Sustainability and Resilience at the School of Public Policy & Urban Affairs
In line with our commitment to prepare leaders who address complex problems, serve communities, and build a just, sustainable, and resilient world, the School of Public Policy of Urban Affairs offers an array of programs and concentrations surrounding sustainability and resilience.
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PhD in Public Policy: Sustainability and Resilience Concentration
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Master of Public Policy: Sustainability and Climate Change Policy Concentration
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MS in Environmental Science and Policy
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MS in Urban Informatics: Climate and Resilience Concentration
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Graduate Certificate in Sustainability and Climate Change Policy
Resources by Topic: Recordings, Slide Presentations, and Helpful Links
- January 8 MKOC Live-stream Recording
- Helpful Links
- Scientific Resources
- GlobalChange.gov: Provides background information on the basics of climate change and access to a number of reports
- Center for Climate and Energy Solutions: Includes a policy hub, reports library, and background information on climate change
- Science.gov: Utilize the public access tab
- The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine – Lines of Evidence Videos
- The Discovery of Global Warming: Some of the information is dated, but chronologies of events are helpful see the table of contents at the bottom of the front page
- International Resources
- IPCC Reports
- World Bank Climate Change Knowledge Portal: Provides data and regional and selected country reports
- National Resources
- News Articles
- Fighting Climate Crisis Denial in Class, The Varsity
- Scientific Resources
- January 29 MKOC Live-stream Recording
- Speaker Presentations
- Liz Allen, Global Resilience Institute, Presentation
- Becca Berkey, Director of Service-Learning, Center of Community Service, Presentation
- Julie Rawson and Jack Kittredge, Many Hands Organic Farm, Presentation
- Helpful Links
- United States
- Climate Change Global Food Security and the U.S. Food System Report: Prepared in 2015 as part of the United States National Climate Assessment and part of the President’s Climate Action Plan (PCAP)
- EPA’s Agriculture and Climate resources covers related environmental topics such as food waste and recycling and pesticides
- Global
- Climate Change and Food Systems: The Organisation for Economic Co-Operation and Development provides links to open-access reports and the policy implications of climate change on food production in agriculture and fisheries.
- Climate Change and Food Systems: Global Assessments and Implications for Food Security and Trade: Report by the Food Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO)
- Climate Change and Food Security: A Framework Document, Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO)
- Starting from the About Us page, The CGIAR Research Program on Climate Change, Agriculture and Food Security (CCAFS) is an international collaboration of research centers and programs to address the issues of climate change, agriculture and food security. The webpage links to research publications, maps, updates and opinion pieces
- European Research Area (ERA)’s Food Security, Agriculture & Climate Change resources include planning and research documents for the 20+ countries in the group, as well as a link to more resources at The Joint Programming Initiative on Agriculture, Food security & Climate Change (FACCE-JPI.
- Marine Life/Oceans
- Marine Stewardship Council: Covers the impact of climate change on fishing
- NOAA Fisheries Report on New England’s groundfish in a changing climate, along with link to fisheries climate action plan
- News Articles
- You want to reduce the carbon footprint of your food? Focus on what you eat, not whether your food is local, Our World in Data
- Real Food Media’s Toolkit on Tackling Climate Change Through Food
- Pesticides, Heat, and the People Who Feed Us: Climate Change is Making Farmworkers’ Dangerous Job Even Worse, Union of Concerned Scientists
- Food waste starts long before food gets to your plate, Yale Climate Connections
- United States
- January 22 MKOC Live-stream Recording
- Speaker Presentations
- Stephen Flynn, Founding Director, Global Resilience Institute, Slide Presentation
- David Sittenfield, Manager, Forms & National Collaborations, Museum of Science, Slide Presentation
- Atyia Martin, CEO and Founder, All Aces Inc., Slide Presentation
- Helpful Links
- Wicked Hot Boston Website, Museum of Science
- Wicked Hot Boston Summary of Study Activities
- Mapping Boston Hot Spots, Block By Block, WBUR
- Street Trees Could Help Boston Adapt to Climate Change. If They Can Survive, That Is, WBUR
- All Aces, Inc. Website
- Climate Resilience Portal, Center for Climate and Energy Solutions
- Indigenous Environmental Network: Indigenous Just Transition Framework
- Book Recommendation: Braiding Sweetgrass
- February 5 Live-stream Recording
- Speaker Presentations
- Daniel Faber, Director of Northeastern Environmental Justice Research Collaborative, Presentation
- Nina Schlegel, Executive Director, Global Center for Climate Justice, Presentation
- Helpful Links
- United Nations
- United Nations Sustainable Development Goals Home Page and Climate Justice page
- UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs Working Paper on Climate Change and Social Inequality
- United States
- Environmental and Climate Justice, NAACP
- Environmental Justice, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
- News Articles
- ‘Hit First and Worst’: Region’s Communities of Color Brace for Climate Impacts, WBUR
- Environmental Justice Was a Climate Forum Theme. Here’s Why., The New York Times
- The toxic legacy of old oil wells: California’s multibillion-dollar problem, The Los Angeles Times
- Guest Column: Republicans should dissociate from Trump’s industrial strategy, Wicked Local Cambridge
- Websites
- Green America, has the mission to harness economic power, from the strength of consumers, investors, businesses, and the marketplace—to create a socially just and environmentally sustainable society.
- Dr. Robert Bullard, Father of Environmental Justice, web page
- United Nations
- February 19 MKOC Live-stream Recording
- Speaker Presentations
- Laura Kuhl, Assistant Professor, Public Policy and International Affairs, Northeastern University, Presentation
- Erin Coughlan, Manager, Climate Science, Red Cross/Red Crescent Climate Centre, Presentation
- Shan Mohammed, Clinical Professor, Center for Health Policy and Law, Department of Health Sciences, Presentation
- Ava Gallo, Undergraduate Student, Environmental Studies and International Affairs, Northeastern University; Keyon Rostamnezhad, Undergraduate Student, International Affairs and Economics, Northeastern University, Presentation
- Helpful Links
- United Nations
- COP25: Key outcomes agreed at the UN climate talks in Madrid, Carbon Brief
- The United Nations Climate Change webpage answers the question What is the Paris Agreement?
- U.N. 17 Sustainable Development Goals including specifically SDG 13: “Take urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts.”
- International Nonprofits
- Red Cross Red Crescent and the Climate Centre—the Climate Centre supports Red Cross Red Crescent to reduce the effects of climate change and extreme weather events on vulnerable populations
- Center for Global Development works to reduce global poverty and improve lives through innovative economic research that drives better policy and practice by the world’s top decision makers. The website includes their work with Climate Finance.
- United States
- Global Forest Atlas and Climate Change is published by the Yale School of Forestry and Environmental Studies
- USAID and Global Climate Change is one of the webpages from the U.S. Agency for International Development. Their goal and programs are developed “to help countries achieve self-reliance while pursuing clean economic growth and resilient development
- Journalism
- SciDev.Net is international in scope; its mission is to bring science and development together through news and analysis
- United Nations
- January 15 MKOC Live-stream Recording
- Speaker Presentations
- Alice Brown, Boston Harbor Now, Slide Presentation
- Helpful Links
- Scientific
- Surging Seas Risk Zone Finder: An interactive map that can be used to display a number of variables and points, including social vulnerability, ethnicity, income, and landmarks. This resource comes from Climate Central, a source for information on all aspects of climate change.
- Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution Climate and Ocean: Includes materials on coastal science and sea level rise
- Special Report on the Ocean and Cryosphere in a Changing Climate: Studies impacts on coastal areas, including low-lying islands and communities; the polar regions; marine ecosystems; and high mountains and other areas with abundant snow cover (Part of IPCC)
- Climate Change and Maritime Transport: From the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD). Links to a variety of reports, many covering the potential impacts of global warming on ocean transport.
- Stephenson Ocean Security Project: From the Center for Strategic & International Studies; explores the intersection of ocean health and global/national security
- The Ocean as a Solution to Climate Change: Commissioned by the High Level Panel for a Sustainable Ocean Economy
- State
- MVP Program for projects to prepare for climate change across the Commonwealth
- Office of Coastal Zone Management
- City
- Community Organizations
- Scientific
- February 26 MKOC Part 1 Live-stream Recording
- February 26 MKOC Part 2 Live-stream Recording
- Speaker Presentations
- Serena Parekh, Associate Professor of Philosophy, College of Social Sciences and Humanities, Northeastern University, Presentation
- Daniel Faber, Director of Northeastern Environmental Justice Research Collaborative, Presentation
- An Le, Policy and Communications Advisor, Department of Immigrant Advancement, City of Boston, Presentation
- Riddhi Samtani, Senior Associate, Huntington Angels Network, Presentation
- Helpful Links
- United Nations
- UNHCR Portal for Climate Change and Disaster Displacement
- United Nations University Institute for Environment and Human Security The publications section identifies working papers, policy papers, journal articles, and books; some materials are available online.
- International Organizations
- Climate and Migration Coalition
- Migration, Environment, and Climate Change Division (International Organization for Migration) – See especially the Environmental Migration Portal.
- Reports
- WMO Statement on the State of the Global Climate in 2018 From the World Meteorological Association. The second half of this report focuses on human impacts, including population displacement.
- Assessing the Impact of Climate Change on Migration and Conflict From the Social Development Department of the World Bank Group
- United Nations
- February 12 MKOC Live-stream Recording
- Speaker Presentations
- John Coley, Professor of Psychology, College of Science, Northeastern University, Presentation
- Pablo Suarez, Red Cross Climate Centre, Presentation
- Helpful Links
- Climate Change and Mental Health
- Climate Change Getting You Down? Here Are Some Coping Strategies, State of the Planet
- Jokes are a surprisingly effective way to talk about climate change, Changing America
- How climate change affects mental health, Yale Climate Connections
- The New Therapies for an Age of Climate Grief, City Lab
- Cartoon Resources
- Cartoon Collections, the world’s largest cartoon licensing website
- For Kids with Special Needs, Creating Comics Helps Communication, Brain & Life
- Creating comics with clients, Counseling Today
- Resources for Children
- Mad About Climate Denial: A cartoonist and a climate scientist teamed up on a new book, Popular Science
- Climate Kids, NASA, an interactive website presenting background information on climate change with comics, images and games
- Climate Change and Mental Health
Climate Action & Social Justice During COVID19: A Time for Transformation
Citizen Science & Stakeholder Engagement: Environmental Justice
Climate & Energy Justice
Viral Inequality & Urban Climate Justice: Reframing Urban Climate Action
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Jennie Stephens in the Boston Globe: How inequality makes climate change worse
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Joan Fitzgerald in the Wall Street Journal: Climate Change: The Technologies That Could Make All the Difference
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Jennie Stephens in Eco-Business: Is it time to take sun dimming tech seriously? Experts disagree.
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Jennie Stephens and Alaina Boyle in The Hill: When it comes to climate action in politics, Michelle Wu offers a way forward