Results for EARTHSYS

For non-majors and prospective Earth Systems majors. Multidisciplinary approach using the principles of geology, biology, engineering, and economics to describe how the Earth operates as an interconnected, integrated system. Goal is to understand global change on all time scales. Focus is on sciences, technological principles, and sociopolitical approaches applied to solid earth, oceans, water, energy, and food and population. Case studies: environmental degradation, loss of biodiversity, and resource sustainability.

Stanford Green Living Council training course. Strategies for designing and implementing effective behavior change programs for environmental sustainability on campus. Includes methods from community-based social marketing, psychology, behavioral economics, education, public health, social movements, and design. Students design a behavior change intervention project targeting a specific environmental sustainability-related behavior. Lectures online and weekly sections/workshops.

Preference to freshman. Focus is on the complex climate challenges posed by the substantial benefits of energy consumption, including the critical tension between the enormous global demand for increased human well-being and the negative climate consequences of large-scale emissions of carbon dioxide. Topics include: Earth¿s energy balance; detection and attribution of climate change; the climate response to enhanced greenhouse forcing; impacts of climate change on natural and human systems; and proposed methods for curbing further climate change. Sources include peer-reviewed scientific papers, current research results, and portrayal of scientific findings by the mass media and social networks.

The course will provide a broad overview of key policy issues concerning agricultural development and food security, and will assess how global governance is addressing the problem of food security. At the same time the course will provide an overview of the field of international security, and examine how governments and international institutions are beginning to include food in discussions of security.

Three-week, field-based program in the Greater Yellowstone/Teton and Wind River Mountains of Wyoming. Field-based exercises covering topics including: basics of structural geology and petrology; glacial geology; western cordillera geology; paleoclimatology; chemical weathering; aqueous geochemistry; and environmental issues such as acid mine drainage and changing land-use patterns.

Energy is one of the world's main drivers of opportunity and development for human beings. At the same time, our energy system has significant consequences for our society, political system, economy, and environment. For example, energy production and use is the #1 source of greenhouse gas emissions. This course surveys key aspects of each energy resource, including significance and potential conversion processes and technologies, drivers and barriers, policy and regulatory environment, and social, economic, and environmental impacts. Both depletable and renewable energy resources are covered, including oil, natural gas, coal, nuclear, biomass, hydroelectric, wind, solar, photovoltaics, geothermal, and ocean energy, with cross-cutting topics including electricity, storage, climate change, sustainability, green buildings, energy efficiency, transportation, and the developing world. Understanding Energy is part of a trio of inter-related courses aimed at gaining an in-depth understanding of each energy resource - from fossil fuels to renewable energy. The other two classes are CEE107W/207W Understanding Energy - Workshop, and CEE 107F/207F Understanding Energy -- Field Trips. Note that this course was formerly called Energy Resources (CEE 173A/207A & Earthsys 103). Prerequisites: Algebra. May not be taken for credit by students who have completed CEE 107S.

Interdisciplinary approaches to understanding human-environment interactions with a focus on economics, policy, culture, history, and the role of the state. Prerequisite: ECON 1.

Identification and interview of Stanford researchers to be featured in an audio podcast. Exploration of interviewing techniques, audio storytelling, audio editing, and podcasting as a newly emerging media platform. Individual and group projects. Group workshops focused on preparation, review, and critiques of podcasts.

Comparative approach to sustainable cities, with focus on international practices and applicability to China. Tradeoffs regarding land use, infrastructure, energy and water, and the need to balance economic vitality, environmental quality, cultural heritage, and social equity. Student teams collaborate with Chinese faculty and students partners to support urban sustainability projects. Limited enrollment via application; see internationalurbanization.org for details. Prerequisites: consent of the instructor(s).

Survey of geographic information including maps, satellite imagery, and census data, approaches to spatial data, and tools for integrating and examining spatially-explicit data. Emphasis is on fundamental concepts of geographic information science and associated technologies. Topics include geographic data structure, cartography, remotely sensed data, statistical analysis of geographic data, spatial analysis, map design, and geographic information system software. Computer lab assignments. All students are required to attend a weekly lab on Tuesdays or Thursdays from 6 pm to 9 pm.

Interested in what's going on with international climate negotiations, why it has proven so difficult to reach a meaningful agreement? Wondering whether or not another UN agreement is even a meaningful part of climate policy in 2015? This course traces the history of climate negotiations from the very first awareness of the problem of climate change, through the Kyoto Protocol and Copenhagen Accord, to the current state of international negotiations in the lead-up to the 21st Conference of the Parties meeting in Paris in December 2015. The course covers fundamental concepts in climate change science and policy, international law and multilateral environmental agreements, as well as key issues of climate finance, climate justice, equity, adaptation, communication, and social movements that together comprise the subjects of debate in the negotiations. We will discuss all the key facets of what's being negotiated in Paris and prepare students to follow the outcome of the negotiation in detail. Students also participate in a three-day mock conference of the parties. By application only.

This course will prepare undergraduate and coterm students to observe the climate change negotiations (COP 21) in Paris in November/December 2015. Students will develop individual projects to be carried out before and during the negotiation session and be paired with mentors. Please note: Along with EARTHSYS 163E/CEE 163E, this course is part of the required two-course-set in which undergraduate and co-terminal masters degree students must enroll to receive accreditation to the climate negotiations.

The unique patchwork of urban-to-rural land uses, property ownership, and ecosystems in our region poses numerous challenges and opportunities for regional conservation and environmental stewardship. Students in this class will address a particular challenge through a faculty-mentored research project engaged with the Peninsula Open Space Trust, Acterra, or the Amah Mutsun Land Trust that focuses on open space management. By focusing on a project driven by the needs of these organizations and carried out through engagement with the community, and with thorough reflection, study, and discussion about the roles of scientific, economic, and policy research in local-scale environmental decision-making, students will explore the underlying challenges and complexities of what it means to actually do community-engaged research for conservation and open space preservation in the real world. As such, this course will provide students with skills and experience in research design in conservation biology and ecology, community and stakeholder engagement, land use policy and planning, and the practical aspects of land and environmental management.

Field-based training in ecologically sound agricultural practices at the Stanford Community Farm. Weekly lessons, field work, and group projects. Field trips to educational farms in the area. Topics include: soils, composting, irrigation techniques, IPM, basic plant anatomy and physiology, weeds, greenhouse management, and marketing.

Introductory course in design thinking and food system analysis offered through the FEED Collaborative. Targeted at upper-class undergraduates, this course provides a series of diverse, primarily hands-on experiences (design projects, field work, and storytelling) in which students both learn and apply the process of human-centered design to projects of real consequence in the food system. Students will also develop knowledge and basic tools for working effectively in teams and for analyzing complex systems. The goal of this course is to develop the creative confidence of students and, in turn, to work collaboratively with thought leaders in the local food system to design innovative solutions to the challenges they face. Admission is by application: http://feedcollaborative.org/classes/.

Introduction to the history, development, and current state of communication of environmental science and policy to non-specialist audiences. Includes fundamental principles, core competencies, and major challenges of effective environmental communication in the public and policy realms and an overview of the current range and scope of research and practice in environmental communication. Intended for senior undergraduates and above with a background in environmental science and policy. Prerequisite: Earth Systems core (EarthSys 111 and EarthSys 112) or equivalent.

Honors Program in Earth Systems

The Earth Systems Senior Capstone and Reflection, required of all seniors, provides students with opportunities to synthesize and reflect on their learning in the major. Students participate in guided career development and planning activities and initiate work on an independent or group capstone project related to an Earth Systems problem or question of interest. In addition, students learn and apply principles of effective oral communication through developing and giving a formal presentation on their internship. Students must also take EARTHSYS 210P, Earth Systems Capstone Project, in the quarter following the Senior Capstone and Reflection Course. Prerequisite: Completion of an approved Earth Systems internship (EARTHSYS 260).

Simulation models are a powerful tool for environmental research, if used properly. The major concepts and techniques for building and evaluating models. Topics include model calibration, model selection, uncertainty and sensitivity analysis, and Monte Carlo and bootstrap methods. Emphasis is on gaining hands-on experience using the R programming language. Prerequisite: Basic knowledge of statistics.

Identification and interview of Stanford researchers to be featured in an audio podcast. Exploration of interviewing techniques, audio storytelling, audio editing, and podcasting as a newly emerging media platform. Individual and group projects. Group workshops focused on preparation, review, and critiques of podcasts.

Independent research related to student's primary track, carried out after the junior year, during the summer, and/or during the senior year. Student develops own project with faculty supervision. 10-15 page thesis. May be repeated for credit.

Introduction to the physiology of microbes including cellular structure, transcription and translation, growth and metabolism, mechanisms for stress resistance and the formation of microbial communities. These topics will be covered in relation to the evolution of early life on Earth, ancient ecosystems, and the interpretation of the rock record. Recommended: introductory biology and chemistry.

Supervised field, lab, or private sector project. May consist of directed research under the supervision of a Stanford faculty member, participation in one of several off campus Stanford programs, or an approved non-Stanford program relevant to the student's Earth Systems studies. Required of and restricted to declared Earth Systems majors. Includes 15-page technical summary research paper that is subject to iterative revision.

Interested in what's going on with international climate negotiations, why it has proven so difficult to reach a meaningful agreement? Wondering whether or not another UN agreement is even a meaningful part of climate policy in 2015? This course traces the history of climate negotiations from the very first awareness of the problem of climate change, through the Kyoto Protocol and Copenhagen Accord, to the current state of international negotiations in the lead-up to the 21st Conference of the Parties meeting in Paris in December 2015. The course covers fundamental concepts in climate change science and policy, international law and multilateral environmental agreements, as well as key issues of climate finance, climate justice, equity, adaptation, communication, and social movements that together comprise the subjects of debate in the negotiations. We will discuss all the key facets of what's being negotiated in Paris and prepare students to follow the outcome of the negotiation in detail. Students also participate in a three-day mock conference of the parties. By application only.

This course will prepare undergraduate and coterm students to observe the climate change negotiations (COP 21) in Paris in November/December 2015. Students will develop individual projects to be carried out before and during the negotiation session and be paired with mentors. Please note: Along with EARTHSYS 163E/CEE 163E, this course is part of the required two-course-set in which undergraduate and co-terminal masters degree students must enroll to receive accreditation to the climate negotiations.

The unique patchwork of urban-to-rural land uses, property ownership, and ecosystems in our region poses numerous challenges and opportunities for regional conservation and environmental stewardship. Students in this class will address a particular challenge through a faculty-mentored research project engaged with the Peninsula Open Space Trust, Acterra, or the Amah Mutsun Land Trust that focuses on open space management. By focusing on a project driven by the needs of these organizations and carried out through engagement with the community, and with thorough reflection, study, and discussion about the roles of scientific, economic, and policy research in local-scale environmental decision-making, students will explore the underlying challenges and complexities of what it means to actually do community-engaged research for conservation and open space preservation in the real world. As such, this course will provide students with skills and experience in research design in conservation biology and ecology, community and stakeholder engagement, land use policy and planning, and the practical aspects of land and environmental management.

Required of and open only to Earth Systems master's students. Reflection on the Earth Systems coterm experience and development of skills to clearly articulate interdisciplinary expertise to potential employers, graduate or professional schools, colleagues, business partners, etc. Hands-on projects to take students through a series of guided reflection activities. Individual and small group exercises. Required, self-chosen final project encapsulates each student's MS expertise in a form relevant to his or her future goals (ie. a personal statement, research poster, portfolio, etc.).

Introduction to the history, development, and current state of communication of environmental science and policy to non-specialist audiences. Includes fundamental principles, core competencies, and major challenges of effective environmental communication in the public and policy realms and an overview of the current range and scope of research and practice in environmental communication. Intended for senior undergraduates and above with a background in environmental science and policy. Prerequisite: Earth Systems core (EarthSys 111 and EarthSys 112) or equivalent.

Theory and practice of effective, accurate and engaging use of photography and web video production in environmental communication. Emphasis on group project work and peer critiquing in each modality, including some out-of-class work time. Limited class size, preference to Earth Systems Master's students.

Students complete an internship or similar practical experience in a professional environmental communication setting. Potential placements include environmental publications, NGOs, government agencies, on-campus entities, and science centers and museums. Restricted to students enrolled in the Environmental Communication Master of Arts in Earth Systems.

Under supervision of an Earth Systems faculty member on a subject of mutual interest.