| Department of Agriculture and Ecology
78 % Institute of Food and Resource Economics 12 % Forest & Landscape 5 % Department of Disease Biology 5 % | |||||||||||
| Earliest Possible Year | MSc. 1 year to MSc. 2 year | ||||||||||
| Duration | Two blocks | ||||||||||
| Credits | 15 (ECTS) | ||||||||||
| Course Level | MSc | ||||||||||
| Examination | Final Examination written examination All aids allowed Description of Examination: At the end of the course there will be a 24 hours written exam conducted via the internet (estimated workload 8 hours). The exam questions will be distributed electronically and students must submit their individual answers within 24 hours. Weight: 100% written exam 7-point scale, internal examiner | ||||||||||
| Requirement For Attending Exam | At least 75% of the E-learning modules must be completed. | ||||||||||
| Organisation of Teaching | Internet based E-learning modules with weekly deadlines. The course can be followed from anywhere in the world (internet access is required). | ||||||||||
| Block Placement | Block 3 Week Structure: Outside schedule Block 4 Week Structure: Outside schedule | ||||||||||
| Teaching Language | English | ||||||||||
| Restrictions | 60 students. | ||||||||||
| Course Contents | |||||||||||
| Climate Change Impacts, Adaptation and Mitigation is an interdisciplinary E-learning course offered by the University of Copenhagen in close cooperation with the Danish Meteorological Institute, UC Berkeley and Australian National University. Through distance learning it is available everywhere, and it is open for MSc students and continuing education students with a relevant BSc background in natural science, social science and economics. The focus of the course is climate change impacts and the human response to climate change, including efforts to adapt to climate change, as well as efforts to avoid or reduce the negative impacts of climate change. Using the IPCC Fourth Assessment Report as the main reference together with recent complementary and contrasting findings, the relevant managerial and economic tools are applied to analyse and discuss the different aspects of climate change. The course is divided in four main parts. In the first part of the course the E-learning platform is introduced and a basic understanding of the physical science of climate change is given, together with a brief introduction to the ongoing climate change debate. Natural and anthropogenic drivers, and direct observations of recent climate change are presented. Different climate change models and scenarios are presented and discussed in relation to future climate change projections. In the second part of the course the impacts of climate change and potential adaptation strategies in different sectors are presented. After a short introduction to adaptive managemen and adaptive capacity, the climate change impacts and adaptation practices for ecosystems, land use, water resources, society and human health are presented and discussed in relation to both options, constraints, costs and benefits. The third part of the course deals with different climate change mitigation strategies. First, a number of strategies are presented, including carbon sequestration, transition to carbon neutral energy sources, geo-engineering as well as measures to increase energy efficiency. Afterwards, it is analyzed and discussed which of the strategies for climate change mitigation are the most effective and cost-effective, both on a global scale and in various regions of the world. In the fourth and final part of the course the focus is climate change policy and social change. First, the current status of international climate change negotiations is discussed. Afterwards, the regulatory instruments that may be applied to achieve climate change policy goals are presented. Finally, the course ends with a discussion of the need for voluntary agreements and social change in order to reduce the negative impacts of climate change. | |||||||||||
| Teaching And Learning Methods | |||||||||||
| Internet based E-learning modules (E-modules) with weekly deadlines. Each E-module is composed of 1) an introduction 2) an overview of the purpose, the subjects and the lessons learned, 3) a short study guide 4) Learning resources (which can be text, audio and/or video files) and 5) several exercises called E-lessons. The E-lesssons are online learning activities which can be either questionnaires, assignments or discussions. The role of the teachers are to assist student learning by serving as E-moderators for the various E-lessons. Students must complete at least 75% of the E-modules to qualify for the final exam. | |||||||||||
| Learning Outcome | |||||||||||
| The aim of the course is to give a solid understanding of climate change impacts, and provide the knowledge and tools to devise effective and cost-effective strategies for climate change adaptation and mitigation on a global, sectoral and local scale. After completing the course the student should be able to: Knowledge: - Identify the natural and anthropogenic drivers of climate change - Summarise the direct observations of climate change - Describe the impacts of climate change for agriculture, forestry, ecosystems, water resources, society and human health - Refer to common climate change models and scenarios Skills: - Assess the cross-sectoral impacts of climate change in designated areas - Select and apply relevant managerial and economic tools to analyse the options, constraints, costs and benefits for climate change adaptation - Compare the effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of different climate change mitigation strategies and policy instruments Competences: - Discuss the ecological, social and economic aspects of climate change impacts, adaptation and mitigation on a global, sectoral and local scale - Cooperate and work independently to devise effective and cost-effective strategies for climate change adaptation and mitigation on a global, sectoral and local scale - Evaluate the regulatory instruments and reflect on the need for social change | |||||||||||
| Course Litterature | |||||||||||
| Course material consists of selected texts as well as audio and video files, which will be made available on the course pages at absalon.ku.dk. | |||||||||||
| Course Coordinator | |||||||||||
| Christian Bugge Henriksen, cbh@life.ku.dk, Department of Agricultural Sciences/Environment, Resources and Technology, Phone: 35333529 John R. Porter, jrp@life.ku.dk, Department of Agricultural Sciences/Environment, Resources and Technology, Phone: 35333377 | |||||||||||
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