ID:
511815
Duration (hours):
24
CFU:
3
SSD:
GEOGRAFIA FISICA E GEOMORFOLOGIA
Year:
2025
Overview
Date/time interval
Primo Semestre (01/10/2025 - 10/01/2026)
Syllabus
Course Objectives
The course aims to provide students with interdisciplinary knowledge on the topic of climate change, focusing on the concept of “deep time” and based on a dialogue between the natural sciences and the humanities, such as history, culture, and the arts.
By the end of the course, students should have acquired the following knowledges and competences:
- Analyse and understand scientific sources related to climate change.
- Know how to communicate and provide scientific arguments on the topic of climate change.
- Interpret and read in an interdisciplinary way the links between climate change, its history, the history of science, and the arts.
- Explore new ways of cultural and scientific mediation of climate change.
- Be able to draft a project proposal for cultural and scientific mediation activities on climate change.
By the end of the course, students should have acquired the following knowledges and competences:
- Analyse and understand scientific sources related to climate change.
- Know how to communicate and provide scientific arguments on the topic of climate change.
- Interpret and read in an interdisciplinary way the links between climate change, its history, the history of science, and the arts.
- Explore new ways of cultural and scientific mediation of climate change.
- Be able to draft a project proposal for cultural and scientific mediation activities on climate change.
Course Prerequisites
Fundamentals in physical geography, with particular regards to basic climatology, hydrology, and geomorphology.
An adequate knowledge of the English language is required.
An adequate knowledge of the English language is required.
Teaching Methods
This course uses four different teaching methods:
1. Lectures, with images projections, in which students will be asked to actively participate by describing and interpreting them.
2. Flipped classroom sessions, in which texts provided in advance by the teacher will be analysed and discussed.
3. Laboratory teaching, individual, in pairs or in groups, focusing in particular on the cartographic material to be analysed and produced.
4. Debate among students, in which they will be asked to argue scientifically, for or against (regardless of their personal opinion), the issues raised by the teacher.
1. Lectures, with images projections, in which students will be asked to actively participate by describing and interpreting them.
2. Flipped classroom sessions, in which texts provided in advance by the teacher will be analysed and discussed.
3. Laboratory teaching, individual, in pairs or in groups, focusing in particular on the cartographic material to be analysed and produced.
4. Debate among students, in which they will be asked to argue scientifically, for or against (regardless of their personal opinion), the issues raised by the teacher.
Assessment Methods
Learning will be verified through two modalities of evaluation:
1. Drafting an idea of a project of scientific mediation activity, with a maximum length of 5’000 characters (spaces included), to be submitted by the end of the course.
2. Critical presentation of the project draft to the whole class, which will take place on the afternoon of the last day of the course.
Each of the two evaluation modalities will count for 50% of the finale note.
The use of generative artificial intelligence tools in NOT permitted, both for the drafting of the text and the preparation of the presentation.
The evaluation will take in account the ability to communicated and the use of appropriate scientific language.
1. Drafting an idea of a project of scientific mediation activity, with a maximum length of 5’000 characters (spaces included), to be submitted by the end of the course.
2. Critical presentation of the project draft to the whole class, which will take place on the afternoon of the last day of the course.
Each of the two evaluation modalities will count for 50% of the finale note.
The use of generative artificial intelligence tools in NOT permitted, both for the drafting of the text and the preparation of the presentation.
The evaluation will take in account the ability to communicated and the use of appropriate scientific language.
Texts
Bonetti G., con la collaborazione di Scapozza C. (2024). L’Uomo e il Clima. Vol. 1: Una storia. Lugano, Fondazione culture e musei, Antropunti 17, 118 pp. ISBN: 1280443049
Scapozza C. & Bonetti G. (a cura di) (2024). L’Uomo e il Clima. Vol. 2: Alcune chiavi di lettura per il futuro. Lugano, Fondazione culture e musei, Antropunti 18, 75 pp. ISBN: 1280443065
Keeling C. D. (1970). Is carbon dioxide from fossil fuel changing Man’s environment? Proceedings of the American Philosophical Society, vol. 114, pp. 10–17. https://www.jstor.org/stable/985720
Tierney J. E. et al. (2020). Past climates inform our future. Science, vol. 370, no. 6517, eaay3701. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.aay3701
The reference texts will be provided by the teacher on a case-by-case basis. Students will be required to research and share texts to support the development of scientific argumentations.
Scapozza C. & Bonetti G. (a cura di) (2024). L’Uomo e il Clima. Vol. 2: Alcune chiavi di lettura per il futuro. Lugano, Fondazione culture e musei, Antropunti 18, 75 pp. ISBN: 1280443065
Keeling C. D. (1970). Is carbon dioxide from fossil fuel changing Man’s environment? Proceedings of the American Philosophical Society, vol. 114, pp. 10–17. https://www.jstor.org/stable/985720
Tierney J. E. et al. (2020). Past climates inform our future. Science, vol. 370, no. 6517, eaay3701. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.aay3701
The reference texts will be provided by the teacher on a case-by-case basis. Students will be required to research and share texts to support the development of scientific argumentations.
Contents
This interdisciplinary course offers an interpretation of climate change that does not focus exclusively on direct observations but explores it through the lens of the concept of “deep time”. Examining the climatic past of the Earth is essential to understand the origin and evolution of humanity, its relationship with climatic discontinuities, and the path it will choose to follow within the climate of the future. Knowledge and critical analysis of history of climate and of science will enable the development of polythematic narrative tools for exploring the relationship between humanity and climate, in a fine interweaving of science, history and art tat aims to overcome disciplinary boundaries and contribute to a more effective cultural and scientific mediation of climate change.
Course Language
English
More information
Some course contents (texts, images, and maps) will be in French and German. These contents will be explained and translated by the teacher.
Degrees
Degrees (2)
GEOSCIENCES FOR SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT
Master’s Degree
2 years
GEOSCIENCES FOR SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT
Master’s Degree
2 years
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