Title of Course: ENVS 295, Circumpolar Climate Change
Submitted by: Kathleen Osgood
Contact info: kathleen.osgood@gmail.com; kosgood@uvm.edu
Background/explanation: Across the North, anthropogenic – or human-caused – change is happening at an accelerated rate.
The hole in the ozone layer, the waning of Arctic Sea ice, the disappearance of permafrost, the release of methane from peat bogs – not
only are these indicators of human-caused climate change, but they are also multipliers of that process. Writing-intensive and researchbased, this course considers the impacts of climate change from a human perspective, with a special emphasis on indigenous peoples in the
North, including sustainable human adaptations, community capacity for change, and regional cooperation.
As climate change unfolds globally, people and ecosystems are increasingly exposed to impacts and disturbances in weather, coastal
erosion, wildlife and vegetation patterns, and water and food availability. These climate change effects are unevenly distributed, first and
foremost affecting indigenous peoples, those living in ecologically-sensitive regions, and those who rely closely on the natural environment
for socio-cultural and subsistence practices. These unequal impacts from climate change affect social structures, economic resources,
political relationships, cultural practices, and individual and collective health and well-being.
Understanding this inequity in distribution and burden of effects, indigenous peoples and scholars have been increasingly framing
climate change as a human rights issue, arguing that failure to take global action on curtailing emissions is a violation of people’s
environmental, food and personal security. Viewing climate change within a human rights framework is a call for local and global
responsibility that encourages citizens to re-evaluate and find solutions to associated human and ecological injustice.
Climatis Borealis lays out the key impacts of anthropogenic change in the North, but then goes on to explore in details its effects
on local, regional and trans-national economies, cultures, and politics. As a whole, the class will read and view shared resources around
anthropogenic change in the circumpolar world. In transnational regional groups (more on this below), students prepare their own
individual research agendas to contribute to a final assessment of the state of the Arctic, and to propose solutions or policies.
Shared
READINGS
UNDERSTANDING THE PROBLEM
Regional
Groups
Individual Research
LOOKING FOR ANSWERS
Final Assessment
Everyone reads and views
background material and
keeps an ongoing dialogue
about shared knowledge.
Students also review current
materials as potential sources
of knowledge.
Regional groups serve as a
geographic basis for shared
research.
Each student selects a
research focus for the
region. Thus, each student
contributes to a larger
understanding of the region,
as well as providing
comparative research with
their regional counterpart.
Based on background knowledge and
regional research, each student
assesses the situation around
anthropogenic change in the
circumpolar world in the coming
decades, and proposes actions to
mitigate the change.
Please see the entire syllabus at the end of this SLO application.
§§§§§§§
SLO #1 (Knowledge): Students can have an informed conversation about the multiple dimensions and complexity of sustainability.
Level of exposure: Reinforcement and mastery
Description of SLO Activity
 Overall theme of circumpolar
climate change
 Required Readings in the
domains of culture, economies,
and politics Because the UVM
library orders many new materials
relative to the Arctic, there is an
extensive collection with an
emphasis on sustainability.
Implementation of SLO Activity
Everyone reads and views background material
and keeps an ongoing dialogue about shared
knowledge, resulting in curated discussions. By
reviewing recent releases and sharing them with
classmates, students describe and critique
contemporary work in the circumpolar world.
Each unit (culture, economies, and politics) also
results in an extensive research essay, which
provides the basis for the curated discussion.
Assessment of SLO Activity
While teacher input dominates at the
beginning of the semester, by the end of
the semester, students have mastered the
techniques of quality comments, critiques,
and engagement.
SLO #2 (Skills): Students can evaluate sustainability using an evidence-based disciplinary approach and integrate economic, ecological,
and social perspectives.
Level of exposure: Reinforcement
Description of SLO Activity
 Regional groups. Students are
organized into working teams for
Nunaat (The Inuit Lands from
Chukotka to Greenland);
Barentsia (from Iceland to the
Urals); and Siberia. Regional
groups serve as a geographic basis
for shared research. Because these
regions are remote and unfamiliar
and increasingly threatened by
climate change, there is a
particular urgency in student
engagement around sustainability.
Implementation of SLO Activity
Through blogs and WIKIS, working teams
assemble materials and resources for their
particular region and the challenges posed by
climate change.
Assessment of SLO Activity
All work receives a grade, in whatever
modality. Work that does not demonstrate
mastery of the course content or objectives
may be resubmitted. Because this is a
research-based, writing-intensive course,
students frequently work with the Writing
Center or with a reference librarian.
SLO #3 (Values): Students think critically about sustainability across a diversity of cultural values and across multiple scales of relevance
from local to global.
Level of exposure: Introduction and reinforcement
Description of SLO Activity
 Individual research. Each
student researches a
particular objective of the
Arctic Human Development
Report as it is manifested in
his/her region. Each student
selects a research focus for
the region. Thus, each
student contributes to a larger
understanding of the region,
as well as providing
comparative research with
their regional counterpart.
Implementation of SLO Activity
Substantive research essays for each unit
(economies, cultures, politics) are based on shared
readings and independent research around the
Arctic Yearbook themes.
Assessment of SLO Activity
Based on a comprehensive rubric for active
research, integrated writing, and critical
reasoning, students are encouraged to delve
deeper … or to seek writing or research
assistance. Students are able to improve their
work to a satisfactory level throughout the
semester.
SLO #4 (Personal): Students, as members of society, can recognize and assess how sustainability impacts their lives and how their actions
impact sustainability.
Level of exposure: Reinforcement and mastery
Description of SLO Activity
 Curated Discussion.
 Final Assessment. Based on
background knowledge and regional
research, each student assesses the
situation around anthropogenic change
in the circumpolar world in the coming
decades, and proposes actions to mitigate
the change. Because of the profound
impact of climate change in the
circumpolar world, each assessment
contributes to a larger understanding of
the multiplier effect of climate change,
both in terms of devastation and of
sustainability.
Implementation of SLO Activity
Students are required to consider an
outside audience for their work,
unfamiliar with the region or the
issues, to outline the issues around
climate change in their northern
region, and to suggest sustainable
solutions to mitigate those issues.
§§§§§§§
Assessment of SLO Activity
Final assessments must be timely in order to
benefit from curated discussion. By the end
of the semester, students are truly informed
about their regions, their issues, and the larger
problems of the circumpolar world.
CLIMATIS BOREALIS 2016
ENVS 295 Climate Impacts on Peoples of the Far North ONLINE
Kathleen Osgood, PhD (kosgood@uvm.edu)
Seeking D2 status because
of its circumpolarity and interdisciplinarity
Over Thin Ice, Sámi on migration near Lovozero, Kola Peninsula
by Yulian Konstantinov, Spring 2010
Course Description
Across the North, anthropogenic – or human-caused – change is happening at an accelerated rate. The hole in the ozone layer, the
waning of Arctic Sea ice, the disappearance of permafrost, the release of methane from peat bogs – not only are these indicators of humancaused climate change, but they are also multipliers of that process. Writing-intensive and research-based, this course considers the impacts
of climate change from a human perspective, with a special emphasis on indigenous peoples in the North, including sustainable human
adaptations, community capacity for change, and regional cooperation.
As climate change unfolds globally, people and ecosystems are increasingly exposed to impacts and disturbances in weather, coastal
erosion, wildlife and vegetation patterns, and water and food availability. These climate change effects are unevenly distributed, first and
foremost affecting indigenous peoples, those living in ecologically-sensitive regions, and those who rely closely on the natural environment
for socio-cultural and subsistence practices. These unequal impacts from climate change affect social structures, economic resources,
political relationships, cultural practices, and individual and collective health and well-being.
Understanding this inequity in distribution and burden of effects, indigenous peoples and scholars have been increasingly framing
climate change as a human rights issue, arguing that failure to take global action on curtailing emissions is a violation of people’s
environmental, food and personal security. Viewing climate change within a human rights framework is a call for local and global
responsibility that encourages citizens to re-evaluate and find solutions to associated human and ecological injustice.
Climatis Borealis lays out the key impacts of anthropogenic change in the North, but then goes on to explore in details its effects
on local, regional and trans-national economies, cultures, and politics. As a whole, the class will read and view shared resources around
anthropogenic change in the circumpolar world. In transnational regional groups (more on this below), students prepare their own
individual research agendas to contribute to a final assessment of the state of the Arctic, and to propose solutions or policies.
UNDERSTANDING THE PROBLEM
Shared
READINGS
Everyone reads and
views background
material and keeps an
ongoing dialogue about
shared knowledge.
Students also review
current materials as
potential sources of
knowledge.
Regional
Groups
Regional groups
serve as a
geographic basis
for shared research
Individual Research
Each student selects a
research focus for the
region. Thus, each
student contributes to
a larger understanding
of the region, as well
as providing
comparative research
with their regional
counterpart.
LOOKING FOR
ANSWERS
Final Assessment
Based on background
knowledge and regional
research, each student
assesses the situation
around anthropogenic
change in the circumpolar
world in the coming
decades, and proposes
actions to mitigate the
change.
Learning Objectives:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
to understand the scope and impact of climate change in the North
to research, describe and assess responses to climate change
to research and plan solutions to climate change in the North
to practice superior research skills with contemporary materials
to collaborate with research partners through research design and moderated discussion
to practice various genres of academic writing and strengthen writing protocols
Learning Strategies:
Online, Collaborative Seminar, Research-Based, Writing-Intensive
Climatis Borealis is offered online, and is a good companion to ENVS 297, A Circumpolar World, or any investigation of climate
change, of regional development, or of international cooperation. It is not a science-based course in the dynamics or mechanics of climate
change, but rather on the impacts of anthropogenic change on the circumpolar world, and on the economic, cultural, and political
responses to climate change in the North. As an upper/graduate-level course, it is also designed as a collaborative seminar, emphasizing
research, writing, and online discussion techniques, with full support at the starting gate for the tools necessary for success in the course.
Learning is expressed five different ways during the course from informal blogs to deeply researched collaborative integrative projects
(details below). Cap of 20 students.
Shared readings are from the University of the Arctic and the Arctic Council, written by some of the leading experts active in the
field. In many cases, the authors are available for questions or comments by students. After an introductory unit orienting students to the
Circumpolar North, we will investigate three aspects of northern responses to climate change: Economies, Cultures, Politics. In each of
these three units, students will comment on shared readings, critique potential resources, develop independent related research in their
regional specialization, write a topical essay (more on this below), and cultivate discussion with their peers. The culminating final
assessment gives students an opportunity to apply their learning with proposals for action in the coming decade. This syllabus gives you the
general scope and sequence of assignments, as well as the approach to the course. ANNOUNCEMENTS through Blackboard and class emails provide the main avenue of discussion with the professor.
Collaborative Groups
Students self-select online into regional research groups with eight to ten members apiece, responsible in each of the three units for
a 2,500-word research essay on a relevant topic; the word count excludes abstracts and annotated bibliographies. Groups are based on
existing trans-national regions with shared ecologies, but often widely divergent histories and contemporary realities. Graduate students or
students interested in leadership roles in their research consortia are invited to be group leaders, whose responsibilities will be developed in
consultation with me. Along with cultivating leadership and collaborative skills, group leaders might expect to get solid recommendations
for graduate school or internships. Graduate students may earn graduate credit by taking a lead role in formulating and promulgating the
research agenda for the regional teams. Alternatively, they may propose a project requiring appropriately substantive research and
presentation.
1
2
3
RESEARCH:
What is the extent and pace of climate change in your region? What are the major accelerators or multipliers of climate change in
your region?
How and to what degree does climate change impact your research focus? How and to what degree does your research focus
respond to climate change?
When we consider economies/cultures/politics, how and to what degree do they impact my research focus? And, vice versa?
4
And, ultimately, how does my research help to make the situation around circumpolar climate change understood?
Nunaat GROUP, the Inuit Regions The Inuit have one of the broadest distributions of any indigenous people on earth, even though
they call themselves by specific names in particular places. Their distribution is along the coasts from Chukotka to Greenland. For the
purposes of our group, Nunaat will include the both the tundra and the taiga regions of this region, as shown in the map below.
 BARENTSIA GROUP, The Barents Euro-Arctic Region, Europe’s largest region for interregional cooperation, includes the
northernmost parts of Sweden, Norway, Finland and Northwest Russia, as shown in the map below:
RESEARCH FOCUS Within the groups, each researcher will have a focus, based on the call for abstracts for the Arctic Yearbook 2014,
whose theme is "Human Capital in the North". This theme is meant to address strategies, policies and technical aspects, as well as
challenges, hindrances and difficulties, for building (human) capacity in the North/Arctic. Choose from the list below with an e-mail to
<kosgood@uvm.edu>, or develop a research focus in collaboration with me, again by e-mail:
1. post-secondary education and training, and workforce development
2. transport infrastructure, emergency preparedness and response
3. resource development, especially oil, gas, and minerals
4. military/national/international security infrastructure
5. traditional knowledge and meaningful local participation in resource development and research activities;
6. business and entrepreneurship; regional innovation and creative capital
7. Arctic ecosystems and environment
8. regional governance capacity; legal and political arrangements, and decision-making processes and technologies
9. food security, health and well-being
10. creative and spiritual responses to change in the North
Thus, each student belongs to a collaborative group striving to establish a collective understanding of the impacts of climate change
on its region. In addition, each student will have a research partner in the other region investigating the impacts of a shared issue.
Assessment
Weekly participation is expected online; RESEARCH forums will be open for a limited time only. However, since our seminar is
asynchronous (as opposed to synchronous classroom gatherings), there is otherwise quite a bit of flexibility within the semester. The final
project stands in lieu of a final exam. There are no extensions beyond the end of the semester.
BLOG: (5% extra credit for group leaders.) Intended to integrate group research. Required of graduate students. Open to all.
READINGS: (5% each, 20% total). Open discussion and comments, based on shared readings (about 150 pages per unit),
viewings, and concerns. Initial posting should be formal with citations, but comments and responses do not have to be formal. Students are
expected to comment substantively on at least TWO peer READINGS.
RESEARCH: (5% each, 15% total). Preparation for research, developing resources for the ESSAYS. Research question and
annotated sources. One per unit.
ESSAYS: Unit research reports (10% each, 30% total). Based on the plans of the research groups, each student will write three
2,500 word assessments of their research focus in their region. One per unit. Formal essay format following GUIDELINES for GOOD
WRITING AT UARCTIC. Students are expect to comment substantively on at least TWO peer ESSAYS, ideally one of which will be the
work of their regional peer.
REVIEW 10%. At least one review of current or topical books, films, or other media. 1,000 words. Formal review style.
FINAL ASSESSMENT, (5% for PREPARATION; 20% for final project). An in-depth research investigation into the impacts of
climate change in a particular region, including commentaries.
GRADES ARE CUMULATIVE! DISCUSSION IS CRITICAL!
Any time you post on time, you get a base grade for your work. If there are structural issues (documenting, resources, style,
substance), I will work with you individually to achieve the international academic standard expected in this course. Your reply to
comments will earn you from one to five further points, depending on the qualities of your response. When you comment substantively on
your regional peer, you earn one to three further points, again depending on the quality of the comment. Plus, your comment gives your
peer the chance to earn one to five points further in response. SO, by posting, commenting, and replying, you are practicing high-end
academic research discussion AND earning your full grade.
Final Assessment about Anthropogenic Change in the Circumpolar World
Your final project is intended to give you a formal opportunity to report your assessment of anthropogenic change in the circumpolar
world and to propose solutions within the coming decade. I will work closely with each student to design this final project, which may take
a variety of forms. The final project:





should demonstrate the depth and range of your individual research and your understanding of economic, cultural, and political
responses to anthropogenic change in the Arctic;
should directly integrate what you have learned about your topic, region, and circumpolar climate;
may be an individual or group project,
may take any form, including but not limited to an academic research paper, a Prezi, a collage or mashup, a poetic or artistic
project, a blog, etc.
must be accompanied by an abstract
COURSE OUTLINE
READ THIS SYLLABUS CAREFULLY & COMPLETELY!
Detailed assignments and reminders are on BLACKBOARD and in ANNOUNCEMENTS.
WEEK
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
*
8
SPRING 2015
INTRODUCTION: CIRCUMPOLAR REALITIES
Self-enroll in regional group. Establish research focus with prof. Group leaders and graduate
students initiate plans with prof. All students select materials for review from the list below.
Midnight Sunday January 11/12 PM Monday January 12
ALL CLASS MEETING JANUARY 21 11.45 -12.30 UVM LIBRARY
CLASSROOM
GROUP LEADER MEETING TBD
READINGS & DISCUSSION: Circumpolar Realities
Midnight Sunday January 18/12 PM Monday January 26
UNIT ONE. CIRCUMPOLAR ECONOMIES
READINGS AND DISCUSSION:
Circumpolar Economies and Climate Change
Midnight Sunday January 25 /12 PM Monday February 2
RESEARCH: Preliminary annotated bibliography, thesis and outline for
Economic Assessment of Region, based on research focus.
Midnight Sunday February 1/12 PM Monday February 9
ESSAY: ECONOMIC ASSESSMENT (2,500 words)
Midnight Sunday February 8 / 12 PM Monday February 16
MEDIA REVIEW. (1,000 words)
Midnight Sunday February 15 / 12 PM Monday February 23
UNIT TWO. CIRCUMPOLAR CULTURES
READINGS AND DISCUSSION:
Circumpolar Culture and Climate Change
Midnight Sunday February 22 / 12 AM Monday March 2
SPRING BREAK
Good time to catch up on comments and responses for further credit!
RESEARCH: Annotated bibliography, thesis and outline for Cultural Assessment
of Region, based on research focus.
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
Midnight Sunday March 8 / 12 PM Monday March 16
ESSAY: Cultural Assessment (2,500 words)
Midnight Sunday March 15 / 12 PM Monday March 23
UNIT THREE. CIRCUMPOLAR POLITICS
READINGS & DISCUSSION: Circumpolar Politics and Climate Change
Midnight Sunday March 22 / 12 PM Monday March 30
RESEARCH: Preliminary annotated bibliography, thesis and outline for Political
Assessment of Region, based on research focus.
Midnight Sunday March 29 / 12 PM Monday April 6
ESSAY: Political Assessment (2,500 words)
Midnight Sunday April 5 / 12 PM Monday April 13
Final week to catch up on comments on responses.
Midnight Sunday April 12 / 12 PM Monday April 20
FINAL: SYMPOSIUM: Post early for comments.
Midnight Sunday April 19 / 12 PM Monday May 4
Monday, May 4, Noon is FINAL DEADLINE for ALL work.
REVIEW MATERIALS for Climatis Borealis
There is so much coming out about climate change in the circumpolar world that it is pretty well impossible to read or view everything. By
reviewing one recent release from this list, you will help us get a better understanding of current research and responses to circumpolar
climate change. Choose one of these by e-mailing kosgood@uvm.edu
BOOKS
Anderson, Alun. 2009. After the Ice: Life, Death, and Geopolitics in the New Arctic. (GE160.A694 2009)
Gjertsen, Tor and Greg Halseth. 2014. Sustainable Development in the Circumpolar North: From Tana, Norway to Oktemtsy,
Yakutia, Russia. The Gargia Conferences for Local and Regional Development (2004-14).
Grant, Shelagh D. 2011. Polar Imperative: A History of Arctic Sovereignty in North America. Douglas & McIntyre. (G593 .G73 2011
)
Laruelle, Marlene. 2013. Russia's Arctic Strategies and the Future of the Far North. (DK501.2 .L37 2014 ) This source provides exceptional
analysis of the current situation in the Far North and uses Russia as a case study to go into further depth. The chapters each give a unique perspective on
how certain aspects of the region function politically, environmentally, and socially, and contrasts history with future predictions. Read this book strategically
by chapter, and plumb the references for further useful material. (Review by Freddie Hall, 2015)
McCannon, John. 2012. A History of the Arctic: Nature, Exploration, and Exploitation. (G606.M33 2012)
Nuttall, Mark. 2010. Pipeline Dreams: People, Environment, and the Arctic Energy Frontier. IWGIA. This source covers a great deal of
unbiased information that addresses the perspectives of various stakeholders on complicated issues consisting of many extensive layers. By quoting interviews
and dialogues conducted during his research, Nuttall keeps a rather political-heavy text, intriguing and thought provoking. Nuttall uncovers the history of
resource extraction in the Arctic (mainly Canada and Alaska, but a bit of northern Russia), the legacy of the compelling political figure Thomas Berger,
the massive and ever-complicated Mackenzie Gas Project, the Alaskan Highway Gas Pipeline, and how dialogue and communication between a wide
array of stakeholders will evolve in coming years. (Review by Joshua Blouin, 2015)
Zellen, Barry Scott. 2014. The Fast-Changing Arctic: Rethinking Arctic Security for a Warmer World.
http://uofcpress.com/books/97815523864600
Internet Resources
Annual Report on Inuit Culture and Society, 2011-13.
Arctic Yearbook 2014.
Aboriginal Food Security in Northern Canada: An Assessment of the State of Knowledge. Council of Canadian Academies. 2014.
Geopolitics in the High North.
Aksik: Native Voices from the Frontlines of Climate Change
FILMS
Climate Change Adaptation: Traditional Knowledge of Indigenous Peoples Inhabiting the Arctic and Far North. 2014.
UNESCO.
The Polar Sea: An Unprecedented Look at the Northwest Passage. 2014. The documentary Polar Sea 360 explores human interactions within
the Arctic waterways from the varied perspectives those that travel within the Arctic; that of the native, the scientist, the explorer, and the luxurious visitor. It is a
free series that hosts narratives from dozens of sources, expert or amateur, and acts as a medium for photographs, videos, and music alike. The real value of the
Polar Sea 360 lies in the readability of the work, as I found it very easy to relate to each storyteller. I feel that this was made possible due to the flexibility in media
type that was available. Each contributor was allowed to pick their favorite means of sharing their story, and that created an interesting and dynamic viewer
experience. (Review by Benjamin Kaufman, 2015)
"Tied to the Land" is a series of four brief films that illuminates the current state of climate change and food security in Northwest Alaska and how the
natives' day-to-day lives are being affected. The films are rich in anecdotal evidence and relay a plethora of traditional knowledge about the land. Several adaptation
methods and mitigation strategies are also illustrated to suggest that, despite the extent of global warming and changing ecosystems, the natives are using their
innovative ideas, knowledge and respect of the land, and strong communal bonds to survive. (Review by Jessica Dudley, 2015)
Sea Ice Outlook: Post-Season Report. 2014.