An Evolving Introductory-Level Energy Course that Combines Geology, Physics, and Public Policy

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An Evolving Introductory-Level Energy Course that
Combines Geology, Physics, and Public Policy

• Tim Schroeder
• Bennington College

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History of the Course..

• 1st Iteration
• Eastern Connecticut State University,
  Environmental Earth Science 205, Energy and the
  Environment
• Developed by Fred Loxsom as the gateway into a
  Sustainable Energy Studies (SES) minor program
• I taught it later and added geology content,
  including
• Fossil fuel formation, extraction and impacts
• Importance of glacial geology and geochemical
  cycles to climate change

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• 1st Iteration
• Environmental Earth Sciences 205, Energy and the
  Environment
• Focus was dominantly on science of energy

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History of the Course..

• 1st Iteration
• How it fit into the curriculum
• Students from many majors took EES 205 to
  fulfill a gen-ed. requirement Several of these
  continued with the SES minor
• Several EES majors took the course and then added
  SES minor
• EES department is adding SES track to its major

Requirements for ECSUs Sustainable Energy
Studies Minor
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History of the Course..

• 2nd Iteration
• Eastern Connecticut State University, First Year
  Colloquium Energy in the 21st Century
• I adapted EES 205 content to meet goals of the
  First Year Colloquium course required of all 2nd
  term freshmen
• Class format changed to discussion-based (with
  some lectures)
• Content focused more on policy, less on science

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History of the Course..
2nd Iteration First Year Colloquium Energy in
the 21st Century
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History of the Course..

• Things that I learned in Iterations 1 and 2
• Students need to understand science of energy to
  meaningfully discuss energy policy
• Physics and geology are both required to
  understand energy science
• A full understanding of energy and climate
  problems (both scientific and policy) is required
  to properly address solutions
• This does not leave time in a semester to fully
  cover both problems and solutions

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The Current Course

• 3rd Iteration
• Bennington College
• Energy and the Environment What lies Ahead?
• Part of Benningtons new Environmental Studies
  Program
• Focus a mixture of science (done with lectures)
  and policy (done with discussion
• I base discussions on assigned readings with
  specific questions
• The course is now based largely on the problems
  This frustrates students

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The Current Course

• 3rd Iteration Energy and the Environment What
  lies Ahead?

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The Current Course

• 3rd Iteration Bennington College
• Energy and the Environment What lies Ahead?
• Course Goals
• Understand links between daily life in industrial
  society and energy/climate problems

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Understanding personal responsibility
A good exercise The ecological footprint quiz
that determines how many biologically productive
earths would be required to support your
lifestyle (if everyone lived as you did) What I
want to get across Its not just the oil
companys fault
Screen capture from www.myfootprint.org
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The Current Course

• 3rd Iteration Bennington College
• Energy and the Environment What lies Ahead?
• Course Goals
• Understand links between daily life in industrial
  society and energy/climate problems
• Understand that solutions will not be quick and
  easy rebuilding energy infrastructure will take
  a lot of time and money

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Understanding the full scope of the problems
One thing I do Watch the movie The End of
Suburbia, which presents a very apocalyptic view
of Peak Oil I want the students to stop saying
things like we should just or why dont we
just run all of our cars on biodiesel?
http//www.endofsuburbia.com/index.htm
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The Current Course

• 3rd Iteration Bennington College
• Energy and the Environment What lies Ahead?
• Course Goals
• Understand links between daily life in industrial
  society and energy/climate problems
• Understand that solutions will not be quick and
  easy rebuilding energy infrastructure will take
  a lot of time and money
• Understand what climate change is, why it is a
  problem, and that energy and climate are linked
  problems

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Understanding climate change
Things I do Web-based climate modeling
exercises http//www.sciencecourseware.com/eec/Gl
obalWarming/ This Future Climate Change applet
is a good exercise that allows users to analyze
prediction scenarios from the previous IPCC
report
Screen capture from sciencecourseware.com
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Understanding climate change
Things I do Web-based climate modeling
exercises The Java Climate Model http//choosecl
imate.org/jcm/jcm4/ Allows users to manipulate
climate model input and see effects
Screen capture from chooseclimate.org
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Understanding climate change
Things I do Discuss in depth how issues such as
per-capita carbon emissions and energy intensity
will influence international climate
agreements Do mock climate agreement negotiation
summit where students take the roles of various
nations
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The Current Course

• 3rd Iteration Bennington College
• Energy and the Environment What lies Ahead?
• Course Goals
• Understand links between daily life in industrial
  society and energy/climate problems
• Understand that solutions will not be quick and
  easy rebuilding energy infrastructure will take
  a lot of time and money
• Understand what climate change is, why it is a
  problem, and that energy and climate are linked
  problems
• Develop the view that the US should lead by
  example, and start now

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Develop a strategy for action
Things I do Exercise with the climate wedge
model Guide to activities available
at http//www.princeton.edu/cmi/resources/stabwe
dge.htm Ideas are also detailed in the Sept. 2006
issue of Scientific American
Image from the Sept. 2006 Scientific American, A
Plan to Keep Carbon in Check
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The Current Course

• 3rd Iteration Bennington College
• Energy and the Environment What lies Ahead?
• How does this Class Fit into Benningtons
  Curriculum?
• What Bennington Curriculum?
• No Departments
• No Majors
• Students each plan his/her own course of study
• Many of our students are budding activists most
  want to work with NGOs and non-profits
• This course allows students to actually
  understand the full nature and scope of the
  problems that they want to solve (or so I like to
  think)

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The Next Course
Because the course is now focused on the
problems, my students want a course on
solutions This fall Im teaching Climate and
Energy Solution Analysis

• Will be based on campus Greenhouse Gas Audit
  currently being performed
• Will be project based Each student will develop
  and analyze a project to address one part of the
  greenhouse gas audit
• Students will be required to do cost benefit
  analysis and life cycle cost analysis of their
  proposed ideas