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Program in Climate and Society
Degree Programs:
Full time: Free-Standing M.A.
Director:
Mark
A.
Cane, Ph.D.
105B Oceanography
Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory
Tel:
212.845.9896
Fax:
845.365.8163
Associate Director:
Mingfang
Ting, Ph.D.
104C Oceanography
Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory
Tel:
845.365.8374
Associate Director:
David
Leonard
Downie,
Ph.D.
Hogan Hall Level B
Tel:
212.854.9896
The M.A. Program in Climate and Society uses an interdisciplinary approach
to train professionals and academics to understand and cope with the impacts of
climate variability and climate change on society and the environment. The
12-month program emphasizes the problems of developing societies.
The unique curriculum is designed to provide
valuable skills and background in the social and natural sciences, with a focus
on developing world concerns. Students
learn to apply climate-related knowledge to societal problem solving and to
communicate effectively with scientists, policymakers, and the public. Emphasis is placed on analyzing and assessing
climate-related literature, both academic and popular. In addition, students design appropriate
methodologies for impact assessments and identify the economic aspects of
climate-sensitive human activities.
The program prepares students for PhD work in
diverse fields and for various career opportunities, such as:
- policy administrators and other decision-makers
in water resource management, agriculture, health, energy, tourism and
economics.
- private sector professionals dealing with risk
and decisions relating to environmental change.
- policy professionals and administrators who want
to pursue strategies in sustainable development both domestically and
internationally; and
- educators, who are training a generation that
can no longer ignore climate.
The Climate and Society program also meets the needs
of recent graduates in the natural and social sciences interested in
interdisciplinary environmental action or research.
Degree Requirements
Students complete two semesters of graduate-level interdisciplinary course work in the fall and spring terms and choose between an internship or thesis project in the summer term. The M.A. Program in Climate and Society requires a unique set of core classes especially designed for the program’s students. The core provides a scientific basis for inquiry and stresses interdisciplinary problem solving. A professional development seminar, one social science elective, three general electives, and a choice between a summer internship or research thesis complete the required core.
Any approved course at the 4000 level or higher may be used to fulfill the social science elective course requirement in the fall term or to count as one of the three required general elective courses in the spring term. With permission of the program director, appropriate courses from other schools or departments (e.g., School of International and Public Affairs, Mailman School of Public Health, The Fu Foundation School of Engineering and Applied Science) may be counted toward the degree.
Fall Term
• Dynamics of climate variability and climate change
• Quantitative models of climate-sensitive natural and human systems
• General Elective
• Professional Development and Internship Preparation
• Social Science Elective
Spring Term
• Seminar: Managing and Adapting to Climate
• Regional Climate and Climate Impacts
• General Elective I
• General Elective II
• General Elective III
Summer Term
• Summer Seminar
• Summer Research Project or Summer Internship
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