Geographic Information Systems

This course introduces the theory and application of spatial data acquisition, analysis, and display using a project based approach. Students will practice how to conceive, gather, manage, analyze, and visualize geographic datasets using the global positioning system (GPS) and geographic information systems (GIS), and use GIS for spatial analysis and decision making. The course will be conducted using lecture and lab methods; active student participation is required.

Applied Conservation Science & Policy

This course is about saving life on earth. It provides the scientific foundation required to formulate sound environmental policies capable of addressing human population growth, habitat destruction, resource overexploitation, and other anthropogenic factors that continue to undermine the earth’s ecological systems. The course focuses on scientific underpinnings of conserving the world’s remaining biological diversity (aka “biodiversity”). It draws from biology, ecology, and other natural sciences to deliver the broad scientific training that future policymakers need. As a short survey course, the goal is not to transform you into a biologist or an ecologist, but rather to equip you with the basic knowledge you need to understand how the natural world works, speak the language with confidence, and use science to develop sound environmental policy.

This course Exploring Sustainable Agriculture Transitions in Rural Colombia will consist of an 8-day visit to the town of Libano, Colombia, over spring break March 16-24, 2024 with an additional travel day on each end of the trip.

The creation of a sustainable global food system is one of the most pressing challenges of our time. High-input, animal-based, industrial agricultural practices drive land concentration, deplete soils, and generate deforestation, including the loss of soil and forest carbon -In total, the agri-food system accounts for 40% of global greenhouse gas emissions.

Promising innovations are emerging, especially around the principles and practices of regenerative agriculture, in both developing and developed countries. The overarching aim of regenerative agriculture is to create farming and grazing systems that are in harmony with nature while generating sustainable livelihoods for farmers. It is a whole-of-ecosystem approach, with soil health at the center. Healthy soils have a high level of biodiversity and capacity to store both water and carbon.

This “exposure tour” in Colombia will provide students an opportunity to explore how an agricultural community in a developing country is grappling with the challenges and opportunities to transition to regenerative agriculture in the context of global and local supply chains, as well as a country engaged in post-conflict reconciliation.

Achieving the UN sustainable Development goals requires massive technological changes in energy, mobility, construction, housing, and agriculture (to name a few). The World Economic Forum estimated that achieving the SDGs is likely to open up 60 market “hot spots” worth $12 trillion in market opportunities[1][1], in building new business models and developing and deploying disruptive technologies[1][2]. Simply put, achieving the SDGs is an exceptionally attractive economic opportunity and a well-validated target market. The race to tap into these opportunities is underway.

Innovation is essential in achieving the SDGs. It is the engine that enables the transition towards a circular economy; it supports the structural changes on the way towards sustainable development. A key driver of economic growth, innovation will fill the technology, design, and business model gaps in the current value chain of multiple industries, to accelerate a transition into a circular system and achieving the SDGs.

Meeting the innovation needs of sustainable development requires a thriving pipeline with hundreds, then thousands of innovators who compete, grow, and outperform each other, gradually increasing in quality and breadth. In fact, “Business as usual will not achieve this market transformation. Nor will disruptive innovation by a few sustainable pioneers be enough to drive the shift: the whole sector has to move.” Support for such innovations requires a portfolio management process to evaluate adequacy, opportunity, risks, and probability of success and to prioritize projects based on clear sustainability impact. It also requires access to capital that is aligned with the innovation stage, and global policy support to secure favorable economic conditions. Investment capital and interest are both available, but the innovation pipeline needs to grow and be supported. Given the slow pace of industry innovation, the engine for change will inevitably come from early-stage innovators and entrepreneurs.

A problem of this magnitude cannot be solved with a single linear policy or technological innovation. It needs a cohesive solutions eco-system supported by appropriate investment, economic policies creating an enabling environment and multi-governmental collaboration. The sustainable development innovation eco-system is a complex dynamic system that depends on the healthy interactions of its multiple components – demand creation, fulfilment, investment and financial support, policy portfolios, and global growth and scale-up of implementations. A business -friendly landscape and fruitful collaboration between the private sector and governments is key.

This workshop examines the structure and dynamics of the innovation eco-system as the necessary structure to support solutions to the SDGs, global challenges often referred to as “wicked” problems. These solutions can range from technology to business models, to policy to financing mechanisms or advocacy.

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[1][1]Business & Sustainable Development Commission, 2017

[1][2]UN Global Compact, 2019

This hands-on, project-based course will build on the skills learned in the introductory GIS course. Working within their discipline, students will develop real-world case studies to practice GIS modeling, perform spatial data analysis, statistical analysis and temporal data analysis, test hypotheses and recommend policy based on their findings. Students will employ project management, database design and troubleshooting techniques applicable to GIS and other fields.

Spanning over 70% of Earth, the ocean is the central feature and life-support system for our planet. This two-week intensive course on international marine environmental law focuses on helping students learn to use law as a tool to better manage human activities in, on, under or otherwise affecting the ocean. It will explore global and regional agreements relevant to the law of the sea, shipping, fishing, dumping, biodiversity conservation, land-based sources of marine degradation, and problems related to implementation, effectiveness and enforcement. The United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, the UN Fish Stocks Agreement and the Convention on Biological Diversity are among the international agreements discussed. While the primary focus of the course is on legal issues, there will be extensive coverage of the interface of legal institutions with science and politics. Key cross-cutting issues include coral reef ecosystem management, dynamic ocean management, polar conservation efforts and governance of the ocean beyond national boundaries.

The course will be conducted using lectures, guest speakers, class presentations, intense discussions and in-class debates. Active student participation is both encouraged and required. A final report due two weeks after class ends will enable the student to conduct in-depth research into an area of their choice. Students will be able to meet individually with the instructor during the course to develop their research reports.

Thoughtful, just, and effective conservation and management of coastal and open ocean marine environments require an understanding of the history of marine populations. In order to advocate for the restoration or conservation of Monterey Bay, for example, or analyze changes due to fishing, coastal development, and sea level rise, we need a baseline and a collective understanding of what we mean when we talk about a healthy marine ecosystem or discuss stewardship or “saving” a marine space. In this course we will explore how scholars across disciplines try to piece together historical baselines. As we examine historical fishing methods and how policies and technologies have influenced depletion or abundance, we will discuss which human communities have recorded marine environmental history and how we might ensure that Indigenous knowledge and the environmental expertise and long experience from marginalized communities have genuine voices in forward-thinking management by way of historical information. We will read such studies as The Unnatural History of the Sea, by Callum Roberts; The Mortal Ocean, by W. Jeffrey Bolster; and various article-length studies. AMR, HIST

What does it mean to be living at a time when human activities have impacted the environment enough to constitute a distinct geological change? Using a systems-thinking approach, this course will examine the intersection of environmental science, policy, and resiliency. We will critically assess the planetary boundaries that make Earth habitable, where we have transgressed those boundaries, and examine points of intervention. A key facet of this course will be rooted in the tenet that we are not apart from nature; we are a part of nature. Many of the problems that we currently face in terms of sustainability and the environment lie at the juncture of nature and culture and are driven by separation and division. Throughout the semester, we will seek to bridge this disconnection with an emphasis on interconnectedness through place-based experiential learning, as well as resiliency efforts on both the global and local level. We will read such texts as Sherri Mitchell's Sacred Instructions, Clare Leslie’s The Curious Nature Guide, and Katherine Hayhoe's Saving Us, as well as excerpts from All We Can Save, edited by Johnson and Wilkerson, and Rising: Dispatches from the New American Shore, by Elizabeth Rush. AMR

International Crisis Negotiation Exercise

The International Strategic Crisis Negotiation Exercise (ISCNE) is a three-day, experiential learning opportunity in diplomacy and negotiations. This year's scenario is based on a hypothetical crisis in the South China Sea. Tensions in the regions have been rising for the last several years with the intensification of rivalry between China and the West, and with maritime disputes between Beijing and regional powers such the Philippines. Up to nine delegations, comprised of students, will try to find diplomatic solutions to a complex set of issues in this crisis. This includes matters involving climate change, resources, militarization, territory, international trade, and governance. The simulation will allow you to think creatively about this region and experience what diplomatic negotiators do to solve real-world issues affecting people globally.