COURSE SCHEDULE

Week 1) Introduction

Thur 1/25) Why are we here? Why do we care?

Week 2) Time and Scale

Tues 1/30) Temporal context of the current crisis.   

Thurs 2/1) The expansion of human ecological impacts.

Readings: 

Pahl, Sabine, Stephen Shepard, Christine Boomsma and Christopher Groves. 2014. Perceptions of time in relation to climate change. WIREs Clim Change 2014. Open Access at: https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/wcc.272

McNeill, J. R., and Peter Engelke. The Great Acceleration: An Environmental History of the Anthropocene since 1945. Harvard University Press, 2016. Ch 2 (PP 63-101). Password protected at: https://libguides.brooklyn.cuny.edu/ld.php?content_id=75071874

Video: 

Earth and the American Dream at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Vfznw67kAA

Week 3) State of the Planet

Tues 2/6) Ecological change from WWII to the present. (Quiz #1)

Thur 2/8) Current ecological conditions.

Reading: 

McNeil, J. R. and Peter Engelke. 2014. The Great Acceleration: An Environmental History of the Anthropocene Since 1945. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press. Ch 3 (PP 103-155) Password protected at: https://libguides.brooklyn.cuny.edu/ld.php?content_id=75071878

Websites: 

University of Exeter’s Global Systems Institute, Global Tipping Points 

(https://global-tipping-points.org)

Explanation of ecological boundaries that, once crossed, alter earth systems.

United Nations, Sustainable Development Goals

(https://sdgs.un.org/topics)

Explanation of UN objectives for achieving human well-being and ecological integrity. 

Week 4) Socio-Environmental Dynamics

Tues 2/13) The interaction of social systems and ecosystems. (Quiz #2)

Thur 2/15) The treadmill of production as climate change system.

Readings: 

Leguizamón, Amalia. 2023. “Treadmill of Production.” Pp. 11–27 in Handbook of Inequality and the Environment, edited by Michael A. Long, Michael J. Lynch, and Paul B. Stretesky. Edward Elgar Publishing. Password Protected at: https://libguides.brooklyn.cuny.edu/ld.php?content_id=75134379

Bell, Shannon E. 2021. “Energy, Society, and the Environment.” Pp. 157-196 in Twenty Lessons in Environmental Sociology, 3^rd edition, edited by Kenneth A. Gould and Tammy L. Lewis. Oxford University Press. Password Protected at: https://libguides.brooklyn.cuny.edu/ld.php?content_id=74918166

Video: 

An Inconvenient Sequel: Truth to Power. Dir. Cohen, Bonni, and Jon Shenk. Paramount Pictures, 2017. Login with BC Library credentials at: https://brooklyn.ezproxy.cuny.edu/login?url=https://video.alexanderstreet.com/p/28D3qD7JP.

Week 5) What is Climate Change?

Tues 2/20) Greenhouse gasses, emissions and sinks.

Thur 2/22) Conversion Day. Class does not meet.

Readings: 

Leichenko, Robin and Karen O’Brien. 2019. Climate and Society: Transforming the Future. Cambridge: Polity Press. Ch 1-2 (PP 1-40). Password Protected at: https://libguides.brooklyn.cuny.edu/ld.php?content_id=75201989 

Website:

NASA, Global Climate Change

(https://climate.nasa.gov)

The U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration’s interactive site for climate change explanation and information.

Week 6) Social Causes of Climate Change 

Tues 2/27) Carboniferous capitalism. (Quiz #3)

Thur 2/29) The illogic of growth.

Readings: Leichenko, Robin and Karen O’Brien. 2019. Climate and Society: Transforming the Future. Cambridge: Polity Press. Ch 5 (PP 79-100) Password Protected at: https://libguides.brooklyn.cuny.edu/ld.php?content_id=74917233

McKinney, Laura. 2021. “Climate Change.” Pp. 271-292 in Twenty Lessons in Environmental Sociology, edited by Kenneth A. Gould and Tammy L. Lewis. Oxford University Press. Password Protected: https://libguides.brooklyn.cuny.edu/ld.php?content_id=75058970

Monbiot, George. 2021. “Capitalism is killing the planet: It’s time to stop buying into our own destruction.” In Guardian, October 30. https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2021/oct/30/capitalism-is-killing-the-planet-its-time-to-stop-buying-into-our-own-destruction

Website:

IPCC Explainer: The Science of Climate Change

https://eciu.net/analysis/infographics/ipcc-science-of-climate-change

An infographic summarizing the findings of the International Panel on Climate Change.

Week 7) Power and Denialism (Corporations)

Tues 3/5) The fossil fuel industry. (Quiz #4)

Thur 3/7) The climate denial network.

Readings: 

Mann, Michael E. 2021. The New Climate War: The Fight to Take Back Our Planet. New York: Public Affairs. Ch 1-3 (PP 9-62) Password Protected at: https://libguides.brooklyn.cuny.edu/ld.php?content_id=74917683

Brulle, Robert J. 2021. Networks of Opposition: A Structural analysis of US climate change countermovement coalitions 1989-2015. In Sociological Inquiry, Login with BC Library credentials at: https://onlinelibrary-wiley-com.brooklyn.ezproxy.cuny.edu/share/QW2MCMRWDSPQHPEYGBDN?target=10.1111/soin.12333

Bohr, Jeremiah. “The Structure and Culture of Climate Change Denial.” In ASA Footnotes, 49 (3). https://www.asanet.org/footnotes-article/structure-and-culture-climate-change-denial/

Website:

Greenpeace USA 

https://www.greenpeace.org/usa/fighting-climate-chaos/exxon-and-the-oil-industry-knew-about-climate-crisis/exxons-climate-denial-history-a-timeline/

A timeline of Exxon’s efforts to deceive the public about climate change.

Week 8) Policy (The State)

Tues 3/12) Workshop Group Projects. (Quiz #5)

Thur 3/14) Climate mitigation and adaptation policy.

Readings: 

 Speth, James Gustave. “Ch. 2 and Ch. 8.” In They Knew: The US Federal Government’s Fifty-Year Role in Causing the Climate Crisis, First MIT Press paperback edition. Cambridge, Massachusetts: MIT Press, 2022. Ch 2 (PP 41-58) and Ch 8 (PP 133-150) Password Protected at: https://libguides.brooklyn.cuny.edu/ld.php?content_id=75061154.

Carlson, Kathleen and Sabrina McCormick. 2015. American adaptation: Social factors affecting new developments to address climate change. In Global Environmental Change, Vol. 35 Pp 360-367. Open Access at: https://socy2222.commons.gc.cuny.edu/wp-content/blogs.dir/32160/files/2024/03/AmericanAdaptation.pdf

Website: 

The White House, National Climate Task Force

https://www.whitehouse.gov/climate/

Explanation of Biden Administration climate policies including the IRA and BIL

Week 9) Social Consequences of Climate Change: Local

Tues 3/19) Flooding in NYC. (Quiz #6)

Thur 3/21) Heat in NYC. (Research Paper Proposals Due)

Readings: 

Solecki, William, and Cynthia Rosenzweig. 2019. “New York City Panel on Climate Change 2019 Report Chapter 9: Perspectives on a City in a Changing Climate 2008-2018.” In Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences, 1439(1), 280–305. Open Access at: https://doi.org/10.1111/nyas.14017

Rosenzweig, Bernice, Benjamin L. Ruddell, Lauren McPhillips, Robert Hobbins, Timon McPhearson, Zhongqi Cheng, Heejun Chang, and Yeowon Kim. 2019. “Developing knowledge systems for urban resilience to cloudburst rain events.” In Environmental Science & Policy. Vol. 99, Pp 150-159. Open Access at: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envsci.2019.05.020

Gornitz, Vivian, Radley Horton, Daniel A. Bader, Philip Orton, and Cynthia Rosenzweig. 2017. “Coping with Higher Sea Levels and Increased Coastal Flooding in New York City.” In Climate Change in North America, edited by Walter Leal Fiho and Jesse M. Keenan. Pp 209-223. Login with BC Library credentials at: https://link-springer-com.brooklyn.ezproxy.cuny.edu/chapter/10.1007/978-3-319-53742-9_13

Wilson, Bev. 2020. “Urban heat management and the legacy of redlining.” In Journal of the American Planning Association, 86(4), 443-457. Open Access at: DOI: 10.1080/01944363.2020.1759127 

Websites:

NYC Mayor’s Office of Climate and Environmental Justice, Adapt NYC:

https://climate.cityofnewyork.us/initiatives/adaptnyc/

Explanation of NYC vulnerability and policies for climate adaptation and mitigation. 

United Nations, Habitat

https://unhabitat.org/topic/climate-change

UN recommendations for urban climate adaptation, mitigation, and resilience.

US Environmental Protection Agency, Climate Change Impacts on the Built Environment

https://www.epa.gov/climateimpacts/climate-change-impacts-built-environment

Explanation of urban climate risks and adaptation and mitigation actions.

Week 10) Social Consequences of Climate Change: Global

Tues 3/26) Precarity. (Quiz #7)

Thur 3/28) Migration. (Public Education Project: Who is your audience? Due)

Readings: 

Leichenko, Robin and Karen O’Brien. 2019. Climate and Society: Transforming the Future. Cambridge: Polity Press. Ch 7-8 (PP 124-157). Login with BC Library credentials at: https://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/brooklyn-ebooks/detail.action?docID=5790519

IPPC. 2023. Summary for Policymakers. In Climate Change 2023:Synthesis Report. Contributing Working Groups I, II  and III to the Sixth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. Core writing team, H. Lee and J. Romero (eds.). IPPC, Geneva, Switzerland, Pp 1-34. Open Access at: https://www.ipcc.ch/report/ar6/syr/downloads/report/IPCC_AR6_SYR_SPM.pdf

Websites:

Migration Policy Institute. Climate Migration 101: An Explainer

https://www.migrationpolicy.org/article/climate-migration-101-explainer

The causes, consequences, social impacts and policies regarding climate migration.

Natural Resources Defense Council, Climate Migration and Equity

https://www.nrdc.org/stories/climate-migration-equity

Brief overview of climate migration, social equity, and US policy.

 Week 11) Climate Justice

Tues 4/2) Global inequality and climate vulnerability. (Quiz #8)

Thur 4/4) Domestic inequality and vulnerability. 

(Public Education Project: 5 Takeaways? Due)

Readings: 

Harlan, Sharon L., David N. Pellow, and J. Timmons Roberts with Shannon E. Bell, William G. Holt, and Joane Nagel. 2015. “Climate justice and inequality.” In Climate Change and Society: Sociological Perspectives, edited by Riley E. Dunlap and Robert J. Brulle. Oxford University Press. Password Protected at: https://libguides.brooklyn.cuny.edu/ld.php?content_id=76007829

Schlosberg, David and Lisette B. Collins. 2014. “From environmental to climate justice: Climate change and the discourse of environmental justice.” In WIREs Climate Change,  5(3) Pp 359-374. Login with BC Library Resources at: https://wires-onlinelibrary-wiley-com.brooklyn.ezproxy.cuny.edu/share/ZBIQ4XXMZWXZFTMWFYGJ?target=10.1002/wcc.275.

OR Password Protected at: https://libguides.brooklyn.cuny.edu/ld.php?content_id=76007833

Websites:

Climate Justice Alliance 

https://climatejusticealliance.org

Interactive resource on climate justice, front line communities, and resistance. 

Week 12) Climate Activism in the US

Tues 4/9) Consumer-based action. (Quiz #9)

Thur 4/11) Collective action. (Public Education Project: Assumed Knowledge? Due)

Readings: 

Latkin, Carl. Lauren Dayton, Haley Bonneau, Ananya Bhaktaram, Jukia Ross, Jessica Pugel, and Megan Weil Latshw. 2023. “Perceived barriers to climate change activism behaviors in the United States among individuals highly concerned about climate change.” Login with BC Library credentials at: In Journal of Prevention, Vol. 44, Pp 389-407. https://doi-org.brooklyn.ezproxy.cuny.edu/10.1007/s10935-022-00704-0

Fisher, Dana, and Sohana Nasrin. 2021. ”Shifting coalitions within the youth climate movement in the US.” In Politics and Governance, 9(2), Pp 112-123. Open Access at: DOI: https://doi.org/10.17645/pag.v9i2.3801

LeQuesne, Theo. 2019. “From carbon democracy to carbon rebellion: Countering petro-hegemony on the frontlines of climate justice.” In Journal of World-Systems research,  25(1), Pp 15-27. Open Access at: https://doi.org/10.5195/jwsr.2019.905

Websites:

Extinction Rebellion (XR)

https://rebellion.global

The goals, tactics, and strategies of a leading direct action climate activism organization.

Citizens Climate Lobby

https://citizensclimatelobby.org

The goals, tactics, and strategies of a bipartisan climate lobbying organization.

Sunrise Movement

https://www.sunrisemovement.org

Youth climate activist organization promoting the Green New Deal

Week 13) Global Climate Activism

Tues 4/16) Legitimate means of protest and advocacy. (Quiz #10)

Thur 4/18) Expanding the repertoire of contention. (Research Papers Due)

Readings: 

de Moor, Joost, Michiel De Vydt, Katrin Uba, and Mattias Whalström. 2021. “New kids on the block: Taking stock of the recent cycle of climate activism.” In Social Movement Studies, 20(5),  Pp 619-625. Open Access at: https://doi.org/10.1080/14742837.2020.1836617.

Malm, Andreas. How to Blow up a Pipeline: Learning to Fight in a World on Fire. First edition paperback. London: Verso, 2021. (PP 65-132) Password protected at: https://libguides.brooklyn.cuny.edu/ld.php?content_id=75034469.

Websites:

Climate Action Network International

https://climatenetwork.org

Resources for a coalition of 1,900 climate organizations in 130 countries.

350.org

https://350.org/?r=US&c=NA

One of the largest international climate action organizations.

Fridays for Future

https://fridaysforfuture.org

International student climate strike organization founded by Greta Thunberg

SPRING RECESS APRIL 22-30: NO CLASS MEETINGS

Week 14) Alternative Trajectories

Thur. 5/2) Decarbonizing or Degrowth?

Readings: 

Leichenko, Robin and Karen O’Brien. 2019. Climate and Society: Transforming the Future. Cambridge: Polity Press. Climate and Society. Ch 9-10 (PP 159-195). Login with BC Library credentials at: https://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/brooklyn-ebooks/detail.action?docID=5790519.

Week 15) Transitions

Tues. 5/7) Group Public Education Presentation, Group 1.

Thur. 5/9) Group Public Education Presentation, Group 2.

Week 16) Course Review

Tues. 5/14) Reflection and assessment.