Course |
Fall 2018 |
Spring 2019 |
Fall 2019 |
Spring 2020 |
510
Introduction to Statistics and Data Analysis in the Environmental Sciences
510 Introduction to Statistics and Data Analysis in the Environmental Sciences :
An introduction to statistics and data analysis with emphasis on practical applications in the environmental sciences. Includes graphical analysis, common probability distributions, hypothesis testing, confidence intervals, and linear regression. The second part of the course introduces the topics of multiple regression and ANOVA that are typically not covered in an introductory class such as AP statistics. There are weekly problem sets using MINITAB, SPSS, or R, as well as a final project. This course is a prerequisite for other statistics courses offered through F&ES, and it presents statistical methods used in many Yale courses in both the natural and social sciences. Three hours lecture : Jonathan Reuning-Scherer : Jonathan Reuning-Scherer
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Reuning-Scherer Tu,Th - 10:30-11:50 |
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Reuning-Scherer TBA - TBA |
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510E
Introduction to Statistics and Data Analysis in the Environmental Sciences
510E Introduction to Statistics and Data Analysis in the Environmental Sciences : by Application only
An introduction to statistics and data analysis with emphasis on practical applications in the environmental sciences. Includes graphical analysis, common probability distributions, hypothesis testing, confidence intervals, and linear regression. The second part of the course introduces the topics of multiple regression and ANOVA that are typically not covered in an introductory class such as AP statistics. There are weekly problem sets using MINITAB, SPSS, or R, as well as a final project. This course is a prerequisite for other statistics courses offered through F&ES, and it presents statistical methods used in many Yale courses in both the natural and social sciences. This course is taught in a flipped classroom approach: students watch videos before class, and classroom time is spent answering questions and working examples on computers. Enrollment limited to thirty : Jonathan Reuning-Scherer : Jonathan Reuning-Scherer
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Reuning-Scherer Tu,Th - 2:30-3:50 |
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Reuning-Scherer TBA - TBA |
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511
Ecological Patterns and Processes
511 Ecological Patterns and Processes : The course, which meets Aug. 29–Oct. 5, gives students a fundamental mechanistic understanding about the way abiotic (e.g., climate) and biotic (e.g., resources, competitors, predators) factors determine pattern in the distribution and abundance of species. Students learn how individuals within a species cope with changing environmental conditions by altering their behavior, making physiological adjustments, and changing the allocation of resources among survival growth and reproduction. Students learn how populations of species coexist within communities and how species interactions within communities can drive ecosystem functioning. Students also learn how ecologists use scientific insight to deal with emerging environmental problems such as protecting biodiversity, understanding the consequences of habitat loss on species diversity, and forecasting the effects of global climate change on species population viability and geographic distribution. : Oswald J. Schmitz : Oswald J. Schmitz
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Schmitz Tu,Th - 4:00-5:20 |
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Schmitz TBA - TBA |
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512
Microeconomics for Environmental Management
512 Microeconomics for Environmental Management : This six-week course which meets August 29 - October 5 provides an introduction to microeconomic analysis and its application to environmental policy. Students study how markets work to allocate scarce resources. This includes consideration of how individuals and firms make decisions, and how policy analysts seek to quantify the benefits and costs of consumption and production. We consider the conditions under which markets are beneficial to society and when they fail. We see that market failure arises frequently in the context of environmental and natural resource management. The last part of the course focuses on the design of environmental and natural resource policies to address such market failures. The course is designed to cover basic knowledge of economics analysis and prepare students for F&ES 834 and other more advanced offerings. : Matthew J. Kotchen : TBD Faculty
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Kotchen M,W - 2:30-3:50 |
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Faculty TBA - TBA |
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520
Society and Environment: Introduction to Theory and Method
520 Society and Environment: Introduction to Theory and Method :
First Class will meet on Friday, August 31 12:00-1:00, Kroon 321
Introductory course on the scope of social scientific contributions to environmental and natural resource issues. Section I, overview of the field and course. Section II, framing of environmental problems: placing problems in their wider political context, new approaches to uncertainty and failure, and the importance of how the conceptual boundaries to resource systems are drawn. Section III, methods: the dynamics of working within development projects, and the art of rapid appraisal and short-term consultancies. Section IV, local communities, resources, and (under)development: representing the poor, development discourse, and indigenous peoples and knowledge. There are two guest lectures by leading scholars in the field. No prerequisites. This is a core M.E.M. specialization course in F&ES, a core course in the combined F&ES/Anthropology doctoral degree program, and a prerequisite for F&ES 869/ANTH 572. Three hours lecture/seminar.
: Michael R. Dove : Michael R. Dove
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Dove M - 9:00-11:50 |
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Dove TBA - TBA |
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521
Physical Science Foundations for Environmental Managers
521 Physical Science Foundations for Environmental Managers : This Foundations course, meeting Oct. 15–Dec. 7, provides students with the physical science basics that they need in order to understand and manage environmental problems. The course draws on the following disciplines: climatology, environmental chemistry, geology, hydrology, meteorology, oceanography, and soil science. Focus is on understanding both the underlying concepts and how they apply to real-world environmental challenges. Useful both as a freestanding course and as a gateway to a wide spectrum of intermediate and advanced courses. : Shimon C. Anisfeld : Shimon C. Anisfeld
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Anisfeld Tu,Th - 4:00-5:20 |
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Anisfeld TBA - TBA |
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522
Problem Solving in the Global Era: How Social Sciences Contribute to Forward Looking Environmental Management
522 Problem Solving in the Global Era: How Social Sciences Contribute to Forward Looking Environmental Management : To be offered as a Fall-2 course, Oct. 15–Dec. 7
This 6-week class is designed to identify key contributions of the social sciences for environmental managers. Targeted to both non-specialists, as well as those considering the society and nature stream, the class emphasizes two key themes: the way in which scientific knowledge about environmental problems influence problem definitions, social movements, and policy responses; the role of social sciences in fostering forward looking environmental management. To do this, we draw on Clapp and Dauvergne’s “four environmental world views” framework that integrates knowledge from political science, sociology, anthropology, human geography and development studies; as well as international relations and public policy. : Ben Cashore : Ben Cashore
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Cashore M,W - 2:30-3:50 |
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Cashore TBA - TBA |
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530
Ecosystems and Landscapes
530 Ecosystems and Landscapes :
This Foundations course is an introduction to concepts in ecosystem and landscape ecology. Topics covered include element cycling, food web interactions, species-area relationships, whole system metabolism, models of biodiversity, etc. The course emphasizes how to integrate knowledge to understand ecological : Mark Bradford : Mark Bradford
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Bradford M,W - 9:00-10:20 |
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Bradford TBA - TBA |
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550
Natural Science Research Methods
550 Natural Science Research Methods :
The course prepares students to design and execute an intensive research project. It covers elementary principles and philosophy of science; research planning, including preparation, criticism, and oral presentation of study plans; communicating research findings; limitations of research techniques; the structure of research organizations; and professional scientific ethics : William Lauenroth : William Lauenroth
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Lauenroth M,W - 9:00-10:20 |
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Lauenroth TBA - TBA |
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551
Qualitative Social Science Research
551 Qualitative Social Science Research :
This course is designed to provide a broad introduction to issues of qualitative research methods and design. The course is intended for both doctoral students who are in the beginning stage of their dissertation research, as well as master’s students developing research proposals for their thesis projects. The course covers the basic techniques of designing qualitative research and for collecting, interpreting, and analyzing qualitative data. We explore three interrelated dimensions of research: theoretical foundations of science and research, specific methods available to researchers for data collection and analysis, and the application and practice of research methods. The final product for this course is a research proposal. : Sara Smiley Smith : TBD Faculty
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Smiley Smith M,W - 9:00-10:20 |
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Faculty TBA - TBA |
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573
Urban Ecology for Local and Regional Decision Making
573 Urban Ecology for Local and Regional Decision Making : Urban ecology is the interdisciplinary study of urban and urbanizing systems from local to global scales. While urban ecology shares many features with the biological science of ecology, it emphasizes linkages with social, economic, and physical sciences and the humanities. Geographically, the subject includes central and edge cities, suburbs of various ages and densities, and exurban settlements in which urban lifestyles and economic commitments are dominant. In application, urban ecology can be useful as a social-ecological science for making cities more sustainable, resilient, and equitable. Emerging “grand challenges” in urban ecology include the development of robust approaches and understanding of (1) integrated social-ecological systems in urban and urbanizing environments; (2) the assembly and function of novel ecological communities and ecosystems under novel environmental conditions; (3) drivers of human well-being in diverse urban areas; (4) pathways for developing healthy, sustainable, and disaster-resilient cities; and (5) co-production of actionable science for policy, planning, design, and management. : Morgan Grove : TBD Faculty
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Grove M - 1:00-3:50 |
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Faculty Tentative |
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577
PSC: Environmental Communicator (Dates TBD)
577 PSC: Environmental Communicator (Dates TBD) :
This course prepares students for the communication tasks they will face as environmental professionals, researchers, or employees. In their careers, most professionals spend more than half their work time communicating with others, both inside and outside their organization. To advance in their careers and contribute to the progress of an environmental cause, students need a refined ability to communicate their ideas with clarity and credibility. This course focuses on building a constellation of skills that students can apply to their work. They learn how to use communication to influence others, advocate their ideas, and collaborate with colleagues on project teams. Course topics include strategy in communication, diplomatic language, public speaking, writing styles, listening to people, and framing environmental issues for the public. The course meets for a weekly two-hour lecture and demonstration, and students attend a one-hour small group practice session that allows them to reinforce new communicative behaviors in simulated job tasks, such as project meetings, budget requests, and public hearings. : William Vance : William Vance
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Vance M - 6:00-9:00 |
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Vance TBA - TBA |
578
PSC: Financial Concepts for Environmental Managers
578 PSC: Financial Concepts for Environmental Managers :
This course which meets,October 23-December 4)exposes students to the financial concepts used by companies to make and evaluate business decisions. The class covers key financial statements of for-profit businesses; building financial projections for a business, project, or investment; financial markets: what they are and how they operate; investors: the tools they use to evaluate potential investments; and common valuation techniques: uses and limitations. Meeting dates to be determined. Enrollment limited to sixty. : Maureen Burke : Maureen Burke
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Burke W - 6:00-8:00 |
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Burke TBA - TBA |
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583
American Energy History
583 American Energy History : From the powerful winds that carried ships across the oceans to the coal and oil that fueled industrial growth, energy production and consumption have shaped American history and powered the nation’s grandest ambitions. This course examines how the American energy system evolved over time, and why. How has the struggle to control and deploy energy shaped American politics and economic development? What have been the impacts of energy transitions on social and environmental change? : Paul Sabin : Paul Sabin
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Sabin Tu,Th - 11:35-12:25 |
Tentative (No Semester)
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584
Agricultural Climate Change Mitigation (January 15-February 19)
584 Agricultural Climate Change Mitigation (January 15-February 19) :
Agriculture and land use change (primarily to clear land for agriculture) are responsible for roughly a quarter of anthropogenic emissions. This course will explore the range of solutions that have been proposed, some of which are new while others are already implemented on hundreds of millions of hectares. These include both demand reduction (diet change and food waste) and supply-side strategies. Agricultural production approaches include biosequestration
(i.e. conservation agriculture, agroforestry systems), emissions reduction (i.e., nutrient management, low-methane rice), and intensification, both agrichemical and agroecological. Climate change adaptation is also a critical need. Controversial issues like livestock and biofuels will be discussed. : Eric Toensmeier :
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Toensmeier Tu - 6:00-9:00 |
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590
The Climate Change Negotiations: A Practical Approach
590 The Climate Change Negotiations: A Practical Approach : This course meets on four evenings in the fall, October 22, 29, November 5 & 12
This course introduces students to the history of the international climate change negotiations (from the UNFCCC to the Paris Agreement), discusses the ways in which negotiating differences are typically resolved, identifies the issues to be addressed at this year’s Conference of the Parties, and concludes with a mock negotiation. : Susan Biniaz : TBD Faculty
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Biniaz M - 5:30-7:20 |
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Tentative (No Semester)
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592
Documentary Film Workshop
592 Documentary Film Workshop : This workshop in audiovisual scholarship explores ways to present research through the moving image. Students work within a Public Humanities framework to make a documentary that draws on their disciplinary fields of study. Designed to fulfill requirements for the M.A. with a concentration in Public Humanities. : Charles Musser :
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Musser O - Tues 7pm-10pm; Wed 10:30-1:20 |
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595
Yale Environment Review
595 Yale Environment Review :
The Yale Environment Review is a student-run online publication that aims to bridge the gap between the environmental science community and the wider public. Its aim is to provide easy access to fact-based research for policy makers, environmental managers, and anyone interested in the latest findings in the natural and social sciences. Student writers select two peer-reviewed journal articles each term and learn how to translate them into clear and concise language. Joining the Yale Environment Review will help students improve their writing skills, familiarize themselves with science communication, and publish their work.
: Matthew J. Kotchen : TBD Faculty
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Kotchen Tu - 12:00-12:50 |
Kotchen M - 12:00-1:00 |
Faculty TBA - TBA |
Faculty TBA - TBA |
601
Perspectives: The Anthropocene
601 Perspectives: The Anthropocene : Schedule will also include Friday Discussion sessions
The course is intended to offer a common experience and exposure to the variety of perspectives represented by F&ES faculty and staff on the challenges and opportunities of environmental management. The theme for the inaugural offering is “The Anthropocene.” Humans are now drivers of environmental change on a scale that is unique in Earth’s history. Human-driven biological, chemical, and physical changes to the Earth’s system are so great, rapid, and distinct that they may characterize an entirely new epoch—the Anthropocene.
: Julie Zimmerman : Julie Zimmerman : Paul Anastas
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Zimmerman M - 12:00-1:00 |
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Zimmerman TBA - TBA |
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603
Environmental Data Visualization & Communication
603 Environmental Data Visualization & Communication :
Welcome to the Information Age. Data production is growing at 50% per year, or more than doubling every two years. We are not only producing more data from existing sources, we are constantly creating entirely new streams of data, whether statistical, text, audio, video, sensor, and bio-metric data. Yet, our ability to access, manage, understand, and synthesize all this data is extremely limited. Visualization is a powerful means of enhancing our cognitive abilities to learn from data, especially when informed by insights into human behavior and social systems. While developing the quantitative skills necessary for analyzing Big Data is important, understanding how to effectively explore and communicate insights from data – whether big or small – is equally essential for policymakers, researchers, and practitioners alike. In this course, you will learn how to effectively explore, identify, and communicate key insights from environmental data to diverse audiences through visualization and presentation. Classes will consist partly of short lectures on key principles of effective communication, data management, and visual design, coupled with discussions, peer critiques, and hands-on visualization activities. Throughout the term, we will introduce R and Tableau and use these tools to develop and experimentally test alternative visualizations. The experiments will illustrate and reinforce key principles examined during lectures and discussion. No prior experience with R or other programming languages is necessary. : Jennifer Marlon : : Simon Queenborough
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Marlon M - 10:30-12:20 |
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605
Environmental Risk Communication
605 Environmental Risk Communication :
Risk communication is a critical, but often overlooked part of how organizations identify and manage risks. Risk communication can help people take risks seriously (e.g., to wear a seatbelt or bicycle helmet, check for radon in their homes, evacuate from a coming hurricane) that they might otherwise ignore. Risk communication can also provide
reassurance when data indicate that a risk is not serious. For environmental professionals, effective risk communication enables them to communicate information in a way that is understood and accepted by different stakeholders (e.g., the public, industry, government leaders, etc.) and allows the participation of these stakeholders in risk management decisions. This course will provide an overview of the theory and practice of effective communication about environmental and health risks to diverse stakeholders. Students will be expected to actively participate in class discussions, drawing upon assigned readings, lectures, and videos. : Andrew Schwarz :
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Schwarz Th - 4:00-6:50 |
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607
Advanced Methods in Industrial Ecology
607 Advanced Methods in Industrial Ecology : Modelling the Socio-Economic Metabolism
Humans have transformed the Earth’s surface to serve their production and consumption systems. While social sciences study the sphere of human decision making and behavior rooted in culture, organization, and preferences, and earth scientists study the effect of human actions on nature, industrial ecology studies the acquisition and transformation of natural resources to products, their use and disposal, and the ensuing emissions in biophysical terms. This course provides an in-depth treatment of the methods industrial ecologists have developed to study this socioeconomic metabolism. The course focuses on input-output analysis and dynamic stock-flow models of materials in products and infrastructures. It also addresses hybrid approaches, such as the combination of life-cycle assessment and input-output methods or the application of such methods in conjunction with prospective models rooted in stock-flow dynamics. The course is primarily focused on modelling tools, combining blackboard-based lectures with computer-based exercises. Modelling is conducted in MatLab. Grading is based on problem sets, a midterm and a final exam. : Edgar Hertwich : Edgar Hertwich
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Hertwich TBA - TBA |
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Hertwich TBA - TBA |
611
Data Science for Social Research: An Introduction
611 Data Science for Social Research: An Introduction : This seminar provides an introduction to a rapidly growing and promising area of social scientific research that has accompanied the explosion of data in our digital age, as nearly every aspect of life is now connected (e.g., mobile phones, smart devices, social media) and digitized (book archives, government records, websites, communication). Students are introduced to various techniques and software for collecting, cleaning, and analyzing data at large scales, especially text data (e.g., machine learning, topic modeling, location extraction, semantic networks). Strong emphasis is placed on integrating these methods into actual research, in hopes of moving new or ongoing student papers toward publication. The course is in a seminar format, with a focus on reading and discussing cutting-edge research, as well as interacting with invited guests from industry (e.g., Google) and academia. An overarching goal of the course is to incubate and launch new interdisciplinary collaborative projects at Yale that integrate data science techniques to solve important problems. : Justin Farrell :
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Farrell W - 4:00-6:50pm |
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612
Waste and Materials Management: Fundamentals and Frontiers
612 Waste and Materials Management: Fundamentals and Frontiers : This course introduces and formalizes concepts related to waste and materials management seen from perspectives of operations, policy, and business. Because there is no disposal-free society, learning about waste that remains waste is a key element of the class. Interest in using wastes as resources opens up other questions related to materials management, policy and regulation, and finance and economics. One goal is to examine fundamentals including generation, collection, processing (e.g., by recycling and composting), and landfilling. Key materials such as paper, plastic, industrial waste, and hazardous waste receive individual attention. A second goal is to describe and discuss alternative futures for waste and materials using ideas drawn from industrial ecology and technology. Half of each class session is devoted to structured learning of fundamentals, and the second half brings in frontiers through readings and student-led discussions. Students who wish to engage in and complete a waste and materials research project in conjunction with the research team can sign up for an additional credit : : TBD Faculty
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Faculty Tentative |
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613
Writing as a Public Scholar
613 Writing as a Public Scholar :
Environmental scholars and practitioners increasingly recognize the need, and often have the desire, to communicate their passions and expertise to a wide, lay audience. The seminar starts from the premise that to do this effectively a mastery of written storytelling is essential, particularly in today’s saturated and fractured media landscape. Students will read popular works by classic and contemporary scholars, such as Rachel Carson and Richard Prum; practitioners in the sciences, such as Atul Gawande and Peter Wohlleben; and journalists such as Elizabeth Kolbert and John McPhee; as well as growing number of authors, such as Bill McKibben, whose work crosses these categories. Some pieces students will analyze multiple times, developing a increasingly nuanced understanding of storytelling technique : Stephanie Hanes Wilson : TBD Faculty
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Wilson Th - 1:00-3:50 |
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Faculty Tentative |
614
Environmental Justice, Nature, and Reflective Practice Seminar
614 Environmental Justice, Nature, and Reflective Practice Seminar : Through an interdisciplinary approach to public health, and urban and environmental studies, we will examine the changing relationship between social systems, urbanization, biodiversity conservation, and environmental justice. Particular attention will be focused on how race, class, gender, immigration status, indigeneity, and sexuality intersects with the distribution of natural resources and the equitable development of cities.
In the social sciences, the concept of intersectionality has been used to highlight how these social categories of culture and identity overlap, heightening the effects of discrimination, exclusion, social inequality, and systemic injustice in the lives of specific individuals. An intersectional approach to environmentalism emphasizes how certain people and groups suffer worse effects because of overlapping factors that are often measured separately.
In the seminar, we define reflective practice as the ability to reflect on one's professional experiences, actions, and positionality, so as to engage in a process of continuous learning. Students will focus on reflective practice exercises to engage in the practical and theoretical methods used in the field of environmental policy and planning to address the immediate and long-term sustainability challenges posed by global and local environmental change. Urban and sociological theories will be complemented by real-world environmental controversies that require group collaboration to produce in-class presentations, role-playing negotiation case simulations, and the completion of a final research paper. : Michael Anthony Mendez :
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Mendez W - 1:00-3:50 |
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615
Political Ecology of Conservation and Restoration of Tropical Forest Landscapes
615 Political Ecology of Conservation and Restoration of Tropical Forest Landscapes : Study of the relationship between society and the environment focusing on tropical forest conservation. Global processes of environmental conservation, development, and conflicts over natural resource use and control; approaches to conserving trees and forest cover using strategies that support biodiversity and rural agricultural livelihoods; specific focus on tropical forest landscapes dominated by agriculture and cattle ranching practices using Panama and Colombia as a case studies. The course includes a required field trip for graduate students during Spring Break: March 17-March 23 in Panama at the ELTI’s focal training site. : Amity Doolittle : Amity Doolittle
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Doolittle Tu - 1:30-4:10 |
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Doolittle Tentative |
616
Business and Environment Solutions: 7 by 7 (Fall-2)
616 Business and Environment Solutions: 7 by 7 (Fall-2) : 7x7: Seven wicked challenges in business and the environment – seven weeks to come up with a solution.
You have studied business and the environment for years and you are left with the feeling that there is a lot of talk out there and very few solutions. Here is your chance to try to address some of the stickiest, and yet tangible, challenges at the intersection of business and the environment.
In this project-based course, we present student teams with 7 constrained, yet recalcitrant challenges at the intersection of business and the environment on day one. In each challenge, we have a potential game-changing idea to address a major environmental problem, but little idea how to make that idea into a reality through business.
Each team will select one challenge[1]. Seven weeks later, your team will present your business solution.
In the meantime, we will provide resources (people, literature, frameworks, standards, tools and suggestions) to help you explore the ins and outs of your challenge. We call these resource packs a ‘live-case study’ as they require interaction with live experts in the field. We will also provide a weekly discussion with faculty, entrepreneurs, innovators and out-of-the-box business thinkers that are working on other challenges in the field so that you can glean ideas on how to think about your challenge in new and innovative ways.
We will not provide any solutions, because there are no solutions yet. At the end of the class, we will judge each other based on your process of thinking through the problems, the comprehensiveness of analysis, the implementability and expected effectiveness of the business solution and the skill with which you present your case.
This course is appropriate for those students with a background and curriculum experience in both business and the environment. Our expectation is that students will have sufficient familiarity with their team challenge to ‘hit the ground running’.
[1]Teams may select their own challenge, but resource packs will only provided for the seven challenges below
: Todd Cort : Todd Cort
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Cort W - 2:40-5:40 |
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Cort TBA - TBA |
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620
Integrative Assessment
620 Integrative Assessment :
This course illustrates how to integrate the insights and models of different disciplines to address key environmental management questions facing society. Examples are drawn from across pollution and natural resource issues so that students can become familiar with a diverse set of issues. The course illustrates the merits of learning about the natural sciences, engineering, and economics in order to practice environmental management : : Robert O. Mendelsohn
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Mendelsohn TBA - TBA |
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625
Writing Workshop
625 Writing Workshop : This is a half-semester course aimed at helping students improve their writing. The goal is not to try to shape students into professional writers, but rather to develop their writing skills and make them better able to communicate their work and ideas through writing – writing that is clear, accessible, and free of jargon. Students will be required to write short pieces weekly and one longer article. The class is organized as a workshop, with students reading and commenting on each other’s work. The instructor will be available for weekly meetings with students to discuss their writing. There will be regular readings of articles or short book selections, but the focus will be on developing the students’ own writing. Students will be evaluated on: completing all assignments on time; the quality of their work; the progress their writing shows over the course of the class; and participation in discussions : Roger Cohn : Roger Cohn
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Cohn Tu - 1:00-3:50 |
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Cohn TBA - TBA |
627
Environmental Law
627 Environmental Law : Follows Law School Calendar
This course explores what environmental laws are, who they are for, and how they can be used. It addresses federal statutes, like the Clean Air Act and the Civil Rights Act, as well as common law, tribal law, and international law. It seeks to understand those who write environmental laws, those who wield them, and those who are subject to them. Grades are based on three written assignments and student participation; there is no examination option. Enrollment limited. : Douglas Kysar : TBD Faculty
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Kysar Tu,Th - 10:10-12:00 |
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Faculty TBA - TBA |
630
The Physical Science of Climate Change
630 The Physical Science of Climate Change : This course covers the science behind Earth’s climate system. The first part of the course entails understanding the components of Earth’s climate, including the chemical and physical atmosphere and the role of land, ice, and the oceans in regulating global climate. The second half takes a closer look at how Earth’s climate system impacts global sustainable boundaries, including its impact on ecosystems, water resources, the built environment, human health, and the global food system. During the first half of the course students are expected to complete weekly homework assignments that reinforce class concepts and perform a guided analysis using a climate model. The second half of the course involves project work on the impact of climate on a system (e.g., ecosystem, government, etc.). : Peter A. Raymond : Peter A. Raymond : Xuhui Lee
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Raymond Tu,Th - 10:30-11:50 |
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Raymond TBA - TBA |
631
Solving Super Wicked Problems: Environmental Policy Analysis for a Low Carbon World
631 Solving Super Wicked Problems: Environmental Policy Analysis for a Low Carbon World : To be offered in 2019–2020. : : Ben Cashore
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Cashore TBA - TBA |
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632
Introduction to Social Entrepreneurship
632 Introduction to Social Entrepreneurship : Introduction to Social Entrepreneurship is a practice-based course in which students from across campus form interdisciplinary teams to work on a social challenge of their choice. Teams include students from SOM, SPH, FES, YDS, Jackson Institute, and other schools and programs. Students start by identifying a topic area of focus, then form teams based on shared interests and complementary skills. Over the course of thirteen weeks, student teams delve into understanding the challenge through root cause analysis, research on existing solutions and populations affected; then apply human centered design thinking and systems thinking to design, prototype, test, and iterate solutions. Using tools such as the theory of change, logframe, business canvas, and social marketing strategy; teams build and test their impact models, operational models, and revenue models. Readings and assignments from the textbook “Introduction to Social Entrepreneurship” are used to guide this journey. These include technical templates, case studies, and interviews with social entrepreneurs and thought leaders in different sectors and geographies around the world. The class meets weekly for three hours in a workshop-style session, and includes guests from local social enterprises who join the class to share their experience, advice and challenges. At the end of the semester, student teams pitch their ventures to a panel of judges including social venture funders and social entrepreneurs. Teams are encouraged, but not required, to submit their ventures to one of the campus wide startup prizes (see: city.yale.edu/funding). While there are no prerequisites, this course builds on the SOM core course Innovator, and electives including Principles of Entrepreneurship, Entrepreneurship & New Ventures, Innovation and Entrepreneurship in Public Health, Global Social Entrepreneurship, Managing Social Enterprises, Business & the Environment Solutions. : Teresa Chahine :
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Chahine Th - 2:40-5:40 |
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635
Renewable Energy Project Finance
635 Renewable Energy Project Finance : The course is intended to be a practicum, exposing students to real-world tools of the trade as well as the theory underlying them. In place of a textbook, students are provided with approximately 400 pages of actual project documents used for a U.S. wind energy project constructed relatively recently. Through weekly homework assignments, students develop the skills necessary to construct a detailed financial model, largely comparable to what would be used by an investment firm, project developer, or independent power producer. Modeling skills include sizing debt capacity, sensitivity analysis, stochastic forecasting, taxes, and the creation of financial statements. Lectures also provide an introduction to risk management, energy market dynamics, alternative contractual structures, financial structuring, and the core engineering and risks inherent in the most common renewable energy technologies.
: Daniel Gross : Daniel Gross
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Gross M - 2:30-5:20 |
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Gross TBA - TBA |
636
Sustainable Finance
636 Sustainable Finance : For a variety of reasons, today’s businesses and investors are dealing with the risks and opportunities of environmental, social and governance (ESG) issues. Climate change, water scarcity, community conflicts, resource depletion, supply chain breakdowns, worker well-being and economic inequality pose material challenges that make sustainability and ESG an imperative for successful corporations and investors.
This course couples established and emerging theory on how finance can be used to address sustainability challenges with the practice of Sustainable Investing. We will examine current ESG investment and corporate strategies, trends, future scenarios, players, and frameworks and integrate that theory with practical investment performance analysis, metrics, and studies of data, screens, asset classes, and diversification. The course seeks to mix multiple formats of learning and interaction including lectures, class discussions, workshops, interactions with industry leaders and student-led research.
Students of all disciplines interested in the fields of investment and environmental/social policy are encouraged to attend the mandatory first day of class. This course is designed to be accessible to those with varying levels of knowledge of financial markets and economics backgrounds. Though there are high expectations for the quality of final stock pitches, mentoring and resources are readily available from the two instructors. : Todd Cort : Todd Cort
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Cort Tu,Th - 2:30-3:50 |
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Cort TBA - TBA |
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638
Carbon Footprints, Modeling and Analysis
638 Carbon Footprints, Modeling and Analysis : Carbon footprints are important tools in climate policy making. Carbon footprints describe the greenhouse gas emissions associated with an activity, company, household, or nation and are based on a life-cycle perspective, assigning emissions of greenhouse gases to the end user. Carbon footprints are also discussed in connection with responsibility for reducing greenhouse gas emissions. This course offers an introduction to the assessment of carbon footprints using input-output techniques and life-cycle assessment, and it examines scientific, policy, and management issues associated with carbon footprinting. It also offers an introduction to the analysis and interpretation of carbon footprint results. The course is split into two parts. In the first, students learn the techniques of carbon footprint modeling and analysis using generic tools such as MatLab and Excel through both lectures and exercises. The second part of the course is dedicated to assessing and understanding carbon footprints of areas of final demand (e.g., food), specific product groups (e.g., cars), or organizations (e.g., F&ES, YNHH). Grading is based on problem sets, a midterm exam, and a final project. The students must be comfortable with quantitative analysis and prepared to acquire basic programming and modeling skills. Prior knowledge of life-cycle assessment and industrial ecology is desirable and may be gained through taking F&ES 884 : Edgar Hertwich : Edgar Hertwich
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Hertwich M,W - 9:00-10:20 |
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Hertwich TBA - TBA |
643
Managing the Environment with People in Mind: Understanding the Contributions of the Social Sciences and Humanities
643 Managing the Environment with People in Mind: Understanding the Contributions of the Social Sciences and Humanities : This class focuses on three key contribution of the myriad of social science and humanities disciplines for environmental managers: 1) how to understand, and assess, the way in which different types of environmental problems emerge as concerns among society and policy makers; 2) how different societies define appropriate resource use and how ‘bottom up’ social movements can trigger transformative change; and 3) the ways in which ‘top down’ state and non-state governance systems develop environmental policies. To do this, the class begins, and ends, with a historical emphasis that challenges the idea that norms or ethics surrounding natural resource management are static and universal. Instead, we seek to understand why norms change, and the lessons for environmental management. The class first turns to the humanities and social science disciplines, from political philosophy to religion and the environment, in order to unpack the ways in which norms emerge among humans that can’t be reduced to purely utility enhancing explanations. The class then turns to the disciplines of anthropology and sociology to better understand the role of cultural values and power dynamics in shaping how natural resources are valued, controlled, and protected. Finally, the class turns to political science, policy sciences, and institutional analysis to understand how, in the global era, environmental policies emerge and influence critical problems facing environmental managers. As each discipline makes an enormous contribution to these questions, the class draws on two different social scientists to organize the class, and then turns to experts in particular disciplines within F&ES and Yale. : Amity Doolittle : Amity Doolittle : Ben Cashore
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Doolittle M,W - 2:30-3:50 |
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Doolittle TBA - TBA |
644
Watershed Science
644 Watershed Science : Watershed science is a powerful scientific approach that utilizes the watershed unit and the integrative nature of water to solve problems. This class in watershed science is designed to cover fundamental knowledge, tools, and case studies that have emerged through research over the past fifty years. Included are units on watershed classification, hydrology, chemistry, models, management, and case studies. The goal is to provide students with a knowledge and tool base that allows them to be system thinkers with respect to modern-day environmental problems : : Peter A. Raymond
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Raymond TBA - TBA |
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652
Wood: Structure and Function
652 Wood: Structure and Function : This course focuses on the extraordinary diversity of wood anatomy at the cellular level, and on the practice of dendrochronology that allows students to take advantage of predictable, inter-annual variability in tree growth to reconstruct environmental history. The primary focus of the course is on common northeastern trees and other commercially important timber species. A primary goal is to participate in the development of a master tree-ring chronology for the School forests. Basic statistics and a background in tree physiology and anatomy are strongly recommended. : Craig Brodersen :
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Brodersen Tu,Th - 10:30-11:50 |
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653
Maple: From Tree to Table
653 Maple: From Tree to Table : This course covers the cultural, industrial, and sustainable practices of non-timber forest products through the lens of maple sap and syrup. Maple sugar is a forest product unique to northeastern North America, and it has seen a resurgence in interest as global consumers seek nutritious, natural, and sustainably produced foods. This course covers the booming industry and culture around maple syrup, from backyard operations through modern 100,000-tap investment operations. Maple producers are on the front lines of climate change and forest health threats. The course provides students with the knowledge of how challenges related to forest health and climate change are directly impacting maple producers and how these producers are learning to adapt in ways that are environmentally friendly, ecologically sound, and financially competitive in a global market. : Joseph Orefice :
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Orefice M - 5:30-6:50 |
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654
Structure, Function, and Development of Trees
654 Structure, Function, and Development of Trees :
This course focuses on two aspects of plant life: (1) basic processes that drive plant development, such as seed formation, germination, seedling establishment, maturation, and senescence; and (2) basic structure and function of plants (such as root systems, leaf formation and development, height, and diameter growth). Differences between different groups of seed plants are analyzed from structural, functional, ecological, and evolutionary standpoints. Special attention is given to woody plants and their importance in the biosphere and human life. Coverage includes tropical, temperate, and boreal trees. Plant biology is discussed in the context of physiological and structural adaptations in terms of strength, storage, and water and solute transport. : Graeme P. Berlyn : Graeme P. Berlyn
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Berlyn Tu,Th - 4:00-5:20 |
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Berlyn TBA - TBA |
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656
Tree Physiology and Ecophysiology
656 Tree Physiology and Ecophysiology :
Mineral nutrition and cycling, mycorrhizas, symbiosis, nitrogen fixation, light processing, photosynthesis, respiration, water relations including transpiration, and ecophysiology are covered. The interaction of photosynthesis with water relations, mineral nutrition, temperature, and environmental stress is discussed. Effects of climate changes on forests, past and present, and other current topics are also considered. Term paper required. : Graeme P. Berlyn : Graeme P. Berlyn
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Berlyn Tu,Th - 4:00-5:20 |
Tentative (No Semester)
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658
Global Resources, International Resource Exchanges, and the Environment
658 Global Resources, International Resource Exchanges, and the Environment : Students first learn the global distribution of resources—the amounts, importance, and causes of distribution, and potential changes to soils, water, biodiversity, human societies, energy sources, climates, agriculture, forests and forest products, minerals, and disturbances. They also learn how to analyze and interpret data on global resource distributions. Second, they gain an understanding of the value of multiple-country trading of resources. Third, they gain an understanding of the many mechanisms that facilitate such exchanges, including policies and treaties; business, markets, trading partners, and economics; “good will”; social “taboos”; force; news media; philanthropy; skillful negotiations; cultural/social affiliation; technologies; shared infrastructures; and others. Four teaching methods are used: lectures on the different resources and policy mechanisms; analytical exercises for understanding how to use and interpret international data—and its limitations; a class negotiation exercise for learning the uses of international trade; and guest lectures by faculty and meetings with practitioners for learning the facilitation mechanisms : Chadwick Dearing Oliver : Chadwick Dearing Oliver
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Oliver Tu,Th - 5:30-6:50 |
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Tentative (No Semester)
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659
The Practice of Silviculture: Principles in Applied Forest Ecology (Friday field trips)
659 The Practice of Silviculture: Principles in Applied Forest Ecology (Friday field trips) :
The scientific principles and techniques of controlling, protecting, and restoring the regeneration, composition, and growth of natural forest vegetation and its plantation and agroforestry analogs worldwide. Analysis of biological and socioeconomic problems affecting specific forest stands and design of silvicultural systems to solve these problems. Applications are discussed for management of wildlife habitat, bioenergy and carbon sequestration, water resources, urban environments, timber and nontimber products, and landscape design. Recommended: some knowledge of soils, ecology, plant physiology, human behavior, and resource economics. Four to six hours lecture. One hour tutorial. Seven days fieldwork. : Mark S. Ashton : Mark S. Ashton
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Ashton M,W,F - M/W 8:30-10:20, F 8:30-10:20 early in semester |
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Ashton TBA - TBA |
660
Forest Stand Dynamics
660 Forest Stand Dynamics : This course introduces the study of forest stand dynamics—how forest structures and compositions change over time with growth and disturbances. Understanding the dynamic nature of forest stands is important for creating and maintaining a variety of critical ecosystem services sustainably and synergistically, including sustainable supplies of wood products, biodiversity and wildlife habitats, water, fire protection, and others. Through readings, lectures, discussions, and field trips we explore forest development processes and pathways, concentrating on the driving mechanisms and emergent properties including natural and human disturbances. We make use of New England forests as living laboratories while discussing how similar forest patterns and processes are played out throughout the temperate, tropical, and boreal worlds. The course also provides context on the history and politics of forest ecology and conservation. It uses a book written by the instructor (Forest Stand Dynamics, 1996) and made available electronically. This class is a core component of the M.F. degree but is explicitly designed to be accessible to anyone interested in an in-depth exploration of forest ecosystems. : Chadwick Dearing Oliver : Marlyse Duguid
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Oliver Tu,Th - 9:00-10:20 |
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Duguid TBA - TBA |
667
Seminar in Freshwater Topics
667 Seminar in Freshwater Topics : This seminar is intended to convene F&ES students doing research on, or simply with a keen interest in, the array of issues pertaining to freshwater sustainability. It’s for one credit, meets once a week, and only for an hour. The overall goal of the course is to get students talking, thinking together, and learning from one another about those aspects of freshwater availability, protection, quality, and supply that excite them the most. There will be two kinds of class sessions. A paper session will involve discussion of a water-related article that is selected by a student and read by everyone else. A research session will be similarly interactive, but will focus on one student’s research and will involve a 15-30 minute presentation of the research followed by a class discussion. Although there’s no expectation that the student research will be a “finished piece,” the research session will provide the class an opportunity to learn about a pressing water-related problem and an approach for addressing it, and, equally as important, enable presenters to gain feedback, new perspectives, and advice in overcoming obstacles encountered in their research. The paper sessions can be led by anyone, while the research session will most likely be appropriate for second-year Master’s students or PhD students. : James E. Saiers : James E. Saiers
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Saiers Th - 1:00-1:50 |
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Saiers TBA - TBA |
668
Field Trips in Forest Resource Management and Silviculture
668 Field Trips in Forest Resource Management and Silviculture :
Seven- to twelve-day field trips to study the silviculture and forest management of particular forest regions. In previous years, classes have visited Slovenia, Germany, Austria, the United Kingdom, British Columbia, and, in the United States, the southern Coastal Plain and Piedmont, and the Allegheny, Appalachian, Adirondack, and Green mountains. Enrollment limited to sixteen. : Mark S. Ashton : Mark S. Ashton
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Ashton TBA - TBA |
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Ashton TBA - TBA |
669
Forest Ecosystem Management and Operations (Friday field trips)
669 Forest Ecosystem Management and Operations (Friday field trips) :
The operational aspects of managing forestland are taught, including topics essential to the professional practice of forest management. Operational aspects of regeneration, intermediate tending, and harvesting (planning, layout, implementation, and postoperation evaluation), best management practices, regulatory and wetlands considerations, and socioeconomic dimensions of field operations are the focus. The ethical and professional responsibilities of forest managers who are responsible for land-altering activities are also considered. The course includes considerable field time to help students utilize their existing knowledge about forests to rapidly assess stands and land parcels with respect to the planning and implementation of on-the-ground treatments. Classes feature local field trips to view forestry operations and to develop and refine field skills.
The course can be taken for 2 credits by any student at F&ES or combined with the 1-credit Southern Forest and Forestry Field Trip (F&ES 670b) for 3 credits. : Michael Ferrucci : Michael Ferrucci
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Ferrucci M - 10:30-12:50 |
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Ferrucci TBA - TBA |
670
Southern Forest and Forestry Field Trip
670 Southern Forest and Forestry Field Trip :
This course augments our forestry curriculum by providing a forum for viewing and discussing forestry and forest management with practitioners. The trip provides M.F. candidates and other interested students with an opportunity to experience the diversity of southeastern forested ecosystems and ownership objectives ranging from intensively managed pine plantations to restoration and protection of endangered habitats. Students discuss forest management issues—including forest health, fragmentation, policy, law, and business perspectives—with landowners and managers from large industries, nonindustrial private landowners, TIMOs, federal and state land managers, NGOs, and forestry consultants. We also tour sawmills, paper mills, and other kinds of forest products processing facilities, active logging operations, and, weather permitting, participate on prescribed fires. Not least, we experience the unique cultures, food, and hospitality of the southeastern United States. The course can be taken for 1 credit by any student at F&ES or combined with the 2-credit Forest Management Operations (F&ES 669b) for 3 credits. : Michael Ferrucci : TBD Faculty
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Ferrucci TBA - TBA |
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Faculty TBA - TBA |
671
Temperate Woody Plant Taxonomy and Dendrology
671 Temperate Woody Plant Taxonomy and Dendrology :
Dendrology literally translates as “the study of trees” and integrates morphology, phenology, ecology, biogeography, and the natural history of tree species. In this course students learn how to identify more than 120 individual species of woody plants using common morphological and ecological traits used for field identification. Dendrology is by nature context-specific, so this course has a focus on North American forest species, primarily of eastern North America. In addition, we use phylogenetic systematics as the structure for understanding taxonomy and the evolutionary history and relationships between species. Enrollment limited to thirteen. : Marlyse Duguid : Marlyse Duguid
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Duguid Tu - 1:00-5:00 |
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Duguid TBA - TBA |
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674
Seminar in Forest Ecosystem Health and Climate Change
674 Seminar in Forest Ecosystem Health and Climate Change : This course is an introduction to the biotic and abiotic agents affecting the health of forest ecosystems and forest sustainability, including insects, pathogens, parasites, climate change, and other large-scale disturbances, and includes the consideration of linkages between forest health and human health. Using a case-study approach, several different forest types are examined in detail, with students interacting with research and management professionals who visit the class in person or via remote conferencing. Students learn concepts and methods of assessing forest health, as well as some of the challenges in describing and defining forest health. The course emphasizes the ecological roles played by disturbance agents (both biotic and abiotic), discusses how they affect the health and sustainability of forest ecosystems, and identifies when and how management can be used to improve forest health and/or forest sustainability to manage or mitigate disturbance agents such as invasive pathogens and insects. The course provides students with the necessary background to determine how different stressors may negatively impact management objectives, to identify the probable stress agents, and to decide what, if any, actions should be initiated to protect forest health and sustainability. The course includes several field trips and workshops on the weekends. : : Mark S. Ashton : Robert Talbot Trotter III
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Ashton TBA - TBA |
679
Plant Ecophysiology
679 Plant Ecophysiology : This course focuses on the physiological ecology of plants and their interaction with the biotic and abiotic environment, understood through the lens of first principles. We use a quantitative approach to demonstrate the linkages between photosynthesis, growth, and carbon allocation at the tissue and whole plant level, which can then be scaled up to forests and ecosystems. We also focus on specific physiological and anatomical adaptations plants use to survive in the many varied habitats on Earth. The laboratory component of this course (F&ES 679L) involves the theory, programming, and deployment of micrometeorological equipment to monitor environmental conditions in the field; as well as methods for measuring photosynthesis and growth in the greenhouse and field. : Craig Brodersen :
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Brodersen Tu,Th - 10:30-11:50 |
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679L
Lab: Plant Ecophysiology
679L Lab: Plant Ecophysiology : Lab : Craig Brodersen :
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Brodersen W - 10:00-11:50 |
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680
Forest and Ecosystem Finance
680 Forest and Ecosystem Finance :
Understanding the tools used in financial analysis is an important component of successful forestland investment and forest management decision-making. Moreover, as new ecosystem services markets develop, these skills become even more critical in determining those management strategies that are both ecologically sound and financially viable. This course provides students with a basic suite of financial tools used in the acquisition and management of forestland/timber as well as in the management of ecosystem services. It includes an overview of traditional financial analysis metrics used in land acquisition, timber management, and risk management. It also applies these metrics in ecosystem services markets, allowing students to assess the financial impacts of various management choices. Concepts are reinforced through spreadsheet-based exercises and case studies. : Dominick Grant : Dominick Grant : Deborah Spalding
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Grant Th - 4:00-6:50 |
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Grant TBA - TBA |
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683
Seminar in Tropical Forest Restoration in Human Dominated Landscapes
683 Seminar in Tropical Forest Restoration in Human Dominated Landscapes : This seminar is focused on the biological and social science, management, and policy governing reforestation in tropical regions. Topics covered include the ecology and management of native species plantations and second-growth forests; understanding the social drivers and barriers of restoration; and becoming familiar with the methodological protocols of gathering and assessing social, economic, and cultural values. A particular emphasis is placed on tropical Asia and Latin America. Part of this course is taught online, part in a series of weekly discussions. Optional 1-credit field trip on dry tropical forest restoration, Azuero, Panama. Prerequisite: F&ES 659b. Enrollment limited to sixteen. : : Mark S. Ashton
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Ashton TBA - TBA |
686
Advanced Issues in Soil Science
686 Advanced Issues in Soil Science : To be offered in the academic year 2019–2020. : : Mark Bradford
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Bradford TBA - TBA |
688
Forested Management and Landscape Planning
688 Forested Management and Landscape Planning : The format of the first half of this course is a one-hour lecture each week reinforced by an experiential three-hour lab period. Course concepts will be introduced in lecture on Tuesdays and these topics will be explored further on Thursdays through applied lab projects. The second half of this course will be seminar style with guest speakers on Tuesdays and Thursdays with additional time on Thursdays for one on one assistance with semester projects. Students will be required to work in groups of 2-3 people to complete a final project related to landscape scale forest planning and management in the broadest sense. Options for the final project geographic location and management objectives will be variable to allow for students to dovetail their project with their own educational and professional aspirations. Examples will be taken from public land management issues from the West, industrial timberland planning from the East, conservation planning and sustainable community development from the tropics, and cityscape planning of parks, woodlands and street trees. : Joseph Orefice :
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Orefice M,W - Mon 2:30-3:20/ Wed 2:30-5:20 |
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692
Science and Practice of Temperate Agroforestry
692 Science and Practice of Temperate Agroforestry : This course explores the science and practices of temperate agroforestry, covering current knowledge of agroforestry science and shedding light on the myths and assumptions that have yet to be tested regarding the integration of trees in agricultural systems. The course begins with an overview of modern agriculture to help us better understand why agroforestry systems have potential to improve the sustainability of farming systems. We also cover the social science regarding agroforestry and why it has not been widely adopted. Silvopasture and forest farming systems are the primary focus, but windbreaks, alley cropping, and riparian forest buffers are also covered. The field of agroforestry has struggled with the promotion of hypothetical practices; this course introduces students to real-world production agroforestry systems and helps them better contribute to financially viable and environmentally sound agricultural operations. : Joseph Orefice : Joseph Orefice
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Orefice M,W - 4:00-5:20 |
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Orefice TBA - TBA |
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700
Alpine, Arctic, and Boreal Ecosystems Seminar
700 Alpine, Arctic, and Boreal Ecosystems Seminar :
Biogeoclimatic analysis of these systems worldwide with special attention to biogeography, biometeorology, physiology, histology, morphology, autecology, and silviculture of high-elevation and high-latitude forests through lectures, guest lectures and discussions, student seminars, and field experience. : Graeme P. Berlyn : Graeme P. Berlyn : Xuhui Lee
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Berlyn M,W - 2:30-3:50 |
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Berlyn TBA - TBA |
701
Climate Change Economics Seminar
701 Climate Change Economics Seminar :
The course reviews several modern valuation studies that are central to the estimation of the economic damages from climate change. The aim is to train students to deal with quantitative economic analysis and modeling. Students form teams of two and choose a study; gather the data and methods of that study from the authors or a journal; and then reproduce the published results. The teams study the theory and empirical analysis, gather the data and modeling to replicate the results, and determine how sensitive the results are to the assumptions and specifications. The course meets every other week for the entire year to give students time to analyze their studies and present their results.
Students must register for F&ES 702 in spring 2019
: : Robert O. Mendelsohn : William Nordhaus
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Mendelsohn Tentative |
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702
Climate Change Seminar
702 Climate Change Seminar :
The course reviews several modern valuation studies that are central to the estimation of the economic damages from climate change. The aim is to train students to deal with quantitative economic analysis and modeling. Students form teams of two and choose a study; gather the data and methods of that study from the authors or a journal; and then reproduce the published results. The teams study the theory and empirical analysis, gather the data and modeling to replicate the results, and determine how sensitive the results are to the assumptions and specifications. The course meets every other week for the entire year to give students time to analyze their studies and present their results. : Robert O. Mendelsohn : Robert O. Mendelsohn
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Mendelsohn M,W - 1:00-2:20 |
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Mendelsohn Tentative |
704
Workshop on Remote Sensing and Photogrammetry with Drones
704 Workshop on Remote Sensing and Photogrammetry with Drones :
A workshop that explores the current state and future outlook of remote sensing with unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs or drones) for environmental monitoring. UAV-based remote sensing is a rapidly developing field in environmental science and technology. Versatile and inexpensive, it has the potential to offer solutions in a wide range of applications, such as forestry inventory, precision agriculture, flood hazard assessment, pollution monitoring, and land surveys. The class meets once a week for three hours. The workshop is divided into three parts: (1) reviewing the state of the technology on UAV types, sensor configurations, and data acquisition methods; (2) exploring GIS and remote-sensing software tools for analyzing super-high-resolution spectral data acquired by fixed-wing drones; (3) cross-validating drone products against Lidar data and satellite imagery. Students may also have the opportunity to participate in drone flight missions. Data analysis/presentation/literature critique/field trips.
: Xuhui Lee :
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Lee Tu - 12:00-2:30 |
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706
Organic Pollutants in the Environment
706 Organic Pollutants in the Environment :
An overview of the pollution problems posed by toxic organic chemicals, including petroleum, pesticides, PCBs, dioxins, chlorinated solvents, and emerging contaminants. Processes governing the environmental fate of organic pollutants, e.g., evaporation, bioconcentration, sorption, biodegradation. Technologies for prevention and remediation of organic pollution. Previous experience with organic chemistry is not required. : : Shimon C. Anisfeld
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Anisfeld TBA - TBA |
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707
Aquatic Chemistry
707 Aquatic Chemistry :
A detailed examination of the principles governing chemical reactions in water. Emphasis on developing the ability to predict the aqueous chemistry of natural, engineered, and perturbed systems based on a knowledge of their biogeochemical setting. Calculation of quantitative solutions to chemical equilibria. Focus on inorganic chemistry. Topics include acid-base equilibria, alkalinity, speciation, elementary thermodynamics, solubility, mineral stability, redox chemistry, and surface complexation reactions. Prerequisites: general chemistry and a working knowledge of algebra; F&ES 708a or equivalent is desirable, but not required. Three hours lecture, weekly problem sets. : Gaboury Benoit : Gaboury Benoit
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Benoit Tu,Th - 1:00-2:15 |
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Benoit Tentative |
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708
Introduction to Environmental Chemistry
708 Introduction to Environmental Chemistry :
A descriptive overview of baseline biogeochemistry and the nature and behavior of pollutants in the environment. The course is designed to aid future environmental professionals who sometimes may find it necessary to make decisions based on knowledge of environmental chemistry. It is geared to the nonspecialist who needs to establish familiarity with various classes of pollutants and the chemical, biological, and physical processes that control their sources, behavior, toxicity, and fate. Topics include the fundamental kinds of chemical reactions in the environment, critical analysis of chemical data, sampling techniques, analytical methods, natural biogeochemical controls on environmental chemistry, water treatment, and green infrastructure, as well as detailed examination of such contaminants as acid precipitation, nutrients, urban runoff, and sewage. Three hours lecture. One class project, problem sets, midterm, final exam. A small number of field trips. : Gaboury Benoit : Gaboury Benoit
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Benoit Tu,Th - 1:00-2:20 |
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Benoit Tentative |
709
Soil Science
709 Soil Science :
Lectures, labs, and discussions of soil science, with emphasis on soil ecology. Topics cover the structure and functioning of soils, and how this relates to soil fertility and ecosystem health in a changing environment.
Only taugtht every other year, next reiteration, Fall 2020 : Mark Bradford : Mark Bradford
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Bradford M - 1:00-3:50 |
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Bradford TBA - TBA |
710
Coastal Governance
710 Coastal Governance :
Effective governance combines a basic understanding of natural systems with human values to create new coastal institutions. Single-use regulations of the past (energy, wastewater, ports, marsh conservation) are being replaced by more holistic thinking (spatial management and/or ecosystem-based management). To understand the state of this transition, policy analysis frameworks are applied to sector-based and ecosystem-based management initiatives. Term projects allow student teams to consider the merit of various alternatives that they create to address contemporary problems, which have included sea-level rise, hurricane damage, fisheries, and management in developing countries. F&ES 515a and 525a or equivalent knowledge recommended. Three hours seminar; term project. Enrollment limited to eighteen. : Richard Burroughs : Richard Burroughs
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Burroughs W - 2:30-5:20 |
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Burroughs Tentative |
712
Water Resource Management
712 Water Resource Management :
An exploration of water resource management at scales ranging from local to global. The course looks at multiple dimensions of the water crisis, including both human and ecosystem impacts; quantity and quality issues; and engineering, legal, economic, and behavioral solutions. Theory is illustrated through a variety of case studies. Topics covered include global water resources; flooding; water scarcity; residential, agricultural, and industrial water use; water and health; impacts of climate change and land use change; stormwater management; dams and other technologies for water management; human impacts on aquatic ecosystems; water and energy; water economics; water rights; water conflict and cooperation. Enrollment limited to twenty-five, with preference given to students in the Water Resource Science and Management specialization..
Some Friday Field Trips : Shimon C. Anisfeld : Shimon C. Anisfeld
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Anisfeld Tu,Th - 1:00-2:20 |
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Anisfeld TBA - TBA |
714
Environmental Hydrology
714 Environmental Hydrology : Groundwater quenches the thirst of half the planet’s population. It also supports 40% of the world’s irrigated agriculture, while enabling production of numerous commodities that make us comfortable and content. Groundwater is in high demand and, in some places, we’ve taken too much causing streams to disappear, land to sink, and wells to run dry. Groundwater in other places has been ruined by pollutants that are dangerous side effects of mining, reckless agricultural practices, and unchecked industrial processes. Unless we begin to make better decisions, stresses on groundwater resources will worsen, ultimately to the detriment of human health, food security, and ecosystems.
FES 714 introduces principles and approaches of hydrologic science requisite to informing the smart management of groundwater resources. The course is designed for MEM, MESc, and PhD students seeking to
(i) learn about processes governing the circulation, availability, and quality of groundwater;
(ii) apply hydrological models used by environmental professionals to evaluate groundwater resource issues;
(iii) gain familiarity with methods used to interpret data encountered in groundwater-oriented problems; and
(iv) sharpen analytical skills that have broad application to environmental science and management.
Hydrology is a quantitative science, so students enrolled in F&ES 714 should be comfortable with arithmetic and algebra and should have completed at least one semester of college calculus. Students will use hydrologic simulation models during this course and may, depending on the level of interest, learn to develop simple computer models themselves. But previous experience with hydrologic models or computer programming is not assumed or needed to succeed in F&ES 714. : James E. Saiers :
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Saiers Tu,Th - 9:00-10:20 |
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716
Renewable Energy
716 Renewable Energy : Introduction to renewable energy, including physical principles, existing and emerging technologies, and interaction with the environment. Energy demand; transmission and storage; generation by hydroelectric, wind, solar, biofuel, and geothermal sources, as well as waves and tidal generation. Includes field trips to conventional, hydroelectric, and wind-power facilities in Connecticut. Prerequisites: high school physics, chemistry, and mathematics; college-level science, engineering, and mathematics recommended. : Ronald Smith : Ronald Smith
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Smith M,W - 9:00-10:15 |
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Smith TBA - TBA |
717
Tropical Field Ecology
717 Tropical Field Ecology : This course is designed to give students firsthand knowledge of tropical biology and the issues surrounding conservation of biodiversity in a developing nation, through a combination of seminar-style discussions and a mandatory field trip over winter break. The emphasis is on active learning and developing independent research projects carried out during the field trip. Using a case-study approach, topics covered include patterns of biodiversity, tropical forest dynamics, reforestation, species interactions and coevolution, climate change impacts, ecosystem services, and human land use. Students also gain experience with study design, data collection methods, and statistical analysis. This year’s field trip is to Panama, a country famous for its high biological, cultural, and economic diversity. We visit a variety of forest ecosystems and hear from local and international scientists about current research in the field. Students undertake two short research projects and also learn basic identification and natural history of tropical plant, bird, and insect species. Students should expect to spend a major part of each day outside in the natural tropical environment under adverse conditions. Enrollment limited to fifteen, with priority given to students who have taken F&ES 725. : Liza Comita : Liza Comita : Simon Queenborough
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Comita TBA - TBA |
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Comita TBA - TBA |
720
Introduction to R
720 Introduction to R : This seminar provides an overview and introduction to the statistical software R for the analysis and graphical presentation of natural and social science data. We follow a flipped style of teaching, with class time primarily used for worked examples and problems. Students also work together in small groups to analyze data from collaborators (or the student’s own data) with a view to publication. The course provides the practical training in R for theoretical courses such as F&ES 510 and 753; they can be taken concurrently or sequentially, although some statistics background is preferred. : Simon Queenborough : Simon Queenborough
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Queenborough M,W,F - M/W 1:00-2:20, F 9:00-11:50 |
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Queenborough TBA - TBA |
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723
Wetlands Ecology, Conservation & Management
723 Wetlands Ecology, Conservation & Management :
Wetlands are ubiquitous. Collectively they cover 370,000 square miles in the United States and globally encompass more than five million square miles. Most points on a map are less than one kilometer from the nearest wetland. Yet wetlands are nearly invisible to most people. In this course we explore wetlands in all of their dimensions, including the critical services they provide to other systems, the rich biodiversity they harbor, and the links by which they connect to other systems. Additionally, wetlands are lynchpin environments for scientific policy and regulation. The overarching aim of the course is to connect what we know about wetlands from a scientific perspective to the ways in which wetlands matter for people.
: Kealoha Freidenburg : Kealoha Freidenburg
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Freidenburg M - 1:00-3:50 |
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Freidenburg TBA - TBA |
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724
Watershed Cycles and Processes
724 Watershed Cycles and Processes :
This course explores abiotic and biotic controls on the cycling of water and chemicals within watershed systems. Students gain an understanding of the coupled roles of climate, hydrology, and biogeochemistry in regulating the fate of nutrients, carbon, and pollutants in watersheds. The class also features six guest lectures on issues at the forefront of watershed science. Upon successful completion of the course, students have acquired scientific knowledge that is relevant to interpreting watershed-based observations and to informing watershed-management decisions. : James E. Saiers : James E. Saiers : Peter A. Raymond
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Saiers Tu,Th - 10:30-11:50 |
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Saiers TBA - TBA |
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726
Observing Earth from Space
726 Observing Earth from Space :
A practical introduction to satellite image analysis of Earth’s surface. Students develop a theoretical foundation and practical skills for satellite remote sensing; gain an understanding of Earth’s surface, ocean, and atmosphere, including natural processes and human impacts; and establish familiarity of remote-sensing products and their applications. Topics include the spectrum of electromagnetic radiation, satellite-borne radiometers, data transmission and storage, computer image analysis, the merging of satellite imagery with GIS and applications to weather and climate, oceanography, surficial geology, ecology and epidemiology, forestry, agriculture, archaeology, and watershed management. Classroom lectures are supplemented with laboratory exercises and short showcases on remote-sensing platforms and data products. Prerequisites: college-level physics or chemistry, two courses in geology and natural science of the environment or equivalents, and computer literacy. Weekly labs and problem sets; midterm exam; course project.
: Ronald Smith : Ronald Smith : Xuhui Lee
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Smith Tu,Th - 9:00-10:15 |
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Smith TBA - TBA |
727
Food: Science, Law & Policy
727 Food: Science, Law & Policy : To Come : John P. Wargo :
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Wargo W - 1:00-3:50 |
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730
Economics of Sustainability
730 Economics of Sustainability : to be offered 2019-2020 : : Eli Fenichel
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Fenichel TBA - TBA |
731
Tropical Field Botany
731 Tropical Field Botany :
This course teaches students how to identify the most important tropical plant families, with an emphasis on woody taxa. Students learn key characteristics for identification. We concentrate on families that have high economic, ecological, or ethnobotanical importance. We also discuss distribution, habitat, and ecology. The course has a strong practical component, and instructors emphasize vegetative characters to identify families and higher-level taxa. The course includes a two-week field trip to Costa Rica over spring break. : Fabian Michelangeli : : Lawrence Kelly
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Michelangeli Th - 1:00-3:50 |
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734
Biological Oceanography
734 Biological Oceanography :
This natural science course provides a foundation for those interested in the ecology and management of marine systems. Includes an exploration of a range of coastal and pelagic ecosystems. Relationships between biological systems and the physical processes that control the movements of water and productivity of marine systems. This course also covers anthropogenic impacts on oceans, such as the effects of fishing and climate change. Includes up to three Friday field trips. Recommended prerequisite: college-level biology or ecology course. Three hours lecture : : Mary Beth Decker
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Decker TBA - TBA |
741
Ecosystem Measurements for Conservation and Restoration
741 Ecosystem Measurements for Conservation and Restoration : This course is intended to expose students to a variety of field and laboratory methods used in conservation science. This course is split into 2 parts. During the first part of the semester students will gain experience in a broad range of field and lab methods and analysis with applied conservation relevance (e.g., carbon stocks, biodiversity). The second half of the semester is a practicum where students will design, conduct, analyze and present data as a rapid assessment of a local property of conservation interest to local conservation organization(s). : Marlyse Duguid : Marlyse Duguid
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Duguid Th - 1:00-5:00. |
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Duguid Tentative |
742
Fundamentals of Working with People
742 Fundamentals of Working with People : Using environmental science to help inform and change human actions is a key challenge for environmental managers. Doing so requires that professionals be able to work across different scales, including: (1) understanding their own values and ways of working, as well as those of others; (2) forming, working in, and leading teams reflecting a diversity of experiences and skills; (3) influencing the actions of the organizations within which they are working; and (4) building and managing collaborative networks with others in other organizations affecting the resource systems about which they care. The purpose of this course is to introduce students to the scholarship being done (mostly within management fields) on how best to make these connections, as well as the ways individuals are putting those lessons learned into action. The course also introduces students to the professors, individual courses, workshops and other offerings across Yale that offer deeper dives into specific approaches to working more effectively with people. : Bradford S. Gentry : Bradford S. Gentry : Stuart DeCew
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Gentry Tu,Th - 8:30-9:50 |
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Gentry TBA - TBA |
743
Strategic Environmental Communication
743 Strategic Environmental Communication :
Increasing economic prosperity and improving the lives of an estimated 10 billion people, while maintaining and restoring the life support systems of the planet is the ultimate challenge of the 21st century, often labeled “sustainability.” Governments, businesses, and civil society will each play critical roles in this historic transition and must operate and succeed in ever-more complex and often contested social, cultural, political and natural environments. Strategic communication is a powerful means of advancing an organization’s mission, especially when informed by insights into human behavior and social systems. By the end of the course, students will be able to develop communication strategies and apply insights from the social and behavioral sciences to improve the effectiveness of their communication campaigns : Anthony Leiserowitz : Anthony Leiserowitz
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Leiserowitz Th - 1:00-3:50 |
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Leiserowitz TBA - TBA |
744
Conservation Science and Landscape Planning
744 Conservation Science and Landscape Planning :
This advanced course applies ecological principles to understand and manage biodiversity and attendant ecosystem functioning and services in the anthropocene. The course addresses the ethical and functional basis for conservation and fosters thinking about why and how humans ought to share the planet with nonhuman life. It covers scientific principles such as evolution, life-history and the viability of species, species endangerment and extinction risk, the kinds of biodiversity, the spatial distribution of biodiversity, the functional roles of species in ecosystems, vulnerability and risk assessments, and valuing biodiversity and ecosystem services. The course applies these principles to the exploration of such topics as biodiversity’s role in the functioning and sustainability of ecological systems, restoration of environmental damages, conserving biodiversity in dynamic landscapes, adapting landscapes to climate change, balancing conservation with urban development and agriculture, and renewable energy siting. It provides students with the quantitative skills to conduct population viability analyses, geospatial analyses of the distribution of biodiversity across landscapes, vulnerability analyses, and decision-analysis to balance trade-offs among multiple objectives of human land development and biodiversity conservation. Prerequisites: F&ES 530aor equivalent course in population or community ecology, F&ES 755b or equivalent course in GIS, and F&ES 510a or equivalent course in statistical analysis of biological data. A course in economics or applied math for environmental studies is strongly encouraged : : Oswald J. Schmitz
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Schmitz TBA - TBA |
747
Global Communication Skills
747 Global Communication Skills :
This course helps students to sharpen their language and strategy in professional communication. Course topics include accent reduction, language accuracy, writing styles, presentation skills, meeting leadership, barriers to communication, and types of persuasion in multicultural contexts. We first address aspects of intelligibility, exploring how improved word choices and speech clarity affect audience understanding. We then look at the problem of comprehension and discuss strategies for increasing the student’s ability to listen accurately and read efficiently. We also examine common difficulties and cultural differences in the arrangement of information, use of evidence, and academic argumentation. Several sessions are devoted to specific skills, such as negotiating agreements and writing research reports. The course meets for lecture (two hours), and students attend a weekly small group practicum (one hour). The practicum allows students to reinforce new communicative behaviors in oral and written assignments, while receiving feedback from peers and the instructor. As students polish their skills, they improve their ability to express ideas and to interact in both academic and professional contexts.
: William Vance : William Vance
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Vance Th - 6:00-8:00 |
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Vance TBA - TBA |
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750
Writing the World
750 Writing the World :
This is a practical writing course meant to develop your skills as a writer. But its real subject is perception and the writer’s authority—the relationship between what you notice in the world around you and what, culturally speaking, you’re allowed to notice. What you write during the semester is driven entirely by your own interest and attention. How you write is the question at hand. We’ll be exploring the overlapping habitats of language—present and past—and the natural environment. And, to a lesser extent, we’ll be exploring the character of persuasion in environmental themes. Every member of the class will write every week, and we will all read what everyone writes every week. It makes no difference whether you’re a would-be journalist, scientist, environmental advocate or policy-maker. The goal is to rework your writing and sharpen your perceptions, both sensory and intellectual. : Verlyn Klinkenborg : Verlyn Klinkenborg
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Klinkenborg Tu - 2:30-5:20 |
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Klinkenborg TBA - TBA |
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751
Sampling Methodology and Practice
751 Sampling Methodology and Practice :
This course is intended to provide a fundamental understanding of the principles of statistical sampling, alternative estimators of population parameters, and the design basis for inference in survey sampling. Natural, ecological, and environmental resource applications of sampling are used to exemplify numerous sampling strategies. Sample designs to be studied include simple random; systematic; unequal probability, with and without replacement; stratified sampling; sampling with fixed-radius plots; horizontal point sampling; and line intercept. The Horvitz-Thompson, ratio, regression, and other estimators are introduced and used repeatedly throughout the course. Three hours lecture. Weekly and biweekly problem sets requiring the use of a computer spreadsheet. : Timothy G. Gregoire : Timothy G. Gregoire
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Gregoire M,W - 10:30-11:50 |
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Gregoire TBA - TBA |
752
Ecology and Conservation of Tropical Forests
752 Ecology and Conservation of Tropical Forests : Tropical forests contain extraordinarily high biological diversity and provide critical ecosystem services, yet are being rapidly destroyed and degraded by human activities. This course focuses on the structure, function, and diversity of intact and degraded tropical forests, with an emphasis on the ecological processes that shape these unique and diverse ecosystems. We also discuss the major threats to tropical forests, as well as examples of tropical forest recovery following disturbance. The course involves a mix of lectures and student-led discussions. Students who successfully complete this course are given priority for F&ES 717. : Liza Comita : Liza Comita
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Comita M,W - 10:30-11:50 |
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Comita TBA - TBA |
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753
Regression Modeling of Ecological and Environmental Data
753 Regression Modeling of Ecological and Environmental Data :
This course in applied statistics assists scientific researchers in the analysis and interpretation of observational and field data. After considering the notion of a random variable, the statistical properties of linear transformations and linear combinations of random data are established. This serves as a foundation for the major topics of the course, which explore the estimation and fitting of linear and nonlinear regression models to observed data. Three hours lecture. Statistical computing with R, weekly problem exercises.
: Timothy G. Gregoire : Timothy G. Gregoire
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Gregoire M,W - 10:30-11:50 |
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Gregoire TBA - TBA |
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754
Geospatial Software Design
754 Geospatial Software Design :
This course introduces computer programming tools and techniques for the development and customization of geospatial data-processing capabilities. It relies heavily on use of the Python programming language in conjunction with ESRI’s ArcGIS and on JavaScript in conjunction with Google’s Earth Engine geographic information systems (GIS). Prerequisite: previous experience in GIS. Three hours lecture, problem sets. : Charles Dana Tomlin : Charles Dana Tomlin
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Tomlin Th - 9:00-11:50 |
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Tomlin TBA - TBA |
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755
Modeling Geographic Space
755 Modeling Geographic Space :
An introduction to the conventions and capabilities of image-based (raster) geographic information systems (GIS) for the analysis and synthesis of spatial patterns and processes. In contrast to F&ES 756a, the course is oriented more toward the qualities of geographic space itself (e.g., proximity, density, or interspersion) than the discrete objects that may occupy such space (e.g., water bodies, land parcels, or structures). Three hours lecture, problem sets. No previous experience is required. : Charles Dana Tomlin : Charles Dana Tomlin
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Tomlin Tu - 1:00-3:50 |
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Tomlin TBA - TBA |
756
Modeling Geographic Objects
756 Modeling Geographic Objects :
This course offers a broad and practical introduction to the nature and use of drawing-based (vector) geographic information systems (GIS) for the preparation, interpretation, and presentation of digital cartographic data. In contrast to F&ES 755b, the course is oriented more toward discrete objects in geographical space (e.g., water bodies, land parcels, or structures) than the qualities of that space itself (e.g., proximity, density, or interspersion). Three hours lecture, problem sets. No previous experience is required. : Charles Dana Tomlin : Charles Dana Tomlin
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Tomlin Th - 1:00-3:50 |
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Tomlin TBA - TBA |
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758
Multivariate Data Analysis in the Environmental Sciences
758 Multivariate Data Analysis in the Environmental Sciences :
An introduction to the analysis of multivariate data. Topics include multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA), principal components analysis, cluster analysis (hierarchical clustering, k-means), canonical correlation, multidimensional scaling ordination methods, discriminate analysis, factor analysis, and structural equations modeling. Emphasis is placed on practical application of multivariate techniques to a variety of natural and social examples in the environmental sciences. Students are required to select a dataset early in the term for use throughout the term. There are regular assignments and a final project. Extensive use of computers is required—students may use any combination of R, SAS, SPSS, STATA, and MINITAB. Prerequisites: a prior course in introductory statistics and a good understanding of multiple linear regression. Three hours lecture/discussion. : Jonathan Reuning-Scherer : Jonathan Reuning-Scherer
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Reuning-Scherer Tu,Th - 1:00-2:15 |
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Reuning-Scherer TBA - TBA |
760
Conservation in Practice: An International Perspective
760 Conservation in Practice: An International Perspective :
This seminar focuses on the practice of wildlife and wildlands conservation, examining key topics from the dual perspectives of academic literature and actual field experiences; bringing together interdisciplinary thinking; and drawing on examples from Africa, Asia, Latin America, and the United States. The thematic outline of the seminar is organized around three fundamental questions in nature conservation: What are we trying to save—and why? How is this being done—and how has it changed over time? What lessons are we learning—and what overarching issues remain problematic? Specific topics include how different players define and value wildness; selection and prioritization of conservation targets; comparisons of various species and landscape conservation approaches; and governance and decision making in conservation, including ties between conservation and development and community-based conservation. Student participation and leadership are key, as the seminar is discussion-based and approximately half the sessions are student-led. Evaluation is based on participation and a final paper. : Amy Vedder : Amy Vedder : Bill Weber
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Vedder Tu,Th - 5:30-6:50 |
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Vedder TBA - TBA |
761
Negotiating International Agreements: The Case of Climate Change
761 Negotiating International Agreements: The Case of Climate Change : First-day attendance is required.
This seminar is a practical introduction to the negotiation of international agreements, with a focus on climate change. Students will learn about the cross-cutting features of international environmental agreements and, through the climate change lens, explore the process of negotiating agreements, the development of national positions, the advocacy of positions internationally, and the many ways in which differences among negotiating countries are resolved. The course will also examine the history and substance of the climate change regime, including, inter alia, the 1992 UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, the 1997 Kyoto Protocol, the 2009 Copenhagen Accord, and the 2015 Paris Agreement. Climate change issues in other international fora will also be discuss, e.g., the International Civil Aviation Organization's market-based mechanism to address CO2 emissions from international aviation. Grades will be based on a series of short non-research papers, as well as class participation. Enrollment limited to eighteen to twenty. Permission of the instructor required. Susan Biniaz
Course Bidding: In addition to listing this course among permission-of-the-instructor selections, F&ES students should submit a short statement of interest by July 10 to Prof. Biniaz, ( biniazharris@msn.com) : Susan Biniaz : Susan Biniaz
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Biniaz M - 2:10-4:00 |
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Biniaz Tentative |
762
Applied Math for Environmental Studies (AMES):Foundations for Measuring and Modeling Environmental and Socio-environmental Systems
762 Applied Math for Environmental Studies (AMES):Foundations for Measuring and Modeling Environmental and Socio-environmental Systems :
The language of mathematics is an important leg in the stool of interdisciplinary research and analysis, and many graduate courses at F&ES involve mathematical content. However, many graduate students have not taken a math course in years, and their math skills are rusty. Furthermore, many graduate-level mathematical concepts may be entirely new. Experience suggests that many students either opt out of taking courses they are truly interested in or muddle through, struggle with the math, and miss important concepts. AMES is meant to help students refresh or acquire new math skills and succeed in content and “toolbox” graduate-level courses. AMES provides a structured opportunity to learn a range of mathematical concepts used in environmental studies. The course assumes that, at a minimum, students took college algebra and perhaps a semester of calculus (but might not really remember it). Concepts are presented heuristically in a “how to” and “why” approach with examples from environmental studies. The goal is for students to be conversant and have intuition about (i.e., to demystify) why logs, exponents, derivatives, integrals, linear algebra, probability, optimization, stability analysis, and differential equations show up throughout environmental studies. Students learn (review) how to use these techniques. Also covered is a bit of history of math and an introduction to computer programming. : : Eli Fenichel
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Fenichel TBA - TBA |
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764
Environment, Culture, Morality, and Politics
764 Environment, Culture, Morality, and Politics :
The social and environmental context of the North American West provides fertile ground to examine important issues pertaining to culture, politics, environmental justice, social movements, and institutional structures. This course equips students to think critically and imaginatively about the social aspects of natural landscapes and the communities who inhabit them. This is not a history course, but it does examine stability and change across time. The course draws on empirical cases dealing with a range of interrelated issues, including economic change, environmental values, energy and water conflicts, native experiences, religion, American mythologies, gender, race, and the culture of individualism. Engaging with important theories, debates, and scholarly work around these exciting cultural and political issues is the primary goal of this course. Because of the importance of engaging these issues on the ground in real-life situations, the course includes a short (and optional) field trip during the October break.
: Justin Farrell : TBD Faculty
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Farrell Th - 9:00-11:50 |
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Faculty Tentative |
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767
Building a Conservation Toolkit: From Project Design to Evaluation
767 Building a Conservation Toolkit: From Project Design to Evaluation : As wildlife and wildland conservation programs have multiplied and grown in size, conservation organizations have sought methods to improve strategic project planning, assessment of progress, cross-project comparison, learning of lessons, and transparency for donors. To address these challenges, major nonprofit organizations have collaboratively designed a set of decision-support tools for planning field projects and programs and for monitoring their progress, summarized in the “Open Standards for the Practice of Conservation” (http://cmp-openstandards.org). Use of these tools has allowed organizations to more clearly articulate strategies, define priority actions, critically assess success, manage adaptively, and derive lessons—all of which help to improve effectiveness and respond to donor interests. Students in this course explore a mutually reinforcing suite of these project tools: their underlying principles are introduced, students practice the techniques, and current case studies from field conservation are examined to explore tool utility. Students synthesize use of these design tools in a final project or program proposal focused on a single case study of their choice. The suite of decision-support tools covered includes conceptual models for project design, situational and stakeholder assessments, threats and opportunities analysis, conservation target identification (particularly landscape species selection), and monitoring frameworks. Students gain experience in design of projects and their monitoring, as well as familiarity with budgeting. Enrollment limited to twelve. : Amy Vedder : Amy Vedder : Bill Weber
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Vedder W - 5:40-8:30 |
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Vedder TBA - TBA |
771
Fundamentals of Green Engineering and Green Chemistry
771 Fundamentals of Green Engineering and Green Chemistry :
There is a broad desire to ensure that consumer products, manufacturing processes, and material and energy systems are compatible with public health, environmental sustainability, and this course provides the fundamental knowledge on the frameworks, methods, tools, and techniques of how to design for sustainability. Through an understanding of the conceptual contracts and the application to real-world case studies, students will understand the impacts of design on health (including toxic and eco-toxic effects) and the ways to ensure that new products, processes, and systems can be constructed through the principles of green engineering and green chemistry. This is a course of fundamentals that set the foundation for more advanced investigations in sustainable design and therefore there are no pre-requisites. : Paul Anastas : Paul Anastas : Julie Zimmerman
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Anastas M,W - 10:30-11:50 |
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Anastas TBA - TBA |
772
Social Justice in the Global Food System
772 Social Justice in the Global Food System :
This course explores social justice dimensions of today’s globalized food system, considering sustainability in terms of sociopolitical-, in addition to environmental dynamics. We examine how governmental and non-governmental environmental strategies affect social equity in the food system at multiple scales. We discuss how issues such as land grabbing or food insecurity are connected to relative power on the global stage. We consider how phenomena such as structural violence and neoliberalization surface within the food system, and what this means for sustainability and justice.
With an emphasis on connecting theory and practice, we examine and debate concepts including food sovereignty, agroecology, and The Right to Food that are used by governmental and/or civil society actors to advance positive change. Throughout the term we explore our own positionalities as university-based stakeholders in the food system. The course includes guest speakers; students are encouraged to integrate aspects of their own academic and/or professional projects into one or more course assignments.
: Kristin Reynolds : Kristin Reynolds
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Reynolds Th - 1:00-3:50 |
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Reynolds Tentative |
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773
Air Pollution Control (APC)
773 Air Pollution Control (APC) :
An overview of air quality problems worldwide with a focus on emissions, chemistry, transport, and other processes that govern dynamic behavior in the atmosphere. Quantitative assessment of the determining factors of air pollution (e.g., transportation and other combustion–related sources, chemical transformations), climate change, photochemical “smog,” pollutant measurement techniques, and air quality management strategies. : Drew Gentner : Drew Gentner
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Gentner M,W - 2:30-3:45 |
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Gentner Tentative |
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774
Agriculture: Origins, Evolution, Crises
774 Agriculture: Origins, Evolution, Crises :
Analysis of the societal and environmental drivers and effects of plant and animal domestication, the intensification of agroproduction, and the crises of agroproduction: land degradation, societal collapses, sociopolitical transformation, sustainability, and biodiversity. : Harvey Weiss : Harvey Weiss
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Weiss Th - 3:30-5:15 |
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Weiss TBA - TBA |
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777
Water Quality Control
777 Water Quality Control :
Study of the preparation of water for domestic and other uses and treatment of wastewater for recycling or discharge to the environment. Topics include processes for removal of organics and inorganics, regulation of dissolved oxygen, and techniques such as ion exchange, electrodialysis, reverse osmosis, activated carbon adsorption, and biological methods. : Jaehong Kim : Jaehong Kim
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Kim Tu,Th - 2:30-3:45 |
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Kim Tentative |
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781
Applied Spatial Statistics
781 Applied Spatial Statistics :
An introduction to spatial statistical techniques with computer applications. Topics include modeling spatially correlated data, quantifying spatial association and autocorrelation, interpolation methods, variograms, kriging, and spatial point patterns. Examples are drawn from ecology, sociology, public health, and subjects proposed by students. Four to five lab/homework assignments and a final project. The class makes extensive use of the R programming language as well as ArcGIS. : Timothy G. Gregoire : Timothy G. Gregoire : Jonathan Reuning-Scherer
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Gregoire Tu,Th - 10:30-11:50 |
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Gregoire TBA - TBA |
782
Globalization Space: International Infrastructure and Extrastatecraft
782 Globalization Space: International Infrastructure and Extrastatecraft : The course researches global infrastructure space as a medium of polity. It considers networks of trade, energy, communication, transportation, spatial products, finance, management, and labor as well as new strains of political opportunity that reside within their spatial disposition. Case studies include free zones and automated ports around the world, satellite urbanism in South Asia, high-speed rail in Japan and the Middle East, agripoles in Southern Spain, fiber optic submarine cable and mobile telephony in East Africa, spatial products of tourism in the DPRK, and the standards and management platforms of ISO.. : Keller Easterling : Keller Easterling
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Easterling M,W - 10:30-11:20 |
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Easterling Tentative |
789E
Journey of the Universe (Dates TBD)
789E Journey of the Universe (Dates TBD) : This six-week hybrid course draws on the resources created in the Journey of the Universeproject—a film, a book, and a series of twenty interviews with scientists and environmentalists. Journey of the Universeweaves together the discoveries of evolutionary science with cosmological understandings found in the religious traditions of the world. The authors explore cosmic evolution as a creative process based on connection, interdependence, and emergence. The Journeyproject also presents an opportunity to investigate the daunting ecological and social challenges of our times. This course examines a range of dynamic interactions and interdependencies in the emergence of galaxies, Earth, life, and human communities. It brings the sciences and humanities into dialogue to explore the ways in which we understand evolutionary processes and the implications for humans and our ecological future. This is an online hybrid course; no shopping period. : : John Grim : Mary Evelyn Tucker
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Grim TBA - TBA |
790
Coastal Defense Seminar
790 Coastal Defense Seminar :
The purpose of this course is to develop detailed coastal defense plans for Connecticut towns. Starting from available data about coastal tides, the class develops an empirical estimate of the probability of flooding along the Connecticut coast. Pairs of students then choose a town to study. Each pair identifies which properties are at risk of flooding over the next one hundred years and then calculates the expected damage from flooding for the next thirty years given current risks for each segment of the coast. Students evaluate what defense strategy (nothing, hardened structures, or retreat) minimizes the sum of defense costs plus expected damage. A separate analysis is undertaken to protect wetlands and beaches. The analysis then takes into account sea-level rise over time. The objective is to identify a scientifically supported strategy for each town.
: Robert O. Mendelsohn : Robert O. Mendelsohn
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Mendelsohn M - 1:00-3:50 |
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Mendelsohn Tentative |
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793
Abrupt Climate Change and Societal Collapse
793 Abrupt Climate Change and Societal Collapse :
Collapse documented in the archaeological and early historical records of the Old and New Worlds, including Mesopotamia, Mesoamerica, the Andes, and Europe. Analysis of politicoeconomic vulnerabilities, resiliencies, and adaptations in the face of abrupt climate change, anthropogenic environmental degradation, resource depletion, “barbarian” incursions, or class conflict. : Harvey Weiss : Harvey Weiss
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Weiss Th - 4:00-5:50 |
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Weiss TBA - TBA |
798E
China's Energy and Environmental Sustainability Challenge
798E China's Energy and Environmental Sustainability Challenge : Developing solutions for global energy and climate challenges necessitates an understanding of China. This course examines China’s economic rise in the context of its energy and environment, as they relate both within China and abroad. Issues of security, the long-term sustainability of current resource consumption and growth, and the need for innovative technology and policy are all challenges China’s energy system faces. At the same time, as the world’s largest consumer of energy and emitter of greenhouse gases, China has the ability to singlehandedly shape the course of the global climate system. The environmental consequences of China’s energy consumption and growth are also critical considerations, particularly as China’s air and water pollution have become transboundary in nature. This is the first joint course offered with students at Yale-NUS College in Singapore. : Angel Hsu : Angel Hsu
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Hsu Tu - 6:00pm-8:00pm |
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Hsu Tentative |
799
Sustainable Development Goals and Implementation
799 Sustainable Development Goals and Implementation : This course has students (working alone or in a small group) design a specific implementation plan for a specific country for a specific item that is part of the Sustainable Development Goals to be adopted by the U.N. in September 2015. Students study the new post-2015 sustainable development goals and their implementation in the real world. The course focuses primarily on understanding and developing the ability to effectively apply a variety of tools and means of implementation, relying primarily on guest lecturers. The aim is for each student or group of students to combine a geographic area/region (for example, a country of key interest), a sustainable development goal, and a tool for implementation to design an effective implementation strategy to present to those at the ministerial and decision-making level. : Gordon T. Geballe : Gordon T. Geballe
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Geballe M,W - 10:30-11:50 |
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Geballe TBA - TBA |
800
Energy Economics and Policy Analysis
800 Energy Economics and Policy Analysis :
This course examines energy policy issues that pertain to the environment, with a focus on providing tools for analyzing these issues. A primary objective is to apply economics to particular issues of energy markets, environmental impacts, investment in renewables, and other energy issues such as transportation and energy efficiency. We cover the economic and technical considerations behind a particular energy policy issue and then discuss a related article or case study.Prerequisites: F&ES 505b (or equivalent) and at least one course on energy. : Kenneth Gillingham : Kenneth Gillingham
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Gillingham Tu,Th - 9:00-10:20 |
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Gillingham TBA - TBA |
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804
Economics of Environmental & Natural Resource Management
804 Economics of Environmental & Natural Resource Management :
This course uses economic theory and empirical evidence to address pollution control, nonrenewable resource extraction, and renewable resource management. The course teaches students how to apply economics to real-world problems. The pollution section explains the origin of externalities, and their optimal regulation. The nonrenewable resource section focuses on how markets consume resources of limited size over time with applications to fossil fuels, metals, and minerals. The renewable resource section covers the management of water, land, and ecosystems. : Robert O. Mendelsohn : Robert O. Mendelsohn
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Mendelsohn M,W - 10:30-11:45 |
Mendelsohn TBA - TBA |
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805
Seminar on Environmental and Natural Resource Economics
805 Seminar on Environmental and Natural Resource Economics :
This seminar is based on outside speakers and internal student/faculty presentations oriented toward original research in the field of environmental and natural resource economics and policy. Presentations are aimed at the doctoral level, but interested master’s students may enroll with permission of the instructors. : Kenneth Gillingham : Kenneth Gillingham
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Gillingham W - 4:00-5:20 |
Gillingham W - 4:00-5:30 |
Gillingham TBA - TBA |
Gillingham TBA - TBA |
807
Corporate Environmental Management and Strategy
807 Corporate Environmental Management and Strategy :
This survey course focuses on understanding how adroit environmental management and strategy can enhance business opportunities; reduce risk, including resource dependency; promote cooperation; and decrease environmental impact. The course combines lectures, case studies, and class discussions and debates on management theory and tools, legal and regulatory frameworks shaping the business-environment interface, and the evolving requirements for business success (including how to deal with diverse stakeholders, manage in a world of transparency, and address rising expectations related to corporate responsibility). : Marian Chertow : TBD Faculty
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Chertow M,W - 1:00-2:20 |
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Faculty TBA - TBA |
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811
Metrics, Tools and Indicators in Corporate Responsibility
811 Metrics, Tools and Indicators in Corporate Responsibility : This is an applied course on the standards, guidelines and tools for designing, implementing, auditing and communicating a corporate environmental and social responsibility (CR) program. The purpose of this course is to introduce students to the knowledge and tools needed to enter a career in CR and sustainability. The course is designed for students who currently hold/will hold positions in organizations where they are/will be responsible for creating, implementing, measuring and/or managing internal CR and sustainability programs, or be responsible for assisting a corporations in this area. : Todd Cort : Todd Cort
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Cort Tu,Th - 10:10-11:30 |
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Cort TBA - TBA |
812
Energy's Impact on Freshwater Resources
812 Energy's Impact on Freshwater Resources : Energy development depends on freshwater. Water is consumed to mine uranium, tar sands, and coal; to recover oil and natural gas; and to grow biofuel feedstocks. More water is needed to convert these primary energy sources to useable forms of energy, such as electricity, refined fuels, and heat. Water appropriation for energy development alters stream flows and depletes aquifers, thereby exacerbating ecosystem stresses induced by freshwater demands of agriculture and other human needs. Energy development also influences freshwater quality, usually in deleterious ways. Coal-mine drainage, leaky oil and gas wells, hydraulic fracturing, and uranium processing are among the culprits tied to energy development that have been implicated in contamination of surface and subsurface waters. The burden of energy development on freshwater resources is increasing as the world’s economies grow. Changing this trajectory will not be easy, but progress will be made by those scientists and decision makers who understand the potential responses and vulnerabilities of freshwater resources to major forms of energy development. The course is intended to help students gain this understanding through analysis of the academic and professional literature on the linkages between freshwater systems and energy resource extraction, processing, and conversion. Readings focus on natural gas, oil, uranium, coal, bioenergy, and at least one other energy type chosen by student consensus. Water demand is also explored as a function of the energy sector. : : James E. Saiers
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Saiers TBA - TBA |
814
Energy Systems Analysis
814 Energy Systems Analysis :
This lecture course offers a systems analysis approach to describe and explain the basics of energy systems, including all forms of energy (fossil and renewable), all sectors/activities of energy production/conversion, and all energy end uses, irrespective of the form of market transaction (commercial or noncommercial) or form of technology (traditional as well as novel advanced concepts) deployed. Students gain a comprehensive theoretical and empirical knowledge base from which to analyze energy-environmental issues as well as to participate effectively in policy debates. Special attention is given to introducing students to formal methods used to analyze energy systems or individual energy projects and also to discuss traditionally less-researched elements of energy systems (energy use in developing countries; energy densities and urban energy use; income, gender, and lifestyle differences in energy end-use patterns) in addition to currently dominant energy issues such as climate change. Active student participation is required, including completion of problem sets. Participation in extra-credit skill development exercises (presentations, fact-finding missions, etc.) is encouraged. Invited outside speakers complement topics covered in class. : Narasimha Rao : Narasimha Rao
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Rao M,W - 1:00-2:20 |
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Rao TBA - TBA |
816
Electric Utilities: an Industry in Transition
816 Electric Utilities: an Industry in Transition : The U.S. electric utility industry is a $370 billion business with capital expenditures on the order of $100 billion per year to replace aging infrastructure, implement new technologies, and meet new regulatory requirements. A reliable electricity infrastructure is essential for the U.S. economy and the health and safety of its citizens. The electric industry also has a significant impact on the environment. In the United States, electric power generation is responsible for about 40 percent of human-caused emissions of carbon dioxide, the primary greenhouse gas. Electric utilities in the United States are at a crossroads. Technological innovations, improving economics, and regulatory incentives provide a transformational opportunity to implement demand-side resources and distributed energy technologies that will both lower emissions and improve service to customers. Such significant changes could, however, disrupt existing utility business models and therefore may not be fully supported by incumbent utilities. This course focuses on the issues, challenges, risks, and trade-offs associated with moving the U.S. utility industry toward a cleaner, more sustainable energy future. We explore how utilities are regulated and how economic factors and regulatory policies influence outcomes and opportunities to align customer, environmental, and utility shareholder interests to craft win-win-win solutions. : Lawrence Reilly : Lawrence Reilly
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Reilly Tu - 4:00-6:50 |
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Reilly Tentative |
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817
Urban, Suburban, and Regional Planning Practice
817 Urban, Suburban, and Regional Planning Practice :
Our cities, towns, and regions represent the cumulative impact of planning policies implemented at multiple scales over the past century. This course explores the dynamic trends facing the United States and its communities and the evolution in planning practice that is occurring at the local and regional scale to address them. It looks at both suburban and urban approaches. The recent deep recession, climate change, and a lack of social cohesion call for a new triple bottom-line approach to decision-making for our future. Existing policies and governance structures are not always well suited for the new challenges and opportunities that we face. Local, state, and the national government are, to varying degrees, crafting new solutions to the challenges of urban and suburban America. : David Kooris : David Kooris
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Kooris W - 4:30-7:20 |
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Kooris TBA - TBA |
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819
Strategies for Land Conservation
819 Strategies for Land Conservation :
This is a professional seminar on private land conservation strategies and techniques, with particular emphasis on the legal, financial, and management tools used in the United States. The seminar is built around presentations by guest speakers from land conservation organizations. Speakers are assigned topics across the land conservation spectrum, from identification of target sites, through the acquisition process, to ongoing stewardship of the land after the deal is done. The tools used to protect land are discussed, including the basics of real estate law, conservation finance, and project/organization management. Students are required to undertake a clinical project with a local land conservation organization. Enrollment limited to twenty-five; preference to second-year students if limit reached. : Bradford S. Gentry : Bradford S. Gentry
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Gentry Tu - 2:30-5:20 |
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Gentry TBA - TBA |
820
Land Use Law and Environmental Planning
820 Land Use Law and Environmental Planning :
This course explores the regulation by local governments of land uses in urban, rural, and suburban areas and the effect of development on the natural environment. The course helps students understand, in a practical way, how the environment can be protected through effective regulation at the local level. It introduces students to federal, state, regional, and local laws and programs that affect watershed protection and to the laws that delegate to local governments primary responsibility for decision making in the land use field. Theories of federalism, regionalism, states’ rights, and localism are studied, as are the cases that provide a foundation in regulatory takings and the legitimate scope of land use regulation. The history of the delegation of planning and land use authority to local governments is traced, leading to an examination of local land use practices particularly as they relate to controlling development in and around watershed areas as well as regulatory response to sea-level rise and climate change. Students engage in empirical research working to identify, catalogue, and evaluate innovative local laws that successfully protect environmental functions and natural resources, and the manner in which towns, particularly on the coast, incorporate climate change into their planning and regulations. Nearby watersheds are used as a context for the students’ understanding of the strengths and weaknesses of local planning and regulation. Attention is paid, in detail, to how the development of the land adversely affects natural resources and how these impacts can be mitigated through local planning and subsequent adoption of environmental regulations and regulations designed to promote sustainable development in a climate-changing world. The course includes examination of the state and local response to climate change, sea-level rise, growth management, alternatives to Euclidean zoning, low-impact development, brownfields redevelopment, energy conservation, and innovative land use strategies
: Marjorie Shansky : Marjorie Shansky
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Shansky M,W - 4:00-5:20 |
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Shansky TBA - TBA |
822
Strategic Communication: Delivering Effective Presentations(see description for section times and dates)
822 Strategic Communication: Delivering Effective Presentations(see description for section times and dates) : Must get permission from Instructor to enroll in course - Cannot add this course to online worksheet
Enrollment cap of 6 F&ES students per section.
F&ES students are asked to submit a statement of interest to Professor Reich.
2 Sections available in Fall-2 (October 22- December 18 )
Section -01: T/Th 10:10-11:30 - Evans Hall
Section -02: T/Th 1:00-2:20 - Evans Hall
2 Sections available in Spring-2 (March 25 - May 14)
Section 01: T/Th T/Th 10:10-11:30 - Evans Hall
Section -02: T/Th 1:00-2:20 - Evans Hall
The focus of this course is to increase one's competencies in oral communication and presentation. Developing and executing effective communication strategies is essential in a variety of business settings. Business leaders are often expected to present their message with confidence and clarity to employees, clients, partners, investors and the public. This highly interactive, practical course will help students develop confidence in public speaking through weekly presentations and assignments, lectures and discussions, guest speakers, simulated activities, and filmed feedback. Students will be given the opportunity to present both individually and as part of a team. We will explore the essentials of communication strategy and persuasion: audience analysis, message construction, communicator credibility, and delivery. Students at all levels of mastery of public speaking will benefit from this course. Enrollment is limited to 36. Students are required to attend the first class session in order to remain enrolled or to bid for the course. : Taly Reich : Taly Reich
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Reich TBA - TBA |
Reich TBA - TBA |
Reich TBA - TBA |
Reich TBA - TBA |
823
Regulation of Energy Extraction (Follows Law School Calendar)
823 Regulation of Energy Extraction (Follows Law School Calendar) :
This comparative risk course explores the troubled intersection between energy and environmental policies. We consider a diverse range of regulatory approaches to minimize adverse environmental effects of various forms of energy development. These include emerging issues regarding hydraulic fracturing (“fracking”) in the United States and European Union; regulation of off-shore drilling and lessons from the Deepwater Horizon oil spill; liability for natural resources and other damages from oil spills under the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 (OPA90); the Fukushima, Three Mile Island, and Chernobyl nuclear accidents; applicability of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) to oil and coal leases on federal lands; the Endangered Species Act; visual pollution and other issues relating to wind farms; coal mine disasters; mountaintop mining and the Mine Safety Act; and tailings piles and the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977 (SMCRA). The class concludes by considering how concerns about climate change may affect the future of energy development. No prerequisites. Self-scheduled examination or paper option. : E. Donald Elliott : E. Donald Elliott
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Elliott Tu - 10:10-12:00 |
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Elliott Tentative |
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824
Environmental Law and Policy
824 Environmental Law and Policy :
This course provides an introduction to the major concepts of environmental law with a focus on U.S. statutes, regulations, and treaties for managing waste, air and water pollution, toxic substances, public lands, and global environmental resources. Alternative policy approaches to addressing environmental problems, such as market-based incentives, “nudges,” information disclosure requirements, and voluntary programs, are also considered. Overarching legal and policy concepts, such as federalism, administrative procedure, separation of powers, environmental justice, judicial review, and statutory interpretation are explored. : E. Donald Elliott : Daniel C. Esty
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Elliott M - 9:00-11:50 |
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Esty TBA - TBA |
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826
Foundations of Natural Resource Policy and Management
826 Foundations of Natural Resource Policy and Management :
This course offers an explicit interdisciplinary (integrative) framework that is genuinely effective in practical problem solving. This unique skill set overcomes the routine ways of thinking and solving conservation problems common to many NGOs and government organizations by explicitly developing more rigorous and effective critical-thinking, observation, and management skills. By simultaneously addressing rational, political, and practical aspects of real-world problem solving, the course helps students gain skills, understand, and offer solutions to the policy problems of managing natural resources. The approach we use requires several things of students (or any problem solvers): that they be contextual in terms of social and decision-making processes; that they use multiple methods and epistemologies from any field that helps in understanding problems; that they strive to be both procedurally and substantively rational in their work; and, finally, that they be clear about their own standpoint relative to the problems at hand. The approach used in this course draws on the oldest and most comprehensive part of the modern policy analytic movement—the policy sciences (interdisciplinary method)—which is growing in its applications worldwide today. The course includes a mix of critical thinking, philosophical issues, history, as well as issues that students bring in. Among the topics covered are human rights, scientific management, decision making, community-based approaches, governance, common interest, sustainability, professionalism, and allied thought and literature. In their course work students apply the basic concepts and tools to a problem of their choice, circulating drafts of their papers to other seminar participants and lecturing on and leading discussions of their topics in class sessions. Papers of sufficient quality may be collected in a volume for publication. Active participation, reading, discussion, lectures, guests, and projects make up the course. The seminar supports and complements other courses in the School and at the University : Susan G. Clark : Susan G. Clark
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Clark M - 1:00-3:50 |
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Clark TBA - TBA |
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828
Comparative Environmental Law in Global Legal Systems (2 week intensive course: dates TBD)
828 Comparative Environmental Law in Global Legal Systems (2 week intensive course: dates TBD) :
This course examines environmental law in the various legal systems of the world—from the common and civil law traditions to socialist law, customary law, and Islamic law. In particular, environmental law and case studies from a number of countries are examined, including Australia, Canada, China, Europe, New Zealand, the United States, Singapore, and the states of Southeast Asia. The objective is to understand the scope and evolution of national environmental law through the patterns of legislative, administrative, and judicial decision making in the various legal regimes. The systems of central/unitary governments are contrasted with those of federal systems. As corporations engage in the same manufacturing activities around the world, it is important that corporate managers and their legal advisers understand how these activities are regulated in the different legal systems. Additionally, as earth’s natural systems are integrated throughout the biosphere, the effectiveness of one nation’s environmental laws is complemented or undermined by the efficacy of another nation’s comparable laws. Students are examined by a written paper that is a comparative study of some aspect of environmental law, involving at least two jurisdictions.
Class meets Monday-Friday. M-Th: 4:00-6:50, F: 2:00-4:50 : Lin Heng Lye : TBD Faculty
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Lye TBA - M-Th 4:00-6:50; F 2:00-4:50 |
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Faculty TBA - TBA |
829
Global Environmental Governance
829 Global Environmental Governance :
The development of international environmental policy and the functioning of global environmental governance. Critical evaluation of theoretical claims in the literature and the reasoning of policy makers. Introduction of analytical and theoretical tools used to assess environmental problems. Case studies emphasize climate, forestry, and fisheries.
All students are welcome to attend, content will be geared toward undergrad students. : Ben Cashore : Ben Cashore
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Cashore Tu,Th - 1:00-2:20 |
Cashore TBA - TBA |
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830
MANY
830 MANY : The MANY seminar continues work on the MANY project—an online platform to facilitate migration through an exchange of needs. Initiated at Yale in 2017 and exhibited at the Venice Biennale, MANY presents the opportunity to organize an interdisciplinary university-wide seminar that assembles professors and guests to critically consider the project and rehearse strategies for realizing it.
MANY rethinks cosmopolitan mobility for all those who might say “We don’t want your citizenship or your victimhood or your segregation or your bad jobs. We don’t want to stay.” For the MANY project, migration is, not crisis, but a historical constant. It connects existing visa sponsoring networks with spatial projects so that cities can bargain with their underexploited spaces to attract a changing influx of talent and resources—matching their needs with the needs of mobile people to generate mutual benefits
The seminar offers lectures and readings by thinkers, authors, strategists, developers, film makers, policy-makers, activists and urbanists from Yale faculty and outside guests together with workshops and one final presentation/symposium. A cohort of 12-18 students, working in four to six teams of three or four, will develop the project. Teams will explore such things as Digital Architecture and Financing, Laws/Standards/Visas, Architecture/Urbanism/Landscape, Political/Economic/Environmental Migration, and Cultural Narratives of Migration. All coding, visa research and urban research to date together with a growing compendium of links and press will be made available to all groups at the outset. The final presentation, organized by students, will offer the platform and its development timeline to potential partners interested in its realization. Enrollment is limited to 18. While graduate and undergraduate students may work together in a group, undergraduates will receive individual grades for each of three assignments as well as the final project. : Keller Easterling :
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Easterling TBA - TBA |
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834
Environmental Economics and Policy
834 Environmental Economics and Policy : This is a course in environmental and natural resource economics and policy. It covers both general methodological principles and specific applications. Rather than serving as a standard course in environmental and natural resource economics, the material is tailored specifically to master’s students pursuing professional degrees in environmental management. The course therefore has a focus on environmental problem solving in the real world. Topics covered include, but are not limited to: evaluation of environmental policies (e.g., standards, taxes, cap-and-trade); cost-benefit analysis and its critiques; nonmarket valuation (ecosystem services, revealed and stated preferences); discounting and macroeconomic perspectives on climate change; management of nonrenewable resources (oil, minerals, etc.); management of renewable resources (forests, fisheries, etc.); land and biodiversity conservation; the relationship between development, trade, and the environment; strategic incentives for international environmental agreements; and environmental behavioral economics. : Matthew J. Kotchen : TBD Faculty
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Kotchen M,W - 9:00-10:20 |
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Faculty TBA - TBA |
835
Seminar on Land Use Planning
835 Seminar on Land Use Planning :
Land use control exercised by state and local governments determines where development occurs on the American landscape, the preservation of natural resources, the emission of greenhouse gases, the conservation of energy, and the shape and livability of cities and towns. The exercise of legal authority to plan and regulate the development and conservation of privately owned land plays a key role in meeting the needs of the nation’s growing population for housing and nonresidential development and in ensuring that critical environmental functions are protected from the adverse impacts of land development. This course explores the multifaceted discipline of land use and urban planning and their associated ecological implications. Numerous land use strategies are discussed, such as consensus building, resiliency planning, and proper renewable energy siting, that provide practical tools for professionals to use to create sustainable buildings, neighborhoods, and communities. The focus of this seminar is to expose students to the basics of land use and urban planning in the United States and to serve as an introduction for the F&ES curricular concentration in land use. Guest speakers are professionals involved in sustainable development, land conservation, smart growth, and climate-change management. Classes include discussions on the trajectory for professional careers. : Jessica Bacher : Jessica Bacher
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Bacher W - 10:30-11:20 |
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Bacher TBA - TBA |
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835E
Seminar on Land Use Planning (Online)
835E Seminar on Land Use Planning (Online) : This is an online course. Land use control exercised by state and local governments determines where development occurs on the American landscape, the preservation of natural resources, the emission of greenhouse gases, the conservation of energy, and the shape and livability of cities and towns. The exercise of legal authority to plan and regulate the development and conservation of privately owned land plays a key role in meeting the needs of the nation’s growing population for housing and nonresidential development and in ensuring that critical environmental functions are protected from the adverse impacts of land development. This course explores the multifaceted discipline of land use planning and its associated ecological implications. Numerous land use strategies are discussed that provide practical tools for professionals to use to create sustainable buildings, neighborhoods, and communities. The focus of this seminar is to expose students to the basics of land use planning in the United States and to serve as an introduction for the F&ES curricular concentration in land use. Guest speakers are professionals involved in sustainable development, land conservation, smart growth, and climate-change management. Classes include discussions on the trajectory for professional careers. : Jessica Bacher : Jessica Bacher
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Bacher TBA - TBA |
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Bacher TBA - TBA |
836
Agrarian Societies: Culture, Society, History, and Development
836 Agrarian Societies: Culture, Society, History, and Development :
An interdisciplinary examination of agrarian societies, contemporary and historical, Western and non-Western. Major analytical perspectives from anthropology, economics, history, political science, and environmental studies are used to develop a meaning-centered and historically grounded account of the transformation of rural society. Four hours lecture plus discussion sections. : Kalyanakrishnan Sivaramakrishnan : TBD Faculty
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Sivaramakrishnan W - 1:30-5:20 |
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Faculty Tentative |
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838
Life Cycle Analysis
838 Life Cycle Analysis :
Life cycle analysis is an analytical method that considers system-wide impacts along the entire life cycle of a product, from extraction or harvest of natural resources, through production and consumption to final end- of- life disposal or recovery and reuse/ recycle. LCA provides a quantitative evaluation of a comprehensive list of environmental issues, and is intended to avoid shifting the burden to different life stages or different environmental concerns. The course will use a case study format to introduce the LCA methodology and demonstrate its application to a variety of product sectors and environmental concerns. There will also be hands on exercises to learn the basic functionality of SimaPro, one of the available commercial LCA software packages, as well as exercises to build and validate unit process data sets using literature searches and/ or customization of available processes in commercial databases, such as ecoinvent. The case studies will also be used to demonstrate current and emerging developments in the LCA methodology. The overall goal of the course is to provide the skills necessary to design and manage a formal LCA project in the business, consulting, or government sectors. It is recommended that students complete F&ES 884a - Industrial Ecology to provide a foundation for the LCA course. In addition, if constructing mass and energy balances, conducting dimensional analyses, etc. are not familiar topics, it is also recommended that students complete F&ES - 762a - Applied Math for Environmental Studies or F&ES 814a – Energy Systems Analysis : Christoph Koffler : TBD Faculty : Qingshi Tu
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Koffler O - M/T 4:00-5:20 |
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Faculty TBA - TBA |
839
Social Science of Conservation and Development
839 Social Science of Conservation and Development : This course is designed to provide a fundamental understanding of the social aspects involved in implementing conservation and sustainable development projects. Social science makes two contributions to the practice of conservation and development. First, it provides ways of thinking about, researching, and working with social groupings—including rural households and communities, but also development and conservation institutions, states, and NGOs. This aspect includes relations between groups at all these levels, and especially the role of politics and power in these relations. Second, social science tackles the analysis of the knowledge systems that implicitly shape conservation and development policy and impinge on practice. The emphasis throughout is on how these things shape the practice of sustainable development and conservation. Case studies used in the course have been balanced as much as possible between Southeast Asia, South Asia, Africa, and Latin America; most are rural and Third World. The course includes readings from all noneconomic social sciences. The goal is to stimulate students to apply informed and critical thinking (which means not criticizing others, but questioning our own underlying assumptions) to whatever roles they may come to play in conservation and sustainable development, in order to move toward more environmentally and socially sustainable projects and policies. The course is also designed to help students shape future research by learning to ask questions that build on, but are unanswered by, the social science theory of conservation and development. : Carol Carpenter : Carol Carpenter
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Carpenter Tu - 1:00-3:50 |
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Carpenter TBA - TBA |
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840
Climate Change Policy and Perspectives
840 Climate Change Policy and Perspectives : This course examines the scientific, economic, legal, political, institutional, and historic underpinnings of climate change and the related policy challenge of developing the energy system needed to support a prosperous and sustainable modern society. Particular attention is given to analyzing the existing framework of treaties, law, regulations, and policy—and the incentives they have created—which have done little over the past several decades to change the world’s trajectory with regard to the build-up of greenhouse gas emissions in the atmosphere. What would a twenty-first-century policy framework that is designed to deliver a sustainable energy future and a successful response to climate change look like? How would such a framework address issues of equity? How might incentives be structured to engage the business community and deliver the innovation needed in many domains? While designed as a lecture course, class sessions are highly interactive. Self-scheduled examination or paper option. : Daniel C. Esty : Daniel C. Esty
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Esty M,W - 2:30-3:50 |
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Esty TBA - TBA |
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846
Perspectives on Environmental Injustices
846 Perspectives on Environmental Injustices :
In this seminar we explore domestic and global environmental issues from a perspective that foregrounds questions of social justice. This course is based on three fundamental premises: (1) all individuals and communities, regardless of their social or economic conditions, have the right to a clean and healthy environment; (2) there is a connection between environmental exploitation, human exploitation, and social justice; and (3) many environmental and social injustices are rooted in larger structural issues in society that must be understood. With these premises as a starting point, we turn to more difficult questions such as, Why and through what political, social, and economic processes are some people denied this basic right to a clean and safe environment? What is the state of scientific evidence surrounding environmental injustice and what are the current scientific challenges in assessing environmental injustices in relationship to human health? What legal frameworks exist within the USA to address environmental injustice? : : Amity Doolittle : Michelle L. Bell
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Doolittle TBA - TBA |
850
International Organizations and Conferences
850 International Organizations and Conferences :
Interested in working with Yale’s Carbon Charge, the Forests Dialogue, IUCN, Caribbean Resilience Working Group, or the Environmental Leadership and Training Initiative on real-world projects that involve international organizations and conferences? This course is focused on giving students real-world environmental management experience with clients. In parallel, students develop an understanding of the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and focus on how to manage projects that contribute to implementing the SDGs. Students explore and acquire practical project management skills and apply them to projects that advance the implementation of the SDGs. The course taps into expertise and experience of professors and staff from various disciplines and schools, as well as practitioners in the field.
: Gordon T. Geballe : Gordon T. Geballe
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Geballe M - 4:00-5:20 |
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Geballe TBA - TBA |
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855
Climate Change Mitigation in Urban Areas
855 Climate Change Mitigation in Urban Areas :
This class provides an in-depth assessment of the relationships between urbanization and climate change, and the central ways in which urban areas, cities, and other human settlements can mitigate climate change. The course explores two major themes: (1) the ways in which cities and urban areas contribute to greenhouse gas emissions and climate change; and (2) the ways in which urban areas can mitigate greenhouse gas emissions and climate change. Class topics parallel the IPCC 5th Assessment Report, Chapter 12, Human Settlements, Infrastructure, and Spatial Planning, and include spatial form and energy use, land use planning for climate mitigation, urban metabolism, and local climate action plans. The class format is reading-, writing-, and discussion-intensive. Students are taught how to synthesize scientific literature, write policy memos, and develop effective oral presentations on the science of climate change mitigation in urban areas. Enrollment limited to sixteen. : : Karen C. Seto
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Seto TBA - TBA |
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857
Environmental History and Values
857 Environmental History and Values :
This course provides an overview of major figures, ideas, and institutions in American environmentalism. The course explores the development of environmental awareness in America as distinct historical strands with diverse ethical concerns. It begins with an examination of Native American perspectives on land and biodiversity and then focuses on writings by Thoreau and Emerson to explore early American voices in the discourse on “nature.” Readings from Pinchot, Muir, and Leopold have been selected to investigate the emergence of conservation and forest management. The beginnings of urban and park planning are considered in relation to these positions on the management of nature. Students survey the environmental movements from the 1960s onward in readings from the social sciences and humanities. The course explores the major debates in environmental ethics and the broader reach for global ethics. Writings celebrating biodiversity are examined along with the emergence of conservation biology as an example of engaged environmental scholarship. New efforts to widen the interdisciplinary approaches toward environmental issues are introduced in investigating world religions and ecology as well as cosmology and ecology. : John Grim : John Grim : Mary Evelyn Tucker
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Grim W - 4:00-6:00 |
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Grim TBA - TBA |
862
Science of Science Communication
862 Science of Science Communication :
[The] Science of Science Communication (21141). 2 units. The simple dissemination of valid scientific knowledge does not guarantee it will be recognized by non experts to whom it is of consequence. The
science of science communication is an emerging, multidisciplinary field that investigates the processes that enable ordinary citizens to form beliefs consistent with the best available scientific evidence, the conditions that impede the formation of such beliefs, and the strategies that can be employed to avoid or ameliorate such conditions. This seminar will survey, and make a modest attempt to systematize, the growing body of work in this area. Special attention will be paid to identifying the distinctive communication dynamics of the diverse contexts in which non experts engage scientific information, including electoral politics, governmental policymaking, and personal health decision making. Paper required. Permission of the instructor required. Also PSYC 601b/F&ES 862b/HPM 601b. D.M. Kahan.
Course Selection: In addition to listing this course among permission-of-instructor selections, students should also submit a statement of interest by 4:30 p.m. on December 8. : Dan Kahan : Dan Kahan
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Kahan Tu - 10:10-12:00 |
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Kahan Tentative |
866
Climate Change and Animal Law
866 Climate Change and Animal Law :
This course examines the relationship between climate change, humans, and animals. With few exceptions, researchers and policy advocates looking at the impact of climate change on animals tend to focus on species loss and biodiversity at a macro level. But climate change is also having profound impacts on the individual lives and well-being of billions of animals. Large-scale human use of animals for food is also a significant and often overlooked cause of climate change emissions. The course seeks to develop a deeper understanding of the impacts of climate change on animals; the power dynamic between privileged human actors and the disenfranchised victims of climate change; and the intersection of animal welfare, environmentalism, food policy, and climate change. The course is organized partly as a traditional seminar and partly as a collective research endeavor to gather and analyze information on this significant and neglected topic. As part of the course experience, students work in small groups to conduct research and write a report on an underdeveloped topic concerning animals and climate change. The various sub-reports are edited into a single white paper that will be distributed to the animal welfare, environmental, food policy, and climate change advocacy communities. Paper required. Enrollment limited. : Douglas Kysar : Douglas Kysar
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Kysar M - 6:10-8:00 |
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Kysar Tentative |
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869
Disaster, Degradation, Dystopia: Social Science Approaches to Environmental Perturbation and Change
869 Disaster, Degradation, Dystopia: Social Science Approaches to Environmental Perturbation and Change :
An advanced seminar on the long tradition of social science scholarship on environmental perception, perturbation, and disaster, the relevance of which has been heightened by the current global attention to climate change. Section I, introduction. Section II, central questions and debates in the field: social dimensions of natural disasters; discursive dimensions of environmental degradation; asymmetries between political power and resource wealth; and anthropological approaches to the study of climate and society. Section III, historic and comparative understandings of the environment: the twenty-first-century development of a posthumanist, multispecies ethnography; and then the half-millennium tradition of natural history studies. Section IV, classroom presentation of students’ and teaching fellow’s writings. One class is devoted to student selections of the most influential works in the current literature, and there are two guest lectures by prominent scholars in the field. Prerequisite: F&ES 520/ANTH 581, ANTH 517, or F&ES 839/ANTH 597. Three hours lecture/seminar : Michael R. Dove : Michael R. Dove
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Dove Th - 1:00-3:50 |
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Dove TBA - TBA |
873
Global Environmental History
873 Global Environmental History :
The dynamic relationship between environmental and social forces from the Pleistocene glaciations to the Anthropocene present. Pleistocene extinctions; transition from hunting and gathering to agriculture; origins of cities, states, and civilization; adaptations and collapses of Old and New World civilizations in the face of climate disasters; the destruction and reconstruction of the New World by the Old. Focus on issues of adaptation, resilience, and sustainability, including forces that caused long-term societal change.
: Harvey Weiss : Harvey Weiss
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Weiss Tu,Th - 9:00-10:15 |
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Weiss TBA - TBA |
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875E
Urban Resilience: Complexity, Collaborative Structures, and Leadership Challenges
875E Urban Resilience: Complexity, Collaborative Structures, and Leadership Challenges :
The world continues to urbanize. In the 100 years starting 1913, the proportion of the world’s population that live in cities grew 5-fold from 10% to 50%, and estimates suggest that 75% of the world’s population will live in cities in 2050.
Though history reveals that urbanization has always been an accelerator of growth and development, it also poses profound challenges for corporates, communities, cities, and countries. A recent McKinsey report succinctly notes: “Cities are essential to global economic growth and productivity. They are where most of the world’s population live, work, and play, and they are important to everyone else, too. They are the world’s economic engine, consuming the majority of global power and resources, while generating 80 percent of GDP and 70 percent of greenhouse-gas emissions. Making cities great is the critical infrastructure challenge of this century.”
Applications due by Wed, Sept 5; Application link: http://event-reg.som.yale.edu/signup/Urban-Resilience-2018
View video in which Prof. Chandrashekaran talks about urban resilience >> : Bradford S. Gentry : Bradford S. Gentry
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Gentry Tu,Th - 8:30-10:00 |
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Gentry TBA - TBA |
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876
Indigenous Traditions and the Environment
876 Indigenous Traditions and the Environment :
Exploration of how particular indigenous peoples relate to local bioregions and biodiversity. Differences between and within indigenous societies, especially in cultural relationships to place. Ways in which values associated with physical places are articulated in symbols, myths, rituals, and other embodied practices. : John Grim : : Mary Evelyn Tucker
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Grim Tu - 4:00-6:00 |
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877
Anthropology of the Global Economy for Conservation and Development
877 Anthropology of the Global Economy for Conservation and Development :
This seminar explores topics in the anthropology of the global economy that are relevant to development and conservation policy and practice. Anthropologists are often assumed to focus on micro- or local-level research, and thus to have limited usefulness in the contemporary, global world of conservation and development policy. In fact, however, they have been examining global topics since at least the 1980s, and little current anthropological research is limited to the village level. More importantly, the anthropological perspective on the global economy is unique and important. This course examines the topics that make up this perspective, including using a single commodity to study the global economy, world system, and other 1970s theories of the world economy; the moral relation between economy and society, models for thinking about power in the global economy, articulations between rural households and the global economy, rural-urban relations in the global economy; the process of becoming a commodity, the commons debate, credit and debt, contracting and flexible accumulation; and the metrics and mobiles of globalization. Readings for the course come from the subfields of environmental anthropology, economic anthropology, the anthropology of development, and the anthropology of conservation. This class is a prerequisite for F&ES 965b. Though designed for master’s and doctoral students, it is open to advanced undergraduates. Three hours lecture/seminar. : Carol Carpenter : Carol Carpenter
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Carpenter Th - 9:30-12:20 |
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Carpenter TBA - TBA |
878
Climate and Society: Past to Present
878 Climate and Society: Past to Present :
Seminar on the major traditions of thought—both historic and contemporary—regarding climate, climate change, and society, drawing on the social sciences and anthropology in particular. Section I, introduction. Section II, continuities from past to present: How have differences in climate been used since the classical era to explain differences among people? How does this vary between Western and non-Western intellectual traditions? What role has the ethnographic study of folk knowledge played in this? Section III, impact on society of environmental change: What shape did environmental determinism take in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries? Can historic cases of societal “collapse” be attributed to extreme climatic events? Can such events play a constructive as well as destructive role in the development of a society? Section IV, vulnerability and control: What are the means by which societies attempt to cope with extreme climatic events? How do such events reflect, reveal, and reproduce socioeconomic fault lines? Section V, knowledge and its circulation: How is knowledge of climate and its extremes constituted? How does such knowledge become an object of contestation between central and local authorities, as well as between the global North and South? The main texts, The Anthropology of Climate Change (Dove, ed., 2014, Wiley-Blackwell) and Climate Cultures (Barnes and Dove, eds., 2015, Yale) were written especially for this course. Films and popular media utilized as appropriate. No prerequisites. Graduate students may enroll with the instructor’s permission. Two hours lecture/seminar : Michael R. Dove : Michael R. Dove
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Dove Th - 1:30-3:20 |
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Dove TBA - TBA |
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884
Industrial Ecology
884 Industrial Ecology :
Industrial ecology studies (1) the flows of materials and energy in industrial and consumer activities, (2) the effects of these flows on the environment, and (3) the influences of economic, political, regulatory, and social factors on the flow, use, and transformation of resources. The goals of the course are to define and describe industrial ecology; to demonstrate the relationships among production, consumption, sustainability, and industrial ecology in diverse settings, from firms to cities to international trade flows; to show how industrial ecology serves as a framework for the consideration of environmental and sustainability-related aspects of science, technology, and policy; and to define and describe tools, applications, and implications of industrial ecology. : Barbara Reck : Edgar Hertwich : Thomas E. Graedel
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Reck Tu,Th - 2:30-3:50 |
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Hertwich TBA - TBA |
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885
Green Engineering and Sustainability
885 Green Engineering and Sustainability :
This course provides a hands-on foundation in green engineering and the design and assessment of green products. Approaching sustainability from a design perspective requires a fundamental conceptual shift from the current paradigms of product toward a more sustainable system, based on efficient and effective use of benign materials and energy. Through course assignments, class exercises, and a term-long team project, students are challenged with the same issues facing production and consumption systems today. The course is organized around the “engineering design process” from opportunity definition; criteria definition; ideation; alternatives assessment; and solution selection, implementation, and monitoring. To begin, the mega-trends driving sustainability discussions are presented and the case for new greener product systems is made. The course emphasizes quantitative and rigorous analysis of green design in addition to the tools needed to develop these designs. The foundational principles of the course can be summarized in the five I’s: (1) Innovation—we can’t solve problems at the same level of thinking used to create them, (2) Inherency—we can’t solve problems without looking at the nature of the system that created them, (3) Interdisciplinary—we can’t solve problems without looking at other aspects of the problem, (4) Integration—we can’t solve problems without connecting segments at a system level, and (5) International—we can’t solve problems without considering their context. The current approach to design, manufacturing, and end of life is discussed in the context of examples and case studies from various sectors, providing a basis for what and how to consider designing green products, processes, and systems. Fundamental engineering design topics include pollution prevention and source reduction, separations and disassembly, virtual and rapid prototyping, life cycle design, management, and assessment. Enrollment limited to thirty-two. Preference given to second-year M.E.M. students : Julie Zimmerman : Julie Zimmerman
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Zimmerman M,W - 1:00-2:15 |
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Zimmerman TBA - TBA |
888
Ecological Urban Design
888 Ecological Urban Design :
This course lays the groundwork for students from the School of Architecture and the School of Forestry & Environmental Studies to collaboratively explore and define ecologically driven urban design. The goal is to work as an interdisciplinary group to cultivate a perspective on the developing field of urban ecology and approaches to implementing urban ecological design. The transformation of urban ecology from a role in studying a system to studying and shaping urban ecosystems is a primary focus for the course, which concentrates on the following questions: How do we define urban ecosystems? How do we combine science, design, and planning to shape and manage urban ecosystems? How do we implement effective and adaptable experimental and monitoring methods specific to urban sites and human subjects in order to conduct viable urban ecological research? The course uses the Earth Stewardship Initiative, a large land-planning project developed for the Ecological Society of America in Sacramento, Calif., to create a real-world project where interdisciplinary teams can work to combine ecological applications and design with the goal of shaping urban systems to improve the ecological, social, and infrastructural function of city components. Limited enrollment : : Alexander Felson
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Felson Tentative |
889
Environmental Risk Assessment (ERA)
889 Environmental Risk Assessment (ERA) :
This course focuses on fundamental aspects of risk, using environmental and health risks in the public and private sectors as its primary examples, and is designed to provide students with a broad understanding of the value of risk assessment and risk management (RA/RM) in the environmental engineering profession. Students learn how to identify potential hazards, quantify associated risks using probabilistic methods, and incorporate both probabilistic and deterministic results from environmental risk assessment (ERA) into the decision-making process after taking into consideration risk-to-risk trade-offs and societal, environmental, and economic consequences. Students learn how to apply methods and tools for qualitative and quantitative risk assessment (QLRA and QRA). : : Yehia Khalil
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Tentative (No Semester)
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891
Biology of Insect Disease Vectors
891 Biology of Insect Disease Vectors :
Insects transmit pathogens that cause many emerging and re-emerging human and agriculture-related diseases. Many of these diseases, which are referred to as neglected tropical diseases (NTDs), have a dramatically negative impact on human health in the developing world. Furthermore, they cause indirect devastation by significantly reducing agricultural productivity and nutrient availability, exacerbating poverty and deepening disparities. This course introduces students to the biological interactions that occur between major groups of important disease vectors and the pathogens they transmit. Lectures cover current research trends that relate to the ecology and physiology of insect vectors. Course content focuses on how these aspects of vector biology relate to the development and implementation of innovative and effective disease control strategies. Prerequisites: full year of college/university level biology, or permission of the instructor(s). : Brian Weiss :
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Weiss W - 1:00-2:50 |
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892
Introduction to Planning and Development
892 Introduction to Planning and Development :
This course demonstrates the ways in which financial and political feasibility determine the design of buildings and the character of the built environment. Students propose projects and then adjust them to the conflicting interests of the financial institutions, real estate developers, civic organizations, community groups, public officials, and the widest variety of participants in the planning process. Subjects covered include housing, commercial development, zoning, historic preservation, parks and public open space, suburban subdivisions, planned communities, and comprehensive plans. : Alexander Garvin : Alexander Garvin
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Garvin Tu - 11:00-12:50 |
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Garvin Tentative |
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893
Principles of Risk Assessment
893 Principles of Risk Assessment :
This course introduces students to the nomenclature, concepts, and basic skills of quantitative risk assessment (QRA). The goal is to provide an understanding necessary to read and critically evaluate QRA. Emphasis is on the intellectual and conceptual basis of risk assessment, particularly its dependence on toxicology and epidemiology, rather than its mathematical constructs and statistical models. Specific cases consider the use of risk assessment for setting occupational exposure limits, establishing community exposure limits, and quantifying the hazards of environmental exposures to chemicals in air and drinking water. : TBD Faculty : Vasilis Vasiliou
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Faculty F - 3:00-4:50 |
Tentative (No Semester)
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894
Green Building: Issues and Perspectives
894 Green Building: Issues and Perspectives :
Our built environment shapes the planet, our communities, and each of us. Green buildings seek to minimize environmental impacts, strengthen the fabric of our cities and towns, and make our work and our homes more productive and fulfilling. This course is an applied course, exploring both the technical and the social-business-political aspects of buildings. Topics range from building science (hygrothermal performance of building enclosures) to indoor environmental quality; from product certifications to resilience (robust buildings and communities in the face of disasters and extended service outages). The purpose of the course is to build a solid background in the processes and issues related to green buildings, equipping students with practical knowledge about the built environment. Extensive use is made of resources from BuildingGreen, Inc., one of the leading information companies supporting green building and green building professionals. The course takes a “joint-discovery” approach with substantial emphasis on research and group project work, some fieldwork, and online individual testing. There are too many topics within green building to cover in one term, so the course is broken down into two sections. The first six weeks focus on the following topics, led by the instructor and/or an expert guest lecturer: building science, materials, indoor environmental quality, rating programs and systems, resilience, systems integration. The second half of the course focuses on selected topics driven by students and their particular interest/academic focus. The class meets once a week, with the instructor available to students that same day. Enrollment limited to twenty-four. : Peter Yost : Peter Yost
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Yost M - 9:00-11:50 |
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Yost TBA - TBA |
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896
Public Health Toxicology
896 Public Health Toxicology :
This course is designed to serve as a foundation for understanding environmental toxicology. It includes basic principles of toxicology, mechanisms of toxicity and cellular defense, and the fundamental interactions between chemicals and biological systems. Human exposure to foreign chemicals and their adverse effects are considered, as is the importance of federal and state agencies in protecting public health. Through the use of case studies, the course provides insights into prevention of mortality and morbidity resulting from environmental exposure to toxic substances, the fundamentals of risk assessment and regulatory toxicology, and the causes underlying the variability in susceptibility of people to chemicals. : Vasilis Vasiliou : Vasilis Vasiliou
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Vasiliou O - M, 10:00-11:50; F, 1:00-1:50 |
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Vasiliou Tentative |
897
Environmental and Occupational Exposure Science
897 Environmental and Occupational Exposure Science :
This course examines the fundamental and practical aspects of assessing exposures to environmental agents, broadly defined, in the residential, ambient, and workplace environments. The course provides the knowledge and skills to design and conduct exposure assessments, and has a particular focus on applications to environmental epidemiology and risk assessment. Indirect and direct methods of assessing exposures, such as questionnaires, environmental sampling, biological monitoring, and spatial modeling, are reviewed; and case studies and hands-on projects are presented : TBD Faculty : TBD Faculty
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Faculty O - W, 3:00-4:50; F, 2:00-2:50 |
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Faculty Tentative |
898
The Environment and Human Health
898 The Environment and Human Health :
This course provides an overview of the critical relationships between the environment and human health. The class explores the interaction between health and different parts of the environmental system including air pollution, assessment of environmental exposures, environmental justice, and occupational health. Other topics include case studies of environmental health disasters, links between climate change and health, and integration of scientific evidence on environmental health. Students learn about current key topics in environmental health and how to critique and understand scientific studies. The course incorporates lectures and discussion. Enrollment limited to twenty-five. : Michelle L. Bell :
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Bell Tu - 1:00-3:50 |
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900
Doctoral Student Seminar and Responsible Conduct of Research
900 Doctoral Student Seminar and Responsible Conduct of Research :
This course provides an introduction to doctoral study at the School of Forestry & Environmental Studies. Students attend the F&ES Wednesday seminar each week and then meet with the seminar speakers after their presentations. Weekly assigned readings support these discussions, which are used as a foundation to explore diverse approaches to formulating and addressing research questions. Students also work with their advisers to design an assignment to be completed during the term. Students may choose to write and submit a fellowship application (e.g., NSF, NASA, EPA), carry out a literature review, or develop a collaborative research project. Students present their embryonic research ideas in class and use feedback from the group to further develop their ideas. The course will also introduce the topic of research misconduct with examples of specific cases. Concepts and resources for responsible conduct of research are discussed in the areas of data acquisition and management, authorship and publication, peer review, conflicts of interest, mentoring, collaborative research, and animal and human subjects research. Required of all doctoral students in their first term. : Karen C. Seto : Oswald J. Schmitz
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Seto W - 1:00-3:00 |
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Schmitz TBA - TBA |
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902
Environmental Anthropology Research Lab
902 Environmental Anthropology Research Lab :
1 credit/credit/fail. A bi-weekly seminar for Dove doctoral advisees and students in the combined F&ES/Anthropology program. It consists of the presentation and discussion of dissertation prospectuses and proposals, dissertation chapters, and related publications; collaborative writing and publishing projects on subjects of common interest; and discussion of such topics as grantsmanship, data analysis, writing and publishing, and the job search. Two-hour seminar : Michael R. Dove : Michael R. Dove
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Dove F - 1:00-4:00 |
Dove F - 1:00-4:00 |
Dove TBA - TBA |
Dove TBA - TBA |
905
Doctoral Seminar in Environmental and Energy Economics
905 Doctoral Seminar in Environmental and Energy Economics :
This course is designed to bring doctoral students up to speed on the latest developments in the literature on environmental and energy economics. Key papers are presented, and associated mathematical and empirical methods are covered. Topics to be covered include uncertainty and climate change policy, estimating energy demand, electricity markets, and behavioral economics and the environment. A focus is on identifying areas that deserve future research attention. Open to advanced master’s students with permission of the instructor. : : Kenneth Gillingham
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Gillingham TBA - TBA |
910
Survival Skills for Doctoral Students
910 Survival Skills for Doctoral Students : credit/fail. This course is aimed at preparing advanced doctoral students for successful and rewarding careers in ecology and environmental science. Students learn about academic and non-academic careers from readings of and presentations by scientists in those positions. Students identify important steps toward planning and launching their career paths, and skills for being effective in these positions; and they develop their own career plan, curriculum vitae, teaching and research plans, and critiques of professional web pages. Finally, the course exposes students to resources and opportunities for continuing to apply and polish their skills. : William Lauenroth : William Lauenroth : Ingrid C. Burke
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Lauenroth W - 2:30-4:20 |
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Lauenroth TBA - TBA |
953
Business and the Environment Consulting Clinic
953 Business and the Environment Consulting Clinic :
In this class, students work as a team on a specific project for an external organization. It provides students with an opportunity to apply their knowledge of business and environmental issues to real-life situations. It also provides a unique opportunity for students to manage a real-life client consulting engagement. Examples of projects include (1) developing a sustainability reporting strategy for a company; (2) assessing water risk in a company’s supply chain; and (3) recommending operational improvements around energy usage, waste disposal, etc. The intent is to provide a “capstone” experience, calling for the application of skills and tools learned from previous classes. Class sessions consist of a mix of in-class lectures, team meetings with the instructor, and guest lecturers. Lectures address topics such as project management and business strategy. Guest speakers discuss various environmental and sustainability topics such as sustainability reporting, and environmental certifications and labeling. Prerequisites for F&ES students applying to the clinic are at least one of the following courses (or equivalent experience): F&ES 578a, 680a, 807a, 821b. : Maureen Burke : Maureen Burke
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Burke Tu,Th - 10:30-11:50 |
Burke Tu,Th - 10:30-11:50 |
Burke TBA - TBA |
Burke TBA - TBA |
954
Management Plans for Protected Areas (includes Friday and Saturday Field trips)
954 Management Plans for Protected Areas (includes Friday and Saturday Field trips) :
A seminar that comprises the documentation of land use history and zoning, mapping and interpretation, and the collection and analysis of socioeconomic, biological, and physical information for the construction of management plans. Plans are constructed for private small-holders within the Quiet Corner Initiative partnership managed by the Yale School Forests. In the past plans have been completed for the Nature Conservancy; Massachusetts Trustees of Reservations; town land trusts; city parks and woodlands of New Haven, New York, and Boston; and the Appalachian Mountain Club. Prerequisite: F&ES 659b or 660a, or permission of the instructor. Ten days fieldwork. : Mark S. Ashton : Mark S. Ashton
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Ashton W - 1:00-4:30 |
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Ashton TBA - TBA |
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955
Seminar in Research Analysis, Writing and Communication in Forest Ecology
955 Seminar in Research Analysis, Writing and Communication in Forest Ecology :
Students work through the peer-review publication process on data sets and projects in applied forest ecology. Discussions involve rationale and hypothesis testing for a project, data analysis techniques, reporting and interpretation of results. It is expected that manuscripts developed in the course are worthy of publication and that oral presentations are of a caliber for subject area conferences and meetings.
1 credit option available for incoming students only. Must be taken for 3 credits to count as a capstone course.
: Mark S. Ashton : Mark S. Ashton
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Ashton W - 4:30-6:00 |
Ashton W - 4:30-6:00 |
Ashton TBA - TBA |
Ashton TBA - TBA |
964
Large-Scale Conservation: Integrating Science, Management, and Policy
964 Large-Scale Conservation: Integrating Science, Management, and Policy :
Environmental sustainability and human dignity are important societal goals, but figuring out how to achieve them on large scales—geographic, temporal, and in terms of complexity—has proven to be extremely challenging. Abundant trend data show that many species, ecosystems, and other environmental and human systems are being overused, stressed, or degraded, thus undercutting the likelihood that we can reach sustainability and human rights for all. In addition, our institutions for science, management, and policy are not designed to address sustainability challenges on these scales. Over the last few decades numerous management and policy initiatives have been put forward to address large-scale resource use, including single and multiple use, parks and protected areas, ecosystem management, bioregional planning, integrated conservation and development, transboundary approaches, and adaptive governance. This course (a mixed seminar and practicum) explicitly uses an integrative (i.e., via interdisciplinary) framework to examine the conceptual and contextual basis for these efforts; compares and contrasts their scientific, management, and policy components; explores themes of leadership, problem solving, decision making, governance, change, and learning; and surveys cases from three arenas (terrestrial, aquatic, and marine). The course takes a problem-oriented, contextual, and multi-method approach that offers students conceptual, practical, and professional benefits. It includes readings, lectures, discussions, workshops, exercises, oral presentations, guest speakers, individual and small-group assignments, and possibly a field trip and group project. In past years the course took a field trip to the Connecticut River system to evaluate region-wide conservation efforts, the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem, the Grand Canyon Ecosystem. It also organized an international workshop focused on the Yellowstone to Yukon initiative, and assisted a major U.S. NGO plan for transboundary projects along the U.S.-Canadian border. Extensive student participation is required throughout. Enrollment limited to eighteen. : : Susan G. Clark
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Clark TBA - TBA |
965
Advanced Readings: Social Science of Development and Conservation
965 Advanced Readings: Social Science of Development and Conservation :
This course is an advanced seminar on the social science theory of conservation and development, designed as an M.E.M. capstone course and to give M.E.Sc. and doctoral students a wider theoretical context for analyzing and writing up their research. The course traces the conceptual history of the social science theory of conservation and development, focusing on theories of power, governmentality, subject creation, and the economy. It examines relations between these theories, alternative theories, and how this history influences the field. The course covers the works of Michel Foucault most relevant to the field, important social scientists who have used Foucault’s ideas (e.g., Timothy Mitchell, Tania Li, Donald Moore, David Mosse, Anand Pandian), alternative theories of power (e.g., James Scott, Bruno Latour, Timothy Mitchell), applications of Foucault’s ideas to development (James Ferguson and Arturo Escobar), applications of Foucault’s ideas to the environment (especially Arun Agrawal, Bruce Braun, Eric Darier), theories of the economic subject (Peter Miller & O’Leary, Anna Tsing, Katherine Rankin); Foucault on the economy and neoliberalism; the power of the economy in Tania Li;theories of resistance and counter-conduct (Michel Foucault, Carl Death, James Scott), and Foucault and Space. Students are expected to use the course to develop, and present in class, their own research and writing. Prerequisite: F&ES 839a, 877b, or 882a. Three hours lecture/seminar. : Carol Carpenter : Carol Carpenter
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Carpenter Tu - 9:30-12:20 |
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Carpenter TBA - TBA |
970
Environmental Protection Clinic Policy and Advocacy (Follows Law School Calendar)
970 Environmental Protection Clinic Policy and Advocacy (Follows Law School Calendar) :
Follows Law School Calendar
A clinical seminar in which students are engaged with actual environmental law and policy problems on behalf of client organizations (environmental groups, government agencies, international bodies, etc.). The class meets weekly, and students work ten to twelve hours per week in interdisciplinary groups (with students from the Law School and other departments or schools at Yale) on projects with a specific legal or policy product (e.g., draft legislation or regulations, hearing testimony, analytic studies, policy proposals, white papers, memos, etc.). Students may propose projects and client organizations, subject to approval by the instructor. Brief statement of interest required; please e-mail joshua.galperin@yale.edu for information. Enrollment limited to thirty. This course follows the Yale Law School academic calendar. : Douglas Kysar : TBD Faculty : Elizabeth Suatoni : David Hawkins
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Kysar Tu - 12:10-2:00 |
Kysar Tu - 12:10-2:00 |
Faculty TBA - TBA |
Faculty TBA - TBA |
971
Land Use Clinic
971 Land Use Clinic : This clinic explores a variety of specific community land use topics of current concern and relevance to the field, to the curriculum, and to society. Potential project topics include renewable energy, natural resources, rural-based land uses, agriculture, and sustainable urban planning. Students work with the instructor to develop papers, research memorandums, presentations, and publications on a selected topic. The instructor or guest speakers lecture on specific topics related to student projects. Additionally, students attend field trips relevant to the curriculum and may participate in project meetings with clients. Students select from a project list or meet with the instructor to design a relevant project. : Jessica Bacher : Jessica Bacher
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Bacher W - 1030-11:50 |
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Bacher TBA - TBA |
972
Advanced Environmental Protection Clinic (Follows Law School Calendar)
972 Advanced Environmental Protection Clinic (Follows Law School Calendar) : Open only to students who have successfully completed the Environmental Protection Clinic (F&ES 970a,b). Permission of the instructor required. No statement of interest required. Attendance at clinic seminar is optional. For all questions, please email conor.reynolds@yale.edu. : Douglas Kysar : : Elizabeth Suatoni
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Kysar Tu - 12:10-2:00 |
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973
Industrial Ecology Capstone
973 Industrial Ecology Capstone : The industrial ecology specialization examines the relationships among production, consumption, sustainability, design, and industrial ecology in diverse settings, from products to firms to cities to international trade flows. This capstone course assigns student teams to work with sponsor companies to apply quantitative methods to practical problems facing the organization. In addition, students working independently join the class to learn more about project preparation and to share insights with other students interested in industrial ecology insights and applications. : Reid J. Lifset : Marian Chertow
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Lifset W - 2:30-5:20 |
Tentative (No Semester)
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974
Environmental Justice Capstone: Interdisciplinary Research and Practice at the Intersection of Civil Rights & the Environment
974 Environmental Justice Capstone: Interdisciplinary Research and Practice at the Intersection of Civil Rights & the Environment : Students will have the opportunity to work on project to improve environmental quality and public health in partnership with communities of color and low-income communities. In the wake of a national conversation about the water crisis in Flint and lead poisoning across the country, students will take on projects to address inequality in the distribution of health hazards as well as procedural inequities experienced by communities as they try to assert their own vision for the future of their neighborhoods, towns and cities. The EJ Capstone’s work will include projects related to civil rights compliance and social justice in the environmental context, and work with community residents to develop strategies to address issues of environmental injustice. In addition to projects to help develop and evaluate the record of environmental contamination, Capstone teams will work on policy approaches to addressing the sources and impacts of air and water contamination in disproportionately affected communities.
Students will also participate in a seminar intended to explore issues raised by the application of knowledge, skills, and approaches to the environmental justice context, including both substantive issues of environmental and civil rights law and policy, as well as questions related to practice, including ethical and social dimensions of providing technical assistance in this context. The seminar will meet approximately two hours per week. In addition to class meetings and preparation, Capstone participants must complete project work. Students will also be expected to participate in two weekly one-half-hour team meetings. While there is no prerequisite for the Capstone, participants should have a strong interest in working on behalf of environmentally overburdened communities — often communities of color and low-income communities.
Enrollment limited to sixteen. : Marianne Engelman-Lado :
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Engelman-Lado W - 9-11:50 |
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975
Environmental Justice Capstone: Interdisciplinary Research and Practice at the Intersection of Civil Rights & the Environment (application process)
975 Environmental Justice Capstone: Interdisciplinary Research and Practice at the Intersection of Civil Rights & the Environment (application process) : Students in the spring 2019 Environmental Justice Capstone (subtitled Interdisciplinary Research and Practice at the Intersection of Civil Rights & the Environment) will have the opportunity to work in partnership with communities of color and low-income communities on projects to address racial disparities and improve environmental quality and public health in environmentally overburdened communities. Students will work in small teams taking on projects to address inequality and race discrimination in the distribution of health hazards as well as procedural inequities experienced by communities as they try to assert their own vision for the future of their neighborhoods, towns and cities.
Students this past semester worked on projects that included:
-Drafting federal legislation in consultation with community and advocacy groups across the country that would place a moratorium on concentrated animal feeding operations and enact other measures to limit their impacts;
-Research and drafting public comments to be filed on behalf of environmental justice organizations regarding recently proposed changes to NEPA;
-Research and analysis of the impacts of a landfill in a historically black community in Alabama analyzing landfill permit variances and assessing the relationship between race and landfill locations in Alabama.
These projects will continue and in the coming semester, students will also have the opportunity to analyze the impact of Connecticut’s ten-year old environmental justice law and work with community groups in Beaumont, Texas and Uniontown, Alabama on the documentation of the impacts of polluting facilities such as refineries and landfills.
The semester will begin with a “bootcamp” intended to provide an orientation on key substantive information and the work of the Capstone. Students will then participate in a weekly seminar intended to explore issues raised by the application of knowledge, skills, and approaches to the environmental justice context, including both substantive issues of environmental and civil rights law and policy, as well as questions related to practice, including ethical and social dimensions of providing technical assistance in this context. In addition to class meetings and preparation, Capstone participants must complete project work. Students will also be expected to participate in two weekly one-half-hour team meetings. While there is no prerequisite for the Capstone, participants should have a strong interest in working on behalf of environmentally overburdened communities — often communities of color and low-income communities.
To apply, please send Marianne Engelman Lado a c.v. and short statement of your interest (under a page please) at Marianne.engelman-lado@yale.edu by December 1. Applications will be accepted on a rolling basis. Second year students will be given priority, but first year students are encouraged to apply. Enrollment limited to sixteen. : Marianne Engelman-Lado :
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Engelman-Lado W - 9:00-11:50 |
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979
Capstone: Sub-national playbook for significant greenhouse gas reductions by 2030
979 Capstone: Sub-national playbook for significant greenhouse gas reductions by 2030 : The recent IPCC special report on the impacts of global warming of 1.5 °C above pre-industrial levels provided a stark warning of the future our planet faces unless we make dramatic and meaningful greenhouse gas (GHG) reductions by 2030 – approximately 45% reductions below 2010 levels. In the United States, in the absence of leadership at the federal level, states, cities, and corporations must step into the breach if we have any hope of avoiding the most serious consequences of global warming.
Students will work in teams to develop a policy playbook designed for a hypothetical new governor, mayor, and/or CEO who is committed to significant GHG reductions by 2030. In this capstone experience, students will apply skills and tools learned from previous classes to develop and pitch implementable policies and programs in five major categories (corresponding to the chapters of the playbook):
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Electricity,
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Buildings,
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Transportation,
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Materials management, and
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Natural/working lands.
Teams must evaluate and prioritize policies and programs based on their GHG reduction potential, costs, co-benefits (e.g., health, enhanced resiliency, job creation etc.), and feasibility of implementation. Each team must also address cross-cutting themes of equity, environmental justice, measurement/verification, potential conflicts between policies, life-cycle analysis, legal structures/governance, communication, and politics. : Robert Klee :
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Klee Th - 1:00-3:50 |
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983
Water Resource Science & Management Capstone
983 Water Resource Science & Management Capstone : This course is designed as the preferred option to fulfill the requirement of a capstone course within the M.E.M. specialization in Water Resource Science and Management. Students work under the instructor’s direction, with advice from other water faculty, to develop management plans or other guidance documents supported by new or existing applied research. Students are trained in research methods so that they have useful background knowledge that will be essential in their future management careers. Topics emphasize real-world, interdisciplinary problems with possible immediate application. : Gaboury Benoit : Gaboury Benoit
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Benoit M - 1:00-3:50 |
Tentative (No Semester)
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984
Energy and Climate Change Policy Practicum
984 Energy and Climate Change Policy Practicum :
This course provides an opportunity for students to apply knowledge and skills gained at FES to
energy policy projects conducted for client organizations. At the outset of the course, students will pair with client organizations (e.g., non-governmental advocacy organizations, companies, etc.) to work on current energy policy projects for the remainder of the semester. Students will be presented with a menu of potential projects; students
may also propose organizations and projects, subject to approval by the instructor. Students will work in groups or individually, depending on the nature of the project. Students are expected to work ten hours per week on their projects, including weekly discussions with clients and with the instructor. After choosing a project, students will work with clients to prepare and submit a work plan. Over the remainder of the semester, students will work directly with clients to produce project-specific products, such as draft legislation or regulations, policy briefs, analytic studies, or white papers. Students will submit a portfolio of these project products for evaluation during the reading period. In addition, student performance will be evaluated based on project work plans, as well as summary presentations made during the final weeks of class. Project-related work will comprise the bulk of the course, but will be supplemented by guest lectures and discussion with the instructor. The full menu of potential projects will be finalized closer to the beginning of the semester. : Dan Utech :
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Utech Th - 2:30-5:20 |
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985
Capstone: Urban, Suburban, and Regional Planning Practice
985 Capstone: Urban, Suburban, and Regional Planning Practice : Building from the topics covered in FES 817a, this capstone course provides the opportunity for students to apply the theory of practice developed during that course to a real world, local project for a public or civic sector client as part of an inter-disciplinary student team. Up to two teams of between four and five students each will work together focusing on a critical neighborhood of New Haven or a nearby municipality. The emphasis in each location will be identifying and overcoming the tensions and conflicts between economic, social, and environmental objectives to develop a balanced strategy for the neighborhood that meets stakeholders goals within the context of overarching regional, national, and even global challenges and opportunities (e.g. climate change and demographic shifts). Towards that end, students will be exposed to the detailed process of local government and decision-making as well as techniques use by city planners to collect and assess data and utilize that information coupled with stakeholder engagement to develop tools to help the community achieve their vision. With a focus on inter-disciplinary problem solving and the collective project management resulting in a client-driven work product, students will learn valuable skills for their future careers. : David Kooris :
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Kooris W - 5:30-8:20 |
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