Geography and Environmental Management, Climate Change (GEMCC)
14 graduate courses in Waterloo’s course catalog for Winter 2020, from UW Open Data. uwloo can’t read that term’s Graduate Calendar, so this stands in for it; the calendar itself is in Waterloo’s archive.
This course will provide students from any disciplinary and professional background with competence on the global climate challenge, including the scientific underpinnings; potential impacts on natural systems, economic sectors, and human societies around the world; and the two broad categories of societal responses, adaptation and greenhouse gas mitigation. Canadian (federal and provincial) and relevant international climate policy is reviewed. This course is to ensure students develop a shared holistic understanding of key concepts/terminology and the developing science that influences the policy environment within which action on climate change occurs.
Antireq: Not open to Master of Climate Change students
The course examines the interactive physical, biological and geochemical processes responsible for and resulting from climate change, including anthropogenic influences on these processes. *eligible for MES.
GEMCC 602Climate Change Vulnerability and Adaptation
This course examines the impacts of changing climate on natural and human systems and focuses on the capacity of societies to adjust to, plan for and cope with changing climate and environmental conditions. *eligible for MES
This course examines the anthropogenic sources of greenhouse gas emissions and the range of strategies to reduce these emissions and to enhance carbon sequestration. The policy frameworks governing climate change mitigation are critically appraised from geopolitical, economic and ethics perspectives. This course also considers the potential role of climate remediation strategies.
GEMCC 610Climate Prediction, Modeling and Scenarios
Computer models of the physical climate system are essential tools for investigating future climate change. This course will introduce students to the basic formulation of these models, and their strengths and limitations. Inter-linkages between climate modeling and mitigation and adaptation policy agendas is reviewed and critiqued. The types of climate modeling experiments peformed with such models and scenarios will be reviewed. The latest projections of future climate on a variety of temporal and spatial scales will be presented and evaluated. *eligible for MES
This course examines the scientific and practical challenges of utilizing climate data for decision-making, as well as the professional ethics associated with providing climate services. Through lectures, videos, guest speakers, and technical assignments this course explores how both historical data and climate change scenarios can be used for both climate change mitigation and adaptation. Usability of weather and climate data is an essential ingredient for developing effective responses. From a general discussion on the value of weather and climate information, the course explores how both historical climate data is an essential ingredient for developing effective responses. From a general discussion on the value of weather and climate information, the course explores how both historical climate data and climate change scenarios can be used to assess climate risk in a variety of sectors, including range of decision support tools. This will include such areas as: community planning (e.g. vulnerability mapping and resilience assessments); engineering (e.g. climate design criteria for infrastructure); emergency response planning (e.g. hazard and risk management); business (carbon accounting and climate proofing) and human health (e.g. development of robust heart-hearth alert systems). In addition, this course covers the theory and application of climate indicators for ongoing assessment and monitoring of adaptation actions. Students must have access to spreadsheet software for assignments. *eligible for MES.
GEMCC 622Climate Change, Natural Hazards and Disaster Risk Reduction
This course explores the complex links between climate change and natural hazards, and related disasters, including disaster risk reduction as an adaptation strategy. Emphasis is placed on examining these concepts in a developing country context. *eligible for
This course examines contemporary theories, approaches, and technologies used to study coupled natural-human systems at the intersection of land-use and land-cover change, land management, and the carbon cycle. Topics covered include measurement and modelling techniques to improve carbon accounting, the effects of land use and land management on carbon storage and flux, and international and national policy frameworkds influencing carbon sequestration and climate change mitigation. *eligible for MES
GEMCC 640Climate Change Governance: From Global Treaties to Local Innovation
This course explores the theories behind, and practical approaches to, the multi-level governance of climate change. The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, the Kyoto Protocol, national climate action plans and local innovation are viewed through the lenses of legitimacy, effectiveness, and participation. Finally, we consider the challenge of transformative change, and the possibility of finding synergies among climate change responses and other pressing social and environmental priorities.
GEMCC 644Climate Change and the Health of Canadians
This course examines climate-change related health risks to Canadians, including to populations of highest concern - seniors, young children, people with chronic illnesses, the socially and economically disadvantaged, and Indigenous Populations - and the potential for impacts on communities. New tools such as climate change and health vulnerability and adaptation assessments are discussed along with their uses in policy and program development by Canadian and international partners. Guest lectures, case studies and a field trip to meet with climate change decision makers in Ottawa are used to illustrate innovative health adaptation measures and multidisciplinary partnerships being undertaken to build climate resilient health systems. Note: This course involves a combination of lecture, class discussion and activities, student presentations and a multi-day field trip to Ottawa; field trip fee normally $300+HST; will not exceed $600+HST. For students unable to attend the field component, an alternative assessment component will be arranged.
This course examines the intersection of business management, climate change, and the evolving policy environment within which mitigation and adaptation occurs. A Canadian lens is applied to understanding: climate change business economics; the changing policy and regulatory landscape at the international, national and provincial levels; the ways in which a price on carbon and the need to disclose carbon and climate risk can affect business decision-making; and various opportunities for companies to reduce their carbon footprint to operate in emerging low-carbon economies, make their business more resilient to the impacts of climate change, and identify value-creation opportunities. Leadership cases from businesses worldwide will be explored, including multi-nationals and small and medium sized enterprises.
Climate change has complex implications for communities across Canada and Planners are at the forefront of developing and implementing strategies to both reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and build resilience to current and future climate. This course focuses on some of the opportunities and challenges associated with the integration of climate change into urban and rural planning, including climate vulnerability of urban systems, low-carbon transport systems, urban greening and green infrastructure for climate resilience, regenerative designs that reduce social vulnerability, the role of information and communication technologies for system efficiency and resilience, and assessing synergies and conflicts between mitigation and adaptation. Leading policy and design cases from communities across Canada and internationally will be examined.
Carbon management is fundamental to achieving international and national policy objectives to avoid dangerous climate change. With more jurisdictions implementing carbon pricing and cap and trade programs, carbon accounting and reporting is rapidly expected to become a central part of the global business environment. This course focuses on best practices in GHG measurement and management from the perspective of a business or organization. The course includes organization emission reduction target setting strategies; techniques and standards for organizational GHG inventories with reference to international-regional-sectoral reporting/trading schemes; auditing and verification processes; GHG information management systems; evolving expectations and approaches to disclosure of GHG emissions; supply-chain carbon accounting; and evolving carbon markets (voluntary, sectoral and regulated).