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Governing Climate Change: Theory and Practice
Summer in Amsterdam Program
Amsterdam, Netherlands
Dates: early Jul 2027 - mid Jul 2027
Governing Climate Change: Theory and Practice
OVERVIEW
CEA CAPA Partner Institution: Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam
Location: Amsterdam, Netherlands
Primary Subject Area: Env. Sciences
Instruction in: English
Transcript Source: Partner Institution
Course Details: Level 300
Recommended Semester Credits: 3
Contact Hours: 45
DESCRIPTION
We are in the middle of a climate breakdown. Climate change is the most pressing environmental challenge facing humankind. Yet despite scientific consensus on its main cause - human activities - politicians and governments still lack the will and ambition to tackle the crisis effectively. Instead we see cities, companies and NGOs responding. They have become the driving forces behind innovative tools for behavioral change, creating a complex alternative web of institutions, instruments and actors seeking to govern climate change at the global level. However, these bottom-up initiatives are often criticized as green-washing while at the same time fossil fuel interests control the political process.
In this course you examine different approaches to coping with climate change, from international agreements to climate actions by companies, cities and individual citizens. Each week, we delve into different topics and challenges, ranging from the history of climate change governance, climate and conflict, energy transition, and geopolitics, to how we adapt to perhaps irreversible climate-induced effects in an equitable way. We also critically engage with questions around justice, responsibility and accountability for and in the climate crisis. Theory is mixed with practice throughout a set of interactive lectures, where discussions, games and excursions are used to provide concrete examples of how the issue is being addressed at various levels and by various actors. Along the way we invite you to question scientists, policymakers and lobbyists.
By the end of this course, students will:
- Understand how global climate governance has changed over the past 40 years and where it might take us in the future.
- Be able to critically examine and assess current climate governance in terms of its emergence, effectiveness and efficiency, and be able to formulate reasoned opinions about contested concepts like fairness, legitimacy, equity and justice.
- Improve their communication and debating skills on climate change.
- Experience practical, local and global solutions to climate change issues in the Netherlands.
Students will be taught through lectures, workshops, excursions and simulations. The assessment of the course will be done through a short essay.
Contact hours listed under a course description may vary due to the combination of lecture-based and independent work required for each course. CEA CAPA's recommended credits are based on the contact hours assigned by Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam (VU Amsterdam): 15 contact hours equals 1 U.S. credit
In this course you examine different approaches to coping with climate change, from international agreements to climate actions by companies, cities and individual citizens. Each week, we delve into different topics and challenges, ranging from the history of climate change governance, climate and conflict, energy transition, and geopolitics, to how we adapt to perhaps irreversible climate-induced effects in an equitable way. We also critically engage with questions around justice, responsibility and accountability for and in the climate crisis. Theory is mixed with practice throughout a set of interactive lectures, where discussions, games and excursions are used to provide concrete examples of how the issue is being addressed at various levels and by various actors. Along the way we invite you to question scientists, policymakers and lobbyists.
By the end of this course, students will:
- Understand how global climate governance has changed over the past 40 years and where it might take us in the future.
- Be able to critically examine and assess current climate governance in terms of its emergence, effectiveness and efficiency, and be able to formulate reasoned opinions about contested concepts like fairness, legitimacy, equity and justice.
- Improve their communication and debating skills on climate change.
- Experience practical, local and global solutions to climate change issues in the Netherlands.
Students will be taught through lectures, workshops, excursions and simulations. The assessment of the course will be done through a short essay.
Contact hours listed under a course description may vary due to the combination of lecture-based and independent work required for each course. CEA CAPA's recommended credits are based on the contact hours assigned by Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam (VU Amsterdam): 15 contact hours equals 1 U.S. credit