Looking for an exciting course to fill out your schedule? Check out the highlights below of Geography courses spanning pressing topics such as the climate emergency; present-day human geography of the cities and regions of Europe; physical and biological characteristics of the circumpolar Arctic; Biodiversity; Urban Political-Economic Geographies; and our Changing Environment: Climate and Ecosystems & Water and Landscapes.
We are in a climate emergency. Imagining and enacting a just and sustainable future requires an understanding of what makes up the emergency, the challenge it presents and the set of strategies that already exist to address it. This course takes a critical approach to examining the state of scientific knowledge about the climate emergency and the policy challenges and pathways it presents. We will engage in topics such as impacts and associated emissions scenarios; the development of global climate change agreements; the challenge of decarbonization and how this transition must be shaped by equitable, socially just outcomes; the role of the courts and legal strategies in achieving climate mitigation and climate justice, and more. The course will draw on current state of knowledge and policy on key issues and will feature a series of guest speakers with expertise in relevant topics. The course is interdisciplinary, addressing elements of, and interactions among, climate science (e.g., impacts of 1.5 degree temperature rise), social science, and policy (e.g., mitigation, adaptation).
This course investigates the making and remaking of cities, places, and borders in Europe—from the Urals to the Atlantic. It explores the social complexities of contemporary Europe—its (geo)politics, culture, and society—and it highlights Europe’s importance as a power center in today’s world. We will first examine how the ideas of Europe and European culture came about in the first place, how they inform contemporary politics, and why they are so contentious. We will then turn to various aspects of European politics and culture, including European integration, nationalism and regionalism, urban and regional planning traditions, food and wine cultures, and the foreign relations of the European Union.
Principal theories and debates in urban political economy and political-economic geography, with particular emphasis on global transformations.
This course is designed to foster knowledge and discussion around the ecological and societal realities of a changing Arctic, which is warming at a rate of at least four times that of the rest of the globe. Increases in Arctic air temperatures and changes to the cryosphere (e.g., loss of permafrost, sea ice, and glaciers) threaten ecosystems across the globe due to feedbacks within the Earth system, including accelerated global climate warming. The changing Arctic creates complex challenges for human communities in the far north including issues of environmental change, governance, infrastructure, human health, and Indigenous rights. Students will explore issues related to the central question of the course: what are the impacts of climate change on Arctic ecosystems and humans?
Energy and water in the Earth-Atmosphere system, global climates and climate change, ecosystem properties and processes, human impacts.
In this course you will be introduced to the study of geology, hydrology and geomorphology.
Geology is the science and study of the Earth, its composition, structure, physical properties, history, and the processes that shape it.
Hydrology is the study of the movement and distribution of water throughout the Earth and addresses both the hydrologic cycle and water resources.
Geomorphology is the study of landforms and the processes that shape them. Together these disciplines encompass most of the processes that impact human societies (such as volcanic eruptions, floods, landslides and droughts), and many of the natural resources upon which modern societies are built
Introduction to Biodiversity is a course that examines contemporary species distributions at local to global spatial scales, population and community dynamics, and human impacts. Labs will emphasize collecting data (sometimes outdoors) and interpreting the results. The assignments complement the topics discussed in class and provide hands-on experience studying the geography of ecosystems.
