Students will be provided a “course reader” at the beginning of the semester which will provide references and access to all the required and recommended readings for the course.

Conservation Project Design and Evaluation

Overwhelming scientific data indicates that fisheries, forests, freshwater and other natural resources continue to decline and most biodiversity conservation projects fail to accomplish their goals. This course addresses both problems. It delivers state of the art techniques for designing conservation projects that have the strongest possible chance of success and evaluating the extent of that success. Examples include: knowing the conservation project cycle, assessing site conditions, developing management plans, and creating monitoring and evaluation plans. This "learn by doing" course emphasizes hands-on practice, especially through a conservation project management software program called Miradi. Although the course emphasizes site specific, in situ biodiversity conservation (i.e. protected natural areas), the skills and knowledge can apply to a wide range of environmental projects and programs.

International Marine Policy Speaker Series

The primary purpose of this speaker series is to introduce incoming IEP students who are pursuing the “Ocean and Coastal Resource Management” concentration to a wide range of cutting-edge interdisciplinary topics. (In order to be eligible for the CBE Summer Fellows Program students must enroll in this course—auditing is acceptable—in addition to committing to the 16 units of advanced coursework in their second year.)

The series will include topics from the local to international levels, with a focus on the policy and economic implications. Students are encouraged to use these talks as networking opportunities, catalysts for future research, and most importantly, to help focus their career goals.

The series is open to all IEP and IPM students interested in ocean and coastal issues, as well as members of the MARINE network and the larger Monterey community.

Climate scientists have found that we need to achieve 80% absolute reductions in greenhouse gas emissions globally to stabilize the climate. An essential element of that transition is moving rapidly away from the use of coal, oil and natural gas to generate electricity. Questions we will explore in this course include:

• Are renewables plentiful, affordable, and technologically advanced enough to take the place of fossil fuels in global electricity production?

• What parts of the world have made the most progress in that transition already, which parts still have the furthest to go, and why?

• Which government policies and market strategies will be needed to accelerate the transition, and what will they cost?

• Will solar and wind technology get us there, or are other technologies showing more promise?

• Is it better to do renewables on a massive, centralized basis through utilities, or to implement them in a decentralized way on individual homes and buildings?

• How important is energy storage to making the renewable electricity transition happen?

‘Commons governance’ has emerged as a new paradigm in both functional and legal approaches to international environmental cooperation. Traditionally, nation-states have been considered the sole actors in governing trans-boundary resources such as the atmosphere, water and the ocean. In contrast, the commons approach highlights the role of collaborative governance by all users of a depletable resource in designing, implementing and enforcing sustainability rules and norms. While nation-states remain key players, a commons approach is poly-centric (international, regional, national, sub-national) and multi-actor (government, business, civil society).

This course provides a foundation in the theory and practice of global commons governance. Part One introduces the conceptual framework and empirical findings of Elinor Ostrom’s work on the design of effective institutions for common pool resources. Working in teams of two, students will produce a case study which deploys the Ostrom framework to evaluate the effectiveness of a current agreement governing a transboundary commons of their choice.

Part II focuses on the structure and dynamics of the governance of the global atmospheric commons. It first examines the norms, principles and key agreements in international environmental law. It then explores the evolution of global climate collaboration from the Montreal Protocol to the UNFCCC to the Paris Agreement. Students will produce 1) a graphic presentation evaluating the Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) of two nation-state signatories to the Paris Agreement; 2) a case study examining the way a key non-state actor—business/industry, cities/states/provinces, civil society—is implementing the Paris Agreement.

This course focuses on the scientific basis of climate change. We will explore three main questions: (1) What’s the evidence that Earth’s climate is changing? (2) What’s the cause of present-day climate change? (3) What does our climate future have in store, and how can we influence that future? Specific topics include the greenhouse effect, energy flows between Sun, Earth, and atmosphere, past climates, carbon emissions and other human influence on climate, climate models and their projections of future climate. Readings will be from reports by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change and other sources that will be made available. Students will work with primary data including global and regional temperature records, carbon emissions, and ice-core data on ancient climates. Each class will include a brief introduction to the day’s topic, followed by data analysis and other activities. Class topics will be followed in greater depth through readings and pre-recorded presentations.

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.

Green Business Feasibility Assessment

This course provides hands-on experience conducting a rigorous feasibility assessment for a new triple-bottom-line business. Applying a well-established methodology, you will research and write a detailed feasibility assessment covering priority topics such as: the venture type, industry context, resource needs, target market(s), potential benefits (including social and environmental benefits), key risks, and financial review. In your written report and oral presentation, you will also make an overall recommendation to implement, postpone, or not implement the new business. Regardless of your proposed business type, location, and next steps, you will gain a practical, career-enhancing skill and with a strong writing sample to back it up.