Course Details

A multidisciplinary course that examines human uses of resourcesand impacts on the global environment by focusing on global climate change as a case for study. Contrasting viewpoints and interactions among natural and engineering sciences, social and political sciences,law and ethics will be stressed. Topics will include: humans as a geophysical force, understanding climate change, options for response, roles of different societal actors and forces, international legal perspectives and treaty negotiations, ethical and worldview implications of global climate change, and the relationship of climate change to oil and military power in the Middle East.

course website: http://courses.washington.edu/poecour/

Assignments will include written work, discussions, presentations and exams, and forms of active learning designed to enhance student understanding of complex human-environmental interactions. Students will investigate these issues in greater detail by participating in small groups,an international mock negotiation process, and by exploring the possible implications of global climate change for our own region, including practical responses ordinary citizens can make to this global issue.