GEO INFO SYSTEMS (GIS) FOR SUST SCIENCE

Many environmental and sustainability science issues have a spatial, location-based component. Increasingly available spatial data allow location-specific analysis and solutions to problems and understanding issues. As result, analyzing and identifying successful and sustainable solutions for these issues often requires the use of spatial analysis and tools. This course introduces common spatial data types and fundamental methods to organize, visualize and analyze those data using Geographic Information Systems (GIS). Through a combination of lectures and practical computer activities the students will learn and practice fundamental GIS and spatial analysis methods using typical sustainable science case studies and scenarios. A key objective of this course is to provide students with essential GIS skills that will aid them in their professional career and to offer an overview of current GIS applications. In the first part, the course will cover basic spatial data types and GIS concepts. The students will apply those techniques by analyzing potential impacts of storms on New York City as part of a guided case study. A mid-term report describing this case study and the results is required. In the second part, building on the basic concepts introduced in the first part, students will be asked to identify a sustainable science question of their choice that they would like to address as a final project. Together with the instructor they will be developing a strategy of analyzing and presenting related spatial data. While the students are working on their projects additional GIS method and spatial analysis concepts will be covered in class. At the end of the course Students will briefly present their final project and submit a paper describing their project. This course does not assume that students have had any previous experience with GIS.