Climate change and human systems
HCOL 2000 (3 credits)
Online & Asynchronous
Instructor: Brian Beckage (Brian.Beckage@uvm.edu)
Office Hours (remote by appointment)
The Earth is a complex coupled human-natural system that is increasingly
dominated by human activities. We will examine anthropogenic climate
change as part of an integrated earth system that includes impacts on and
feedbacks with human systems. We will consider the challenges and
interactions between climate change and human societies by considering
responses of current and past societies to climate change and
environmental degradation. We will place anthropogenic climate change in
the broader context of limits to growth, sustainability, and societal
development. The class will emphasize readings, discussions, and
construction of simple simulation models to understand the scientific and
social basis of contemporary climate and sustainability. Students will use
the graphical computer programming language Stella to develop a simplified
model of the Earth system.
Class Structure. This is an online seminar-style course meaning there are no lectures but is instead
reading-intensive with online discussions, and model-building exercises.
The class will consist of the following components:
- Readings. This will be a reading intensive course with reading assigned for most class meetings.
The readings will primarily be from course books but will also include assigned articles.
- Discussions. There will be an online discussion of the readings in Yellowdig. The discussions
will be centered around a set of questions and discussion prompts. We will use our meeting time to address any outstanding
questions from the assigned readings or other material.
- Media. There will be assigned documentaries (videos) in most weeks of the semester and online
discussion of this material.
- Modeling. Students will work on assigned exercises and a modeling project to
learn system dynamics approaches to representing human and environmental systems using the graphical programing
language Stella by ISEE Systems, requiring purchase of a student license for this software.
We will use our meeting time to address any modeling or programming questions that arise from the assigned
exercises.
- To have an understanding of the physical basis of climate change.
- To use this knowledge to contextualize the responses of current and past
societies to climate change and environmental degradation.
- To employ a system dynamics modeling framework to synthesize climate change and resource use
within the limitations of the Earth system
Achieving these goals will require:
- Completion of assigned readings and exercises
- Participation in discussions
- Writing and synthesis of assigned readings and media
- Familiarity with the computer language Stella.
Student grades will be based on the following four components:
- Weekly (quizzes) based on assigned readings and media. (20% of final grade).
- Homework assignments. These will be a series of modeling exercises and
assignments in Stella. (15% of final grade).
- Student participation in online Yellowdig discussion. Students are expected to
fully participate in and contribute to online discussions.
(30% of final grade)
-
A group modeling project on the coupled natural and human system. Students will implement a
model from an assigned research paper, add a feature to the model, make a video presentation describing
the model and the resultant dynamics. (15% of final grade).
- Comprehensive final exam. (20% of final grade)
Late assignments will be assessed a 10% penalty for each day late.
These books will be required for this class and are available in the
university bookstore:
- Emanuel, K., 2018. What we know about climate change. MIT Press. ISBN:
9780262535915 Link
to book.
- Meadows, D.H., 2008. Thinking in systems: A primer. Chelsea Green
Publishing. ISBN: 9781603580557. Link to book on Amazon.
- Ford, Andrew. 2009. Modeling the Environment, Second Edition. Island Press. ISBN: 9781597264730.
Link to book
- Jared M. Diamond. 2011. Collapse : how societies choose to fail or
succeed: Revised edition. Penguin. 608p. ISBN-10: 0143117009; ISBN-13:
978-0143117001 Link
to book.
We will watch a variety of documentaries, video lectures, and podcasts. I try to find free sources of these media,
but you may have to rent, purchase, or find them through a subscription service (e.g., Amazon Prime, Netflix,
Apple TV, etc.). These media include the following:
- An
Inconvenient Truth (97 mins)
- A
Crude Awakening: The Oil Crash (83 mins)
-
Seaspiriacy (89 mins)
-
Planet of the Humans (100 mins)
- Don't look up (138 mins)
We will build system
dynamics models in the graphical programming language Stella created
by
ISEE Systems. This will require a semester student license for the
Stella software at a cost of $59 for a semester license. You should receive an email
from ISEE with instructions for purchasing and accessing Stella.
Catamount Core Curriculum Designations
Back to top
This class counts towards the following Catamount Core Curriculum requirements for UVM undergraduates:
SU: Sustainability. At the University of Vermont, we recognize that the pursuit of ecological, social, and economic
vitality must come with the understanding that the needs of the present be met without compromising the ability of
future generations to meet their own needs. This course was given sustainability designation because, in addition
to the course-level outcomes, the course meets the Sustainability General Education requirement, which includes the
following four learning outcomes:
- Students can have an informed conversation about the multiple dimensions and complexity of sustainability.
- Students can evaluate sustainability using an evidence-based disciplinary approach and integrate economic, ecological, and social perspectives.
- Students think critically about sustainability across a diversity of cultural values and across multiple scales of relevance from local to global.
- Students, as members of society, can recognize and assess how sustainability impacts their lives and how their actions impact sustainability.