Contemporary societies around the world face a broad spectrum of problems, many of them contradictory. Populations are declining in one area, but growing exponentially in another; cities are shrinking in one part of the world, while sprawling slums continue their expansion elsewhere. On top of this the need to adapt and mitigate against the effects of climate change demand particular solutions. Though these issues might seem to be opposites, it is important to recognize that they are not discrete phenomena that can be set against each other. In fact when combined they form a kind of opportunity for creating a new paradigm of human development.
Taking on climate change issues from this perspective the course teaches the fundamental science of mitigating and adapting to climate change with the intent that students will be able to give shape to inter-disciplinary research projects of their own. We are going to extract patterns of policy and actions by reviewing cases and applications of climate change mitigation and adaptation around the world. Through this process students will develop a fundamental knowledge of climate change, as well as learn the essential skills of literature review, identifying research objectives, and writing research proposals.