CLIMATE LESSONS

A NEW INITIATIVE at Colorado State University in Fort Collins is integrating education about global climate change into the core curriculum required for all undergraduate students – including courses in math, writing, arts and humanities, social sciences, and history.

This fall, the initiative’s leaders additionally expect to begin offering a certificate program in climate change and society. An academic minor is also in development; it would build on the certificate and could be paired with any major field of study.

The CSU Climate Initiative launched in Summer 2023 with funding from the CSU Office of the President, an indication of the program’s priority for campus.

The initiative will help Colorado State keep pace with other universities nationwide in preparing students to tackle some of the most pressing challenges of the times, said Courtney Schultz, director of the CSU Climate Initiative and professor in the Department of Forest and Rangeland Stewardship.

“This is such a huge concern, and I think students are very eager to learn how they can find solutions. We want to be a leading land-grant institution in educating undergraduates on climate change,” Schultz said.

CSU is positioned for such a leadership role, she said, because faculty in many disciplines have expertise in climate science – making it natural to connect and elevate that knowledge in undergraduate course work. The initiative’s advisers include faculty from all eight colleges making up the university.

The initiative is in keeping with a long-running emphasis at CSU: The university has earned national recognition for sustainability in its operations and in multiple facets of research and student learning.

Photo at top: CSU Photography.