Geography of Global Change
UAB Barcelona Summer School
Number of credits: 6 European Credit Transfer and Accumulation System (ECTS)
Course Fee: 850 €
Course Fee for UAB students: 200 €
Teaching Language: English
Place: UAB Campus Bellaterra (Cerdanyola del Vallès), Barcelona
Teaching Period: 21 June to 09 July
Contact: summer@uab.cat
PROFESSOR BIO INFORMATION
Graham Mortyn earned BS and MS degrees in Earth Science and a PhD in Oceanography from Scripps Institution of Oceanography (University of California at San Diego, UCSD). Prior to academia he worked as a hydrogeologist. He was an Assistant Professor in California (California State University, Fresno, CSUF) before UAB arrival in 2004, joining the Department of Geography and ICTA.
- Department of Geography
- E-mail: graham.mortyn@uab.cat
ACADEMIC GUIDE
Contents overview
| Week | Contents | Teaching/learning activities |
|---|---|---|
| 1 |
Block 1 Introduction to Global Change The Earth as a System Spatial and temporal scales (e.g. human, geologic, and all in between) Global change vs. climate change, similarities and distinctions
Block 2 The Atmosphere Defining the structure and composition (baseline for change) Greenhouse gases Industrial pollution |
|
| 2 |
Block 3 The Oceans Role in global and climate change Non-climatic global changes (e.g. fisheries, pollution, exotic species invasions) Specific global change issues (monsoons, ENSO, hurricanes, etc.). Concrete look at the 2017 Atlantic hurricane events
|
Field trip to Barcelona to discuss and explore urban global change |
| 3 |
Block 4 Terrestrial Impacts The nature of land surfaces Specific terrestrial-based concerns (e.g. biosphere) Causes for concern and likely futuristic developments |
|
Evaluation
Block 1 Thematic Question Answers, due Wednesday of Week 1 (15%)
Block 2 Thematic Question Answers, due Friday of Week 1 (15%)
Block 3 Thematic Question Answers, due Thursday of Week 2 (15%)
Block 4 Thematic Question Answers, due Tuesday of Week 3 (15%)
Final Exam Wednesday of Week 3 (40%)
Links and references
GUGLER, J. (2004). World Cities. Globalization, Development and Inequality. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
JOHNSTON, R.J., TAYLOR, P.J. I WATTS, M.J. (eds) (2002): Geographies of Global Change. Oxford: Blackwell (2ª edició).
MANNION, A.M. (1991): Global environmental change. Harlow, Essex: Longman.
MARSH,W.M. I GROSSA,J.M. Jr (1996): Environmental Geography. Science, Land Use and Earth Systems. New York: John Wiley.
OLDFIELD, F. 2005: Environmental Change. Key Issues and Alternative Perspectives. Cambridge, Cambridge University Press.
STEFFEN, W. et al 2004: Global Change and the Earth System: A Planet Under Pressure. New York, Springer.
TURNER, B.T.II; Clark,W.C., KATES,R.W., RICHARDS,J.F., MATHEWS,J.T. I MEYER,W.B. (eds) (1990): The Earth as transformed by human action. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
https://data.giss.nasa.gov/gistemp/
http://science.sciencemag.org/content/297/5581/528.full
http://science.sciencemag.org/content/297/5581/596.full
http://science.sciencemag.org/content/314/5806/1740.full
http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v436/n7051/full/nature03906.html
http://science.sciencemag.org/content/342/6162/1027.full
https://www.bloomberg.com/graphics/2015-whats-warming-the-world/
There will also be selected readings from journal articles, and other links, highlighted during the course. Some links above are to journal articles; others are for some key sites and animations.