Environmental Studies

This course examines the intersection between energy consumption and human/corporate/economic activities. It looks at how energy is utilized; what factors are affecting energy consumption in intensity and in total; and how human behavior could be changed for energy conservation and pollution control. 

This course uses the March 2023 Berlin climate referendum as a starting point for an analysis of German energy policy and (geo)politics. It assesses the influence of (geo)political, technological, environmental and other social factors on the development of the German energy mix since the establishment of the European Coal and Steel Community in 1951. The class traces the rise and fall of nuclear power before and after German reunification; the consequences of the oil shock and the persistence of oil despite the emergence of biofuels; the construction of natural gas pipelines, including Nord Stream; and the marked divergence of solar and wind capacity in the north and south of the country. Questions include: Should the German federal government have responded to widespread anti-nuclear sentiment by phasing out nuclear power ahead of coal? Are biofuels a sustainable substitute for oil? And is the shift to renewable energy in Berlin constrained by the technology or, as supporters of the climate referendum claimed, by a lack of political will?

This course primarily focuses on the ocean's role in the global biogeochemical cycling of elements, with special attention given to the impact of human activities on the transport of these elements within these cycles. The course begins by covering basic ocean chemistry, followed by an exploration of the concept of global geochemical cycles based on water/rock interactions. The discussion then delves into nutrient and trace metal cycling, emphasizing redox reactions and the biologically mediated oxidation of organic matter. Steady-state models will be employed to explain the global distribution of these components in the oceans. 
 
In addition, the course examines the role of sediment in shaping ocean chemical composition, considering both equilibrium and kinetic perspectives and touches upon marine chemistry related to radioactive and stable isotopes. 
 

This course aims to provide young marine scientists with a foundation in the fundamental concepts of ocean chemistry, while offering a global perspective on the subject. There are no prerequisites for enrollment, but a background in basic chemistry (e.g., Chemistry 101) is preferred.   

This course examines geographical information systems (GIS) using basic statistical methods and spatial analysis. It focus on various spatial analysis and modelling techniquesﾠand geo-visualization for applications relating to the natural and built environments and human activities.

This course explores changes to our global environment in the Anthropocene and practices used to solve these impacts. It poses questions of current sustainability and global system failure, such as can we design a society and economy that is sustainable, democratic, and prosperous? This course uses a broad interdisciplinary approach to build understanding of central issues of sustainability. Students critically examine sustainability through the lens of culture and societal change, political conflict, ecological economics, global environmental issues, globalization and development and ecological design.

The extensive independent study field research paper produced by the student is both the centerpiece of the intern's professional engagement and the culmination of the academic achievements of the semester. During the preparatory session, IFE teaches the methodological guidelines and principles to which students are expected to adhere in the development of their written research. Students work individually with a research advisor from their field. The first task is to identify a topic, following guidelines established by IFE for research topic choice. The subject must be tied in a useful and complementary way to the student-intern's responsibilities, as well as to the core concerns of the host organization. The research question should be designed to draw as much as possible on resources available to the intern via the internship (data, documents, interviews, observations, seminars and the like). Students begin to focus on this project after the first 2-3 weeks on the internship. Each internship agreement signed with an organization makes explicit mention of this program requirement, and this is the culminating element of their semester. Once the topic is identified, students meet individually, as regularly as they wish, with their IFE research advisor to generate a research question from the topic, develop an outline, identify sources and research methods, and discuss drafts submitted by the student. The research advisor also helps students prepare for the oral defense of their work which takes place a month before the end of the program and the due date of the paper. The purpose of this exercise is to help students evaluate their progress and diagnose the weak points in their outline and arguments. Rather than an extraneous burden added to the intern's other duties, the field research project grows out of the internship through a useful and rewarding synergy of internship and research. The Field Study and Internship model results in well-trained student-interns fully engaged in mission-driven internships in their field, while exploring a critical problem guided by an experienced research advisor.

This course provides a structured introduction to environmental issues and collective action and is divided into three modules. It begins with an overview of environmental challenges, exploring theories on economic impact, overpopulation, and consumption. The course then examines literature on collective action, focusing on solutions to resource dilemmas. It engages with these ideas through essays, discussions, and case studies in fisheries and wildlife management. The final module emphasizes research skills through theory, application, and feedback, developing essential tools to study complex environmental and collective action issues.

This course examines how individuals and groups shape local-global dynamics of international environmental politics, how economic, political, and social processes at multiple domains shape global environmental changes, including climate change, and how challenges of international environmental politics and policy formulations shape solutions to global environmental changes. This course discusses five areas crucial to comprehending the nature and dynamics of global environmental issues and effective policies to deal with them: international political order, international environmental law, human-environment interactions in the context of market and politics, political and societal challenges of sustainability, and dynamics of human values and rules.

The planet and humankind face major current environment and development challenges, including climate change, losses of natural habitats and biodiversity, poverty, and non-sustainable food production systems. Using selected problems and cases, this course examines how social and natural sciences address the relationship between environment and development. This includes providing a well-grounded understanding of key theoretical, conceptual, and practical debates and issues; and experience with interdisciplinary approaches to research through active participation in discussions, group work, and essay writing. The course thus introduces tools and frameworks, which can be used to think and generate knowledge across disciplines. The course places particular focus on countries in the Global South and includes cases from the Global North. During the course, students write a group based essay, which along with the rest of the curriculum forms the basis for individual oral exams.

The course focuses on Berlin as a case study of urban governance for sustainability. It compares local policy challenges in national and international contexts, developing a more nuanced view on the top down and bottom up strategies of building sustainable cities. The course combines a comparative policy analysis approach with concepts of international relations studies. The objective is to unravel the concept of sustainability and study its translation into politics and policies in multi-level governance structures.