TERRESTRIAL PALEOCLIMATE - From Science

The ‘Terrestrial Paleoclimate-From Science to Justice' course teaches the close relation and inter-connections between paleoclimate processes, modern climate impacts and solution ideas, and the resulting climate justice challenge.

The course starts with an introduction of the inter-hemispheric patterns of climate changes on glacial-interglacial, millennial and centennial time-scales. We introduce the most prominent and robust climate archives - ice cores, speleothems, mountain glaciers, lake cores and pluvial lakes -, ranging from the polar regions to the tropics- and discuss the methods used to precisely date these records and the various techniques to extract the wealth of climatic information these archives contain.

We focus on the paleoclimate signals from the last glacial cycle, its termination and transition towards the current interglacial, the Holocene period, including the last millennium. This is a climate concept course and the overarching goal will be to highlight the striking harmony of inter-hemispheric climate changes over this period and the inter-connectivity of the various key-elements of the climate system in light of the profound relevance of these climate orchestrations to ongoing climate change. 

In the second module of this course, we will discuss the state of the climate crises in the paleo-context, together with ideas and visions toward transitions to a more sustainable future, and the fundamental aspects of Climate Justice within these considerations. The final group project brings together all these aspects.

The course consists of formal lectures and discussion groups to recite and digest the new material, solve small problems and understand the connection to current climate events, solutions and Climate Justice. 

Pre-requisites: any introductory level earth, environmental or climate course