MS in Energy Policy and Climate Degree Details and Courses

The course examines the major energy technologies underlying energy supply and consumption, their applications, and their integration with the electric grid. Students will gain a solid understanding of science, economics, environmental impacts associated with the design and operation of different energy technologies on a stand-alone and integrated basis. The course coverage includes: an introduction to energy, heat, work, energy conversion and efficiency; solar, wind, hydro and other renewable electric generation technologies, fossil, and nuclear generation; renewable integration issues such as the role of energy storage to balance supply and demand. Energy security and climate change issues are considered throughout the course. Lower carbon transportation will be introduced, with a focus on hybrids and battery energy vehicles. The course will touch on some major policies impacting the development, deployment, and utilization of technologies.

The course will present the fundamental science of how the climate system works and describe both natural and human-forced variability in climate. Students will also learn about the observed and projected impacts of climate change through the examination of observational data and climate/Earth system model predictions and projections. Material in the course will be organized around three central themes: (1) physics and chemistry of the atmosphere, focused on the greenhouse effect; (2) the carbon cycle and its relation to the energy system; and (3) predictions and projections of climate change. Students will engage with the material through class discussions and a diverse set of assignments.

The Capstone Project enables students to apply and synthesize the material learned in other courses, develop expertise on a specific topic related to climate change science or policy, work closely with experts in the field of study, and improve professional writing and presentation skills. In the semester prior to conducting the project, students must identify a proper topic and mentor who is both familiar with the chosen topic and willing to guide and oversee the project. The mentor must be a faculty member teaching in the program, a supervisor from the student’s place of work, or any expert with appropriate credentials. Formal proposals must be submitted at least two weeks prior to the start of the semester in which the project be completed. Prior to the enrollment in the course, the proposal must be reviewed and accepted by the course instructor.

After a study of the historical development of climate change policy, this course analyzes current policy options for mitigating and adapting to long-term climate change. The course will examine various approaches available in the U.S. for national-level policy, including regulatory and market-based approaches, particularly cap and trade and carbon taxation. Various models for designing a cap and trade system will be studied, including the European experience and regional programs in the United States. Special attention will be paid to methods for setting initial prices and accounting for discounting of future benefits. The course will focus primarily on national-level carbon management policies, but international agreements will also be included, as well as equity considerations on a global level.

This course introduces students to environmental markets and the policies that create them, focusing mainly on emissions trading systems to mitigate climate change. The course also provides an introduction to attributes of the financial sector through its analysis of markets for environmental commodities Students learn the economic theory behind market-based environmental policy instruments, such as tradable renewable energy credits, carbon offsets, and water rights in a semester of lectures featuring presentations from practitioners, including state and federal government, private companies subject to market-based emissions regulation, commodity brokers, and representatives from international institutions. Offered online on-site twice per year.

This course will provide an overview of the major laws and policies that shape and regulate the complex energy system the United States and, to a lesser degree, the world. The goal is to provide students with a framework for understanding the energy laws and policies of today and those likely to be important in coming years. The course will review laws and policies for all major types of energy, including fossil fuels, nuclear, and renewables, as well as issues related to extraction, conversion, distribution, use, and conservation. Laws and policies ranging from local level to state, federal, and international levels will be included. Laws and policies will be presented again in the context of profound and rate changes occurring in the energy system, climate change and other environmental issues, economics, national security, and population growth. The course will be largely empirical, but attention will be given to major theories. Most aspects of the course will be illustrated by reference to contemporary issues, such as the recently unveiled Clean Power Plan, court decisions, climate change negotiations, and changes in state policies and federal tax policies for renewables. Offered on-site at least once every two years.

Important and timely topics related to environmental sciences and policy that are not part of the regular course offerings examined with particular emphasis on the applied and problem-solving aspects of the topics. Specific topics vary by semester and are listed in registration materials.

This course provides an introduction to the hydrological cycle and examines the influence of climate, geology, and human activity on this cycle. The components comprising this cycle will be examined and include: precipitation; evapotranspiration; surface and groundwater flow; storage in natural reservoirs; water quality; and water resource management and regulation. Discussion of these topics in threaded discussions using the primary literature as well as problem sets will highlight applications and areas of current hydrological research. Offered online and onsite three times per year. Onsite version includes a required field trip.

Climate change impacts and policies effect different groups of people in varying ways. More vulnerable populations will disproportionately experience impacts more severely (drought, flooding, food security, storms, heat islands, changes to resources and livelihoods). Also, policies to mitigate and adapt to climate change will have differential impacts. In this course, we will review both climate impacts and proposed policies through the lens of equity and justice. Topics to cover will include: analysis of differential impacts, equity critique of mitigation policies, and the impact of adaptation policies on the poor and people of color. The course will cover both the US and international topics.

There is a huge interest in understanding the climate at multiple scales. This course will provide an overview of the chemical and physical climate system, feedbacks, and the basic physical balances governing atmospheric circulations and climate with an eye on understanding the basics of climate models. The course will cover energy transfer in the ocean-atmosphere system, mathematical modelling of the ocean and atmosphere, modeling of these systems and the basics on how to construct a climate model and explore the current state of climate models.

This course examines cities as the primary centers of energy demand; as major sources of greenhouse gases; as places most vulnerable to climate change impacts; and as logical focal points for mitigation and adaptation solutions. Local level government climate policy and financing options are also examined, including alternative energy production, resilient water systems, green buildings, energy efficient transport and sustainable infrastructure generally, local level offsets, and urban-based Clean Development Mechanisms. Analytical methods are introduced to understand current approaches to decision-making. Offered online at least once every two years. Prerequisites: Climate Change Policy Analysis.

This course examines the potential impacts on human health from global climate change and the possible responses to and adaptations for these impacts. Topics include impacts on health of climate extremes, climate change and infectious diseases, health and climate refugees, national assessments of health impacts of climate change, monitoring the health effects of climate change, and public health policies for climate change. Prerequisite: Science of Climate Change and Its Impacts.

This course focuses on the development, analysis, and implementation of international policy frameworks and mechanisms for climate change mitigation and adaptation. It includes a review of the history of international responses to climate change at the multilateral and bilateral levels, including in depth examination of the agreements of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and the Conference of the Parties (COP) as well as important bilateral agreements. The course explores how international climate change policy is affected by the national priorities and capacities of countries, and how these circumstances shape the evolution of both climate change policy and related areas such as trade and energy. It is recommended, but not required, that students take AS.425.602 - Science of Climate Change and its Impacts and/or AS.425.603 - Climate Change Policy Analysis before taking this elective.

Global climate change risks are increasingly complex and may ultimately affect virtually every facet of our economic, energy, community, and environmental systems. At the same time, policy and investment responses to climate resiliency needs are similarly complex, controversial, and high stakes. Perhaps no issue facing leaders of today and tomorrow is more cross- cutting in nature or in greater need of improved understanding and capability than climate change risk. This course will provide a comprehensive framework for understanding, assessing, and applying climate change risk, vulnerability, a hazard assessment for the development of risk reduction an adaptation response. In the process, it will examine the status, limitations, and strengths of current assessment and action planning approaches across varying sectors, scales, and impact areas. The course will also include a review of methods prioritizing actions and addressing feasibility, flexibility, and logistical needs as applied to specific facilities, such as military installations, as well broader communities and multistate regions. Individual and group learning exercises will be involved. Offered on-site at least once every two years.

South Asia (India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Afghanistan, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Bhutan and Maldives) is home to more than 1.7 billion people (nearly 25% of the global population). It is also a region of rapidly growing economies, rising energy consumption, and increasing environmental stress. Fossil fuels, particularly coal is the major source of electricity in the region, contributing to rising greenhouse gas emissions and worsening air quality. India in particular is promoting the use of indigenous coal to power its economic growth. At the household level, inefficient use of biomass for cooking and heating continues to be a major health and environmental hazard. Moreover, fresh water stress and pollution has reached alarming levels in the region with far reaching impacts on agriculture and human health.

South Asia is uniquely vulnerable to climate change impacts. On the one hand, receding Himalayan glaciers in Nepal, India, Pakistan and Bhutan are exacerbating water stress and threatening food security for more than a 1 billion people. And on the other hand, Bangladesh and Maldives are prone to sea level rise and coastal flooding from powerful tropical storms.

Creating a sustainable energy and freshwater pathway is intrinsically linked to innovative development approaches tailored to local and regional variabilities. In order to curb growing emissions, the region is promoting renewable energy sources such as solar, wind, and micro hydro power. However, the unmet demand for energy, particularly electricity remains so large in South Asia that fossil fuels are expected to be a major part of the future energy mix. Water stress is being managed through a mix of traditional and modern techniques.

Given the demographic size of the region and the pent-up energy demand, it can be argued that the success of global climate change initiatives (such as the 2015 Paris agreement) in large part is cont

Using a case study approach, this course explores extreme weather events in the context of a changing climate. Climate change affects temperature and precipitation patterns. These, in turn, influence the intensity and, in some cases, the frequency of extreme environmental events, such as wildfires, hurricanes, heat waves, floods, droughts, and storms. Students will deconstruct the climate-weather connection of extreme weather events and human-driven climate change. Specific events will be analyzed using the disaster cycle (preparation, response, recovery, restoration) and evaluated using a physical, ecological, sociological, and economic lens. By the end of the course, students will be able to assess factors that influence disaster risk and will be able to propose mitigation measures for extreme weather and environmental events associated with climate change.

Topics include the assessment of wind resources, basic principles of wind turbines and power transmission, electric markets and wind power, technological and economic aspect of storage of intermittent wind power, legal issues at state and federal levels, international water issues, and environmental impact assessment processes for wind developments. Offered on-site at least once every two years. Prerequisite: 425.601 Principles and Applications of Energy Technology.

This course focuses on the two primary solar technologies i the contemporary market: photovoltaic cells and concentrate solar power, with a focus on PV. The course will investigate techniques for increasing efficiency, expanding storage, and decreasing price. Solar energy for use as both distributed and grid-independent resources is considered. The course covers science and technologies, as well as the environmental impact on solar technologies. Additionally, the course examines the main structure considerations for solar technology development.

This course examines the financial, legal and regulatory topics related to the development of renewable energy (RE) projects (wind, solar, geothermal, hydro etc.) in the US. The bulk of the course focuses on utility scale projects, with the latter section on smaller scale renewable distributed energy resources (DER). The course is divided into sections on finance, siting, basic technical features of the electric grid, and regulatory background. The finance section will provide fundamentals of corporate and project finance, then focus on the ownership and financing structures used for developing renewable energy projects. Basic financial terms and conditions such as power purchase agreements will be reviewed. The project siting and development section will review models for feasibility studies, environmental assessment and permitting at state and Federal levels. The electrical grid section will discuss at a high level on how the power system works, including basics of transmission and generation, with a focus on concepts useful for developing projects, including the transmission interconnection process. Multiple case studies will be used throughout the course to highlight successful models and approaches. At the end of the course the students will have critical skills to work on project development and finance components of RE projects in the US.

This course explores the production and potential use of hydrogen in the near and longer term. The course will cover the relevant technologies, economics, and impact of the production and use of hydrogen and hydrogen derivatives, such as ammonia on reducing carbon emissions. The course first explains how hydrogen has been traditionally produced using fossil fuel and how it is currently used, and then covers why there is an increasing interest in and development of “green hydrogen” projects to produce and use clean hydrogen. “Green” hydrogen is produced by electrolysis, where water is split into hydrogen [and oxygen] using low carbon electricity, ideally from PV and wind (though nuclear may also be possible in some instances). The course will also consider other low carbon sources of hydrogen [such as combining use of natural gas with carbon capture storage and/or use, and alternate methods such as pyrolysis] as well as what determines if and when it makes sense for a particular application and/or end use to use hydrogen. This includes the potential use of hydrogen: (i) as a substitute for traditional uses (e.g., ammonia, methanol, refining); (ii) for a longer duration energy carrier, or form of energy storage, that will help balance demand with the growing variable energy output from PV and wind on longer times [including seasonal differences] and (iii) for a growing number of end uses - as hydrogen or a hydrogen derivatives,- particularly those that are hard to otherwise decarbonize [such as in steel making, aviation, shipping]. Understanding the delivered cost of hydrogen requires a detailed understanding of infrastructure requirements and costs for production, storage and transportation, and course will cover various types of overground and underground storage, and modes of transportation, particularly comparing the use of hydrogen pipelines vs. shipping in some detail.

This elective course builds on a number of ideas covered in the core Principles and Applications of Energy Technology course (425.601) - and as with the first course uses and integrates a broad range of ideas from science, engineering and economics. The main focus of the course will be to broaden and deepen the coverage of the how some of the emerging energy technologies work, that were either not covered or only lightly covered in the core course. Electricity generation or storage related topics include (1) Fuel cells and batteries, including hydrogen fuel cells, batteries with different lithium-ion chemistries, and flow batteries, including integration with solar and wind (2) ocean wave devices, with an emphasis on the energy in traveling ocean waves, and how some of this wave energy can be absorbed and converted to electricity, through ideas related to natural frequency and forced damped oscillations, (3) new approaches to carbon capture and sequestration (CCS), such as the proposed Allam cycle - which is a type of closed cycle combustion turbine (CT), where the use of super-critical carbon dioxide rather air as the working fluid facilitates CCS (4) nuclear energy, from small modular fission to fusion. The course will also look at some important applications of electricity, including light emitting diodes (LEDs). The 2014 Nobel prize for physics went to inventors of the first blue LEDs using high band-gap semi-conductors, like indium gallium nitride which has made their widespread use for high quality white light applications possible. LEDs - as will be explained - are similar to (the p-n junctions in) PV cells but with higher band gaps, and operated to run backwards using an electrical source, so that electrical power is converted to visible light with much higher efficiency than with traditional incandescent light bulbs. Prerequisite: 425.601 Principles and Applications of Energy Technology, equivalent experience, or permission of instructor.

This course builds on a number of ideas covered in the core EPT course, and as the first course uses and integrates a bro range of ideas from science, engineering, and economics. The course has two distinct but overlapping themes that will be often be covered in parallel. First, the course will broaden and deepen the coverage of the how some of the energy technologies discussed in the core course work, with a slight more formal discussion and use of ideas from mechanics and thermodynamics, including the role of entropy; a few newer potential technologies, such as fusion and ocean, will also be covered. Second, the course will extend the coverage of the economics and operation of energy markets to provide a deep understanding of how to value energy generation assets facing an uncertain future on both a stand-alone and integrate basis, and how these considerations play out in real electric markets, including the role of energy, capacity, and ancillary services. The course will include coverage of the potential role of energy storage and/or demand side management in integrating large-scale renewable energy into the grid from both an operational and economic perspective. Offered on-site at least once every two years.

This course provides students with a broad introduction to U.S. environmental policymaking and policy analysis. Included are a historical perspective as well as an analysis of future policymaking strategies. Students examine the political and legal framework, become familiar with precedent-setting statutes such as NEPA , RCRA , and the Clean Air and Clean Water Acts, and study models for environmental policy analysis. Cost benefit studies, the limits of science in policymaking, and the impact of environmental policies on society are important aspects of the course. A comparison of national and international policymaking is designed to provide students with the global perspective on environmental policy. Offered online or onsite, at least twice per year.

Environmental Security concerns the complex relationship between peace, security, and the environment. It addresses the rapidly growing importance of environmental degradation concerns, resource scarcity, food production, unequal distribution of natural resources, and climate events that present ever-increasing challenges for nations and their security and stability. This course will survey security disruption and conflicts over natural resources from domestic protests to civil wars to major international armed conflicts. From melting sea ice in the Arctic creating vulnerabilities, to mining rare earth minerals necessary in the production of many renewable energy sources, managing the fair use and distribution of natural resources is critical to peace and security across the globe. This course will also address the risks and opportunities that environmental issues present for domestic and global security and stability.

Offshore energy is progressively becoming a significant part of the U.S. energy mix. Oil from offshore platforms now accounts for roughly one-third of the U.S. domestic production, and significant interest has emerged for developing renewable energy resources in the ocean and the Great Lakes. Large-scale offshore wind projects have been proposed along the East Coast, and there is also interest in developing wave energy off the West Coast and the Pacific islands. Ocean current and tidal energy are the other emerging sources. This course will take a multi-disciplinary approach to offshore energy analysis. We will discuss both renewable resources such as offshore wind, and conventional resources such as offshore oil and gas. Topics covered will include: resource assessment, state and federal regulations, economics of offshore energy, environmental impact and benefits, space-use conflicts, cultural/tribal issues, public perception, offshore energy technology, and energy infrastructure. We will also review case studies on the proposed Cape Wind project and the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. In addition, we will discuss the recently launched National Ocean Policy initiative and how it is influencing offshore energy regulation. Subject-matter experts from federal regulatory agencies will be invited as guest speakers. By the end of the course, students will understand policies and regulations governing offshore energy in the U.S. They will also be conversant with the economics of resource development, technological drivers for harnessing the resources, and the scientific advances in assessing and mitigating environmental impact from energy production in offshore areas. Offered onsite at least once every two years.

This course aims to introduce the students with an overview of electric power industry including the fundamentals of power system generation, transmission, and markets. Various power generation technologies and system network characteristics will be introduced. Key elements of power system operation such as unit commitment, economic dispatch, and optimal power flow will be discussed to provide the background for understanding how the power grid operates and to lay the foundation for understanding the environmental impact from power generation and system operation. An overview of grid planning will be provided. Students will also be exposed to power markets and complex relationship between market and system. Later, students will be exposed to the topics of US energy policy that particularly pertains to power industry. Relevant energy policies of certain countries on global setting for the electricity sector will also be discussed. The latest developments in power industry such as smart grid, microgrid, distributed energy resources and other topics will also be covered.

Nuclear energy is a potent energy source that is widely feared and misunderstood, yet continues to play an integral role in the global energy landscape today and in the future. This course will focus on the different forms and use of nuclear energy, the history of nuclear energy and regulation, the fundamentals of fission and fusion nuclear power, the radiological health applications, and the electromagnetic and other radiation in the environment. Students will also learn about federal and international policies and regulations that govern the civilian use of nuclear energy and implications for climate mitigation. Current events related to nuclear power at the international level will also be covered in the course. Prerequisite: AS.425.601 – Principles and Applications of Energy Technology or permission of instructor.

Using a highly interactive format, this course examines practical, state-of-the-art concepts in leadership, with a focus on the unique challenges of sustainability facing our world. Students will examine the essential components of leadership, including vision, communication, strategy, organization, synergy and strategy. Recognition of barriers and risks and how to work around them will be stressed, and the restricted conditions under which leadership is actually exercised will be revealed. Students will also practice self-reflection/assessment and become familiar with advanced tools to improve their leadership ability. Coursework will include frequent work in small groups, review of leadership case studies and a practical, ‘real-world’ vision development project. Offered only as a compressed field course every other January intersession.

This cultural and scientific emersion program will investigate Cuba’s agroecology, tropical marine and terrestrial ecosystems as well as the countries unique geology. As wildlife and habitat have faded from the tropics, Cuba’s importance as an ecological bastion has risen. The island has the largest tracts of untouched rain forest, unspoiled reefs and intact wetlands in the Caribbean islands. Cuba also is home to many unique, or endemic, species, including the solenodon, and the bee hummingbird, the world’s smallest bird. In this course, students will have the opportunity to learn about the marine ecology through first-hand investigation of the reefs off the shores of Cuba, and learn about rainforest ecology through observations of Cuban forests. The course will also examine the interplay between geology, ecology, evolution and adaptation in areas such as coastal xeromorphic vegetation, swamp ecosystems, and Viñales National Park.

This course provides students with an introduction to the theory and practice of communicating science and engaging with different types of audiences including policymakers, the public, and the media. Science is valued by many and sharing our understanding of science and technology is a crucial part of engaging beyond the scientific community. In this course, we will explore current research on the science of science communication, as well as how to create narratives for engagement based on the goals and audience. Students will have the opportunity to discuss engagement strategies and communication methods, design an engagement plan, and practice using their skills for engaging with policymakers, public audiences, the media, and more.

Public attitudes influence the political feasibility of passing new legislation on climate change policy, and consumer decisions contribute to as much as 40% of national emissions. As a result, governmental, non-profit, and commercial sectors have become interested in low-cost, non-regulatory “soft policy” approaches based on social science to inform public decision-making and behavior change. Communication—whether in the form of information provision, participatory decision-making, or social marketing—is among the foremost of these strategies. This course aims to expose students to social science research and methodology on human attitudes, behaviors, and decision-making with respect to climate and energy policy so they can directly apply it in their professional organizations. This course will challenge students not only to think about the varied communication factors that influence human decision-making and behavior, but to use that information in designing and evaluating programs. Special attention is given to the application of behavioral economics to climate, energy, and other environmental issues, and students will learn the fundamentals of social science statistical analysis using SPSS software. Prerequisite: AS.420.301 – Quantitative Methods or Statistics

Transportation systems provide essential services for individuals, business, and every sector of the economy. However, transportation is a major expense, causes significant negative side effects, and is now the largest source of greenhouse gas emissions in the United States. This course examines the complex system-of-systems that is modern transportation as well as the many technologies and policies that can mitigate the negative effects of transportation while maintaining or improving transportation services. These include cleaner vehicles, lower emission fuels, and changes to travel demand. It also explores disruptive innovation in transportation, including the emerging roles of information technology and the potential transition to connected and automated vehicles. Estimates of impacts of these technologies and policies on energy use, infrastructure, emissions, and other metrics are presented and discussed. This course has a U.S. focus with a balance of technology and policy content and a strong interactive component. Course Prerequisite: AS.425.601 – Principles and Applications of Energy Technology.

This course focuses on the development, analysis, and implementation of international policy frameworks and mechanisms for climate change mitigation and adaptation. It includes a review of the history of international responses to climate change at the multilateral and bilateral levels, including in depth examination of the agreements of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and the Conference of the Parties (COP) as well as important bilateral agreements. The course explores how international climate change policy is affected by the national priorities and capacities of countries, and how these circumstances shape the evolution of both climate change policy and related areas such as trade and energy. It is recommended, but not required, that students take AS.425.602 - Science of Climate Change and its Impacts and/or AS.425.603 - Climate Change Policy Analysis before taking this elective.

Energy is the lifeblood of nations and commerce. This course focuses on the structure and fundamental dynamics of energy markets in energy producing and consuming regions and how energy security and economic development strategies shape the fate of nations and their citizens. Students will learn the historic, economic, geopolitical, structural, and operational aspects of energy industries, with a particular emphasis on the production and transportation of petroleum and natural gas. The course will also explore how economic development, energy and national security, environmental considerations, and technology evolution shape and disrupt these relationships. Students will learn how the strategies of nations, national and private energy companies, and the role of international and intergovernmental organizations such as OPEC interact to shape the future direction of energy markets. The course will familiarize students with publicly available sources of data on energy.

Energy policy is about more than sheer market design. Policy agendas have become increasingly complex, adding sustainability and development to traditional energy security concerns. In response, a patchwork of institutional frameworks has emerged, including clubs (OPEC, IEA), treaties, the Energy Charter Treaty (ECT), agencies, the International Renewable Energy Agency or policy networks, and the Renewable Energy & Energy Efficiency Partnership. The course introduces students to the global dimensions of energy policy, discusses shifting agendas, and assesses the institutional spectrum of global energy governance. Offered online at least once every two years.

Nuclear energy is a potent energy source that is widely feared and misunderstood, yet continues to play an integral role in the global energy landscape today and in the future. This course will focus on the different forms and use of nuclear energy, the history of nuclear energy and regulation, the fundamentals of fission and fusion nuclear power, the radiological health applications, and the electromagnetic and other radiation in the environment. Students will also learn about federal and international policies and regulations that govern the civilian use of nuclear energy and implications for climate mitigation. Current events related to nuclear power at the international level will also be covered in the course. Prerequisite: AS.425.601 – Principles and Applications of Energy Technology or permission of instructor.

This course is a broad survey of the international water issues facing the 21st century. Topics to be covered include, water security, privatization of water service delivery, conflict and cooperation on trans-boundary rivers, the role of large multi-purpose reservoirs (for hydropower, water supply, irrigation), water as a human right, achieving the Sustainable Development Goals on water supply and sanitation, the role of water in food security, water institutions and policies, and climate change. Any discourse today on sustainable development is not complete without a discussion of the important role of water to society, economic growth, and poverty reduction. Our objective in this course is to gain a broad overview of these issues, primarily from the sustainable development lens, and to critically evaluate these challenges from a multi-disciplinary perspective (e.g. economics, environment, social, engineering, public health). This is important as solutions to water problems will require many different disciplines and expertise working together.

Public attitudes influence the political feasibility of passing new legislation on climate change policy, and consumer decisions contribute to as much as 40% of national emissions. As a result, governmental, non-profit, and commercial sectors have become interested in low-cost, non-regulatory “soft policy” approaches based on social science to inform public decision-making and behavior change. Communication—whether in the form of information provision, participatory decision-making, or social marketing—is among the foremost of these strategies. This course aims to expose students to social science research and methodology on human attitudes, behaviors, and decision-making with respect to climate and energy policy so they can directly apply it in their professional organizations. This course will challenge students not only to think about the varied communication factors that influence human decision-making and behavior, but to use that information in designing and evaluating programs. Special attention is given to the application of behavioral economics to climate, energy, and other environmental issues, and students will learn the fundamentals of social science statistical analysis using SPSS software. Prerequisite: AS.420.301 – Quantitative Methods or Statistics

This course introduces students to theory and analytics of risk assessment and risk management with respect to climate change, including scenario analysis, stress testing and corporate risk analysis practices. Physical climate risks to be covered include: 1) fire and extreme weather risk and their impact on insurability of assets and infrastructure; 2) heat, drought, food production and their impact on crop yields and population migration; and 3) sea-level rise and its impact on real-estate, corporate and municipal risks. Climate change transition risks to be covered include: 1) the impact of policy risks on individual sectors of the economy; 2) technology transition and the risk associated with stranded assets; and 3) corporate and sovereign liability risk and the role of climate risk disclosure. Students in this course will learn to analyze the impact of climate risk on corporations, cities, and infrastructure and to evaluate the cost and benefits of climate risk mitigation strategies. AS.425.603 is recommended but not required.

Coastal, arctic, and arid ecosystems are significantly affected by climate change. This course invites us to think about small rural communities that have been profoundly affected by climate change. By exploring multiple ethnographic case studies and applying multiple theoretical models, the course offers anthropological insights into how the people in these areas interact with their environment over their lives. While examining the inhabitants’ knowledge-based views of climate and local socioecological systems, students in this course will develop more robust, flexible models of anthropological analysis for climate change (in general) and for smaller ecosystems (in particular). By examining the impact of climate devastation on the local scale, the course contributes to a better understanding of how environmental changes impact people, traditions, economies, politics and health on the global scale, and help students develop new ideas for effective climate communication, community engagement, and the development of future climate and energy policy that addresses the needs of communities.

There is a huge interest in understanding the climate at multiple scales. This course will provide an overview of the chemical and physical climate system, feedbacks, and the basic physical balances governing atmospheric circulations and climate with an eye on understanding the basics of climate models. The course will cover energy transfer in the ocean-atmosphere system, mathematical modelling of the ocean and atmosphere, modeling of these systems and the basics on how to construct a climate model and explore the current state of climate models.

A greenhouse gas (GHG) inventory is a list of emission sources and the associated emissions (carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, hydrofluorocarbons, etc.) quantified using standardized methods. Organizations develop GHG inventories for a variety of reasons, including the management of GHG risks and identification of reduction opportunities, participation in GHG programs or markets, and achieving recognition for early voluntary action. This course will focus on the different steps of the GHG emissions inventory and accounting development process: 1) developing the scope and plan inventory, 2) collecting data and quantifying GHG emissions, 3) developing a GHG inventory management plan, and 4) setting a GHG emission reduction target, tracking, and reporting progress. Students will apply the most widely used GHG accounting standards for organizational reporting, categorize GHGs into Scope 1, 2, and 3 based on the source, and develop an emission reduction plan for a specific case.