• Examine climate science, policy, and literature in their human social contexts
• Interact with leading researchers and writers in New England and New Zealand
• Explore cities, islands, coastal regions, and glaciers affected by climate change
• Acquire valuable communication skills and participate in digital storytelling
Who Should Apply?
This semester at sea program is designed for non-science majors who are interested in addressing climate change. It allows students with a limited background in the sciences to explore climate-related issues. Open to all majors.
Program Description
Finding solutions to the problems brought about by climate change requires going beyond scientific data. We must also consider the possibilities found within social and political institutions, economic markets, cultural practices, and the creative forces of art, literature, and design. The humanities and social sciences have a vital role to play in building strategies for global climate resilience and adaptation.
Woods Hole, Boston, and New Zealand are our sites for exploring the impacts of a changing climate on human lives. You’ll investigate climate related issues such as public health, environmental justice, clean energy, human displacement, national security, and ecological design.
This new semester at sea includes shore components in both Woods Hole and in New Zealand, as well as a sailing research voyage in the South Pacific. Aboard the ship, you’ll meet with stakeholders responding to local climate impacts and gain a perspective of climate change that links oceanic and terrestrial processes. The semester concludes with a New Zealand-based symposium featuring student presentations of research and digital storytelling projects.
Academic Coursework & Credit
SEA Semester: Climate & Society offers 18 transferable credits from Boston University upon successful completion of the program.
Course Descriptions
Climate, Society and the Humanities (300-level, 4 cr.)
Course description & syllabus coming soon!
Leadership in a Dynamic Environment (300-level, 3 credits) Prereq: Admission to SEA Semester. Sophomore standing or consent of instructor.
Be an effective leader while leveraging the individual strengths of a team. Use leadership theory and case studies to understand how decisions affect outcomes. Participate as an active member of a ship’s crew, progressively assuming full leadership roles.
The Ocean & Global Change (300-level, 4 credits) Prereq: Admission to SEA Semester. Sophomore standing or consent of instructor.
Ocean ecosystem change in the anthropocene: warming, acidification, fisheries depletion, and pollution. Review principles of circulation, seawater chemistry, nutrient dynamics, and biological production to understand causes and consequences of change. Conduct field measurements for contribution to time-series datasets.
Your Choice of Research Course Options: Advanced Research Topics (400-level, 4 cr.)
Course description & syllabus coming soon!
