关于此课程： This course introduces the academic approach of Sustainability and explores how today’s human societies can endure in the face of global change, ecosystem degradation and resource limitations. The course focuses on key knowledge areas of sustainability theory and practice, including population, ecosystems, global change, energy, agriculture, water, environmental economics and policy, ethics, and cultural history. This subject is of vital importance, seeking as it does to uncover the principles of the long-term welfare of all the peoples of the planet. As sustainability is a cross-disciplinary field of study, this foundation requires intellectual breadth: as I describe it in the class text, understanding our motivations requires the humanities, measuring the challenges of sustainability requires knowledge of the sciences (both natural and social), and building solutions requires technical insight into systems (such as provided by engineering, planning, and management).
制作方： University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
教学方： Dr. Jonathan Tomkin, Associate Director
School of Earth, Society and Environment
| 承诺学习时间 | 8-10 hours/week |
| 语言 | English, 字幕： Tamil, Chinese (Simplified), Portuguese (Brazilian), Vietnamese, Spanish |
| 如何通过 | 通过所有计分作业以完成课程。 |
| 用户评分 |
授课大纲
第 1 周
Orientation and Introduction
In this module, you will become familiar with the course, your classmates, and the learning environment. The orientation also helps you obtain the technical skills required for the course. In the introduction, we will examine some of the central ideas that underpin the Earth as a system, and their consequences for environmental sustainability.
5 个视频, 5 个阅读材料, 2 个练习测验
- Reading: Syllabus
- Reading: About the Discussion Forums
- Reading: Social Media
- Reading: Getting to Know Your Classmates
- Practice Quiz: Orientation Quiz
- Reading: Module 1 Overview and Readings
- 视频: Introduction to Sustainability
- 视频: Sustainability and Population Growth
- 视频: Growth Curves
- 视频: Malthus
- Practice Quiz: Big Ideas Practice Quiz
已评分: Module 1 Quiz
第 2 周
Population
In this module, we will see how human populations have evolved over time and get a sense of where the next century of change will take us.
5 个视频, 1 个阅读材料, 2 个练习测验
- Reading: Module 2 Overview and Readings
- 视频: Transitions
- 视频: Demographic Transition
- Practice Quiz: Population, Past and Present Practice Quiz
- 视频: Future Populations, Part 1
- 视频: Future Populations, Part 2
- Practice Quiz: Global Population in the Future Practice Quiz
已评分: Population Interactive Homework
已评分: Module 2 Quiz
第 3 周
Ecosystems and Climate Change
In this module, we will see that the Earth faces many environmental pressures that result from human exploitation of natural resources. We will also look at the issue of climate change.
8 个视频, 1 个阅读材料, 2 个练习测验
- Reading: Module 3 Overview and Readings
- 视频: Tragedy of the Commons
- 视频: Tragedy of the Commons: Solutions
- 视频: Ecosystems and Extinctions
- Practice Quiz: Ecosystems, Extinction, and Tragedy of the Commons Practice Quiz
- 视频: Weather vs. Climate
- 视频: Climate Changes in the Past
- 视频: Modern Climate Change
- 视频: [OPTIONAL] Climate Processes
- Practice Quiz: Climate Change Practice Quiz
已评分: Tragedy of the Commons Response
已评分: Climate Change Interactive Homework
已评分: Module 3 Quiz
第 4 周
Energy
In this module, we will look at energy use. We will also consider what the trend of energy use means for the planet, and how we might transition to a more sustainable pattern of use.
8 个视频, 1 个阅读材料, 2 个练习测验
- Reading: Module 4 Overview and Readings
- 视频: Energy Overview
- 视频: Oil
- 视频: EROEI
- Practice Quiz: Oil Practice Quiz
- 视频: Coal & Gas
- 视频: Nuclear Power
- 视频: Renewable Energy
- 视频: Energy Conservation
- Practice Quiz: Alternatives Practice Quiz
已评分: Energy and Society Homework
已评分: Module 4 Quiz
第 5 周
Water and Agriculture
In this module, we will explore the connection between water and food, and see what will be required to feed the planet over the course of the century.
6 个视频, 1 个阅读材料, 2 个练习测验
- Reading: Module 5 Overview and Readings
- 视频: Limits to Water
- 视频: Water Trends
- Practice Quiz: Water Practice Quiz
- 视频: Agricultural Consumption
- 视频: Agricultural Limits
- 视频: Genetically Modified Organisms
- Practice Quiz: Agriculture and Food Practice Quiz
已评分: Module 5 Quiz
第 6 周
Environmental Policy
In this module, we will examine some of the common tools used by policy-makers, and some of the forces that shape (or misshape) policy.
9 个视频, 1 个阅读材料, 1 个练习测验
- Reading: Module 6 Overview and Readings
- 视频: Negative Externalities
- 视频: Environmental Policy
- 视频: Environmental Policy Assessment
- Practice Quiz: Environmental Policy Practice Quiz
- 视频: [OPTIONAL] Environmental Economics
- 视频: [OPTIONAL] Application of Environmental Economics and Policy, Part 1
- 视频: [OPTIONAL] Application of Environmental Economics and Policy, Part 2
- 视频: [OPTIONAL] Application of Environmental Economics and Policy, Part 3
- 视频: Environmental Policy Examples: "Biofuels"
已评分: Environmental Policy Response
已评分: Environmental Policy Examples Homework
已评分: Module 6 Quiz
第 7 周
Measuring Sustainability
In this module, we will examine what tools are available to measure sustainability. Finally, I will make some predictions on global sustainability for the 21st century, based on the models we have spoken about in this course and the trends that have been observed in the early part of this century.
7 个视频, 1 个阅读材料, 2 个练习测验
- Reading: Module 7 Overview and Readings
- 视频: Biodiversity and Ecosystems
- 视频: Sustainability Metrics, Part 1
- 视频: Sustainability Metrics, Part 2
- 视频: Food Miles
- Practice Quiz: Measuring Sustainability Practice Quiz
- 视频: Measuring Sustainability: The Future, Part 1
- 视频: Measuring Sustainability: The Future, Part 2
- Practice Quiz: Sustainable Future Practice Quiz
已评分: Sustainable Future Response
已评分: Module 7 Quiz
第 8 周
Conclusion
Welcome to the end of the course! This module has a final, comprehensive quiz that covers all of the topics that we’ve seen in the previous seven modules. You’ll want to be familiar with the goals and objectives, key phrases, concepts, and guiding questions from the earlier modules to do well on this final quiz.
1 个阅读材料
- Reading: Conclusion and Final Quiz Instructions
已评分: Introduction to Sustainability Final Quiz
常见问题解答
运作方式
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制作方
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
The University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign is a world leader in research, teaching and public engagement, distinguished by the breadth of its programs, broad academic excellence, and internationally renowned faculty and alumni. Illinois serves the world by creating knowledge, preparing students for lives of impact, and finding solutions to critical societal needs.
价格
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| 访问课程材料 | 可用 |
| 访问评分的材料 | 可用 |
| 收到最终成绩 | 可用 |
| 获得可共享的课程证书 | 可用 |
评分和审阅
The way course content was set and the way it was explained was very good and easy to understand.
Introduction to Sustainability was enjoyably challenging and enlightening, many thanks to Professor Jonathan Thomkins and the production values of his teaching materiials. I thought however, he could have presented a fuller description of possible disaster scenarios.
I really enjoyed this course. It gives a great overview of the correlation of global actions and the consequenses for the worlwide sustainability path.
YM
It gave me a good overview of sustainability, key terms and the future.