Layton, Program Director, Energy Technology Program
Dr. Robin Saha, Assistant Professor, Department of Environmental Studies
Lisa Swallow, Program Director, Department of Business Technology
Nadia White, Assistant Professor, School of Journalism
Dr. Laurie Yung, Director of Wilderness Institute; Research Assistant Professor
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