Top Summer Courses in Sustainability Studies

This course introduces students to the role of finance in the transition to a sustainable, low-carbon economy. Mitigating and adapting to climate change while simultaneously realising the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) requires the deployment of large amounts of capital – capital which isn’t currently provided in sufficient amounts. Moreover, climate change poses a significant risk to economies and financial systems alike. At the same time, there are substantial opportunities in financing the green transformation and in aligning investments and finance with environmental, social and governance (ESG) criteria.

The course enables students to understand and apply key concepts in climate and sustainable finance, the role of climate and other environmental risks in creating potential financial risks in banking and capital markets, and the role of financial actors in driving a global transition and aligning capital markets with climate and sustainability goals.... [-]

This course aims to provide participants with both theoretical knowledge and practical tools to understand and meet the challenges that the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) pose for governments devising public policies and delivery strategies to achieve them.

Since their formulation in 2015, the SDGs have entered the policy discourse of many developing countries, affecting policy-making and implementation processes. Rather than discussing the SDGs and their implications for development, this course will focus directly on the political and administrative capacities needed to pursue SDGs successfully. Issues that will be covered include strengthening of governance and stakeholder engagement, strategic planning, improvement of policy analysis and decision-making capabilities, advancement of public financial management systems and accountability, and the role that management control, monitoring and evaluation have in pursuing the SDGs.... [-]

The University of St Andrews International Summer Programme offers students aged 16 to 18 the opportunity to experience lectures and tutorials taught in the Scottish academic tradition. During their time in St Andrews students will become familiar with a number of the same lecturers and tutors that they could potentially encounter while pursuing an undergraduate degree in an ancient institution ranked 1st in Scotland and 3rd in the UK (Guardian University Guide 2018, Times and Sunday Times University Guide 2017).

The Sustainable Development course will cover the basic ideas and debates associated with sustainable development as well as exploring and discussing a number of illustrative local and global sustainable development cases. By applying basic ideas to the case studies students will be given an insight into how sustainable development is fairing and how it could be improved in the future. The course benefits from contributions from the School of Geography and Sustainable Development as well as stakeholders representing local sustainable development initiatives. It is designed to be an interactive, engaging, and hands-on learning experience with content being delivered in the format of lectures underpinned by tutorials and field trips to relevant St Andrews and Fife destinations. The main objective of this course is to inspire students to think outside the conventional box of production and consumption when considering and exploring pathways towards a more sustainable future.... [-]

To register for a summer session course, complete and submit the Undergraduate Registration form, found on the Registrar's Office Forms page. Registration begins March 1.

France: Culture and Society in Medieval Burgundy

This program offers students first-hand experience of living at the place of SMC's origins in Burgundy – a 12th-century abbey – while studying medieval history and culture in its original context. Classes held every other day in Pontigny prepare students for site visits the next day to castles, churches, cathedrals, battlefields, abbeys, archeological excavations, towns and cities, museums and libraries. In this way reading, studying and exploring the material remains of this culture are integrated.... [-]

»ENVIRONMENTAL DESIGN STRATEGIES«

LEARN TO OPTIMIZE THE ENVIRONMENTAL PERFORMANCE OF BUILDINGS TO DESIGN SUSTAINABLE BUILDINGS FOR THE FUTURE

The building sector is responsible for a large proportion of the world’s consumption of energy and resources, and has a significant environmental impact. Sustainability is becoming increasingly important and architects and planners have a great influence on the environmental performance of a building from the very beginning of the planning process. In a short design phase of several months, they define the environmental impacts a building will have over the next fifty or one hundred years.

This course teaches how to optimize the environmental performance of building design using digital tools and design strategies. The theoretical background will be given in form of short input presentations by different experts. This mini-lectures include cycle-orientated design concepts, cradle to cradle, reuse, energy and resource efficiency, and life cycle assessment. In addition, various tool for environmental performance assessment will be introduced, e.g. eLCA, CAALA, Grasshopper plugins including ArchSim/Diva/Ladybug/Honeybee. These approaches and tools will be directly applied within this course for a small design project.... [-]

The art of emulating life: design across biological scales!

Workshop Dates: August 26-30, 2019

Faculty: Rebeca Mora & Monika Seyfried

At this point in our global ecological crisis, the survival of humanity will require a fundamental shift in our attitude toward nature: from finding out how we can dominate and manipulate nature to how we can learn from it. This course could be summed up as an awakening: reconnection with Nature of which we are part. Participants will know a tool of design, a scientific discipline, a creative method, a strategy for our survival and a movement with a distinctive character of sustainability. It will capture your imagination in a pragmatic and culturally transforming way. We will find sustainable and practical solutions to problems of daily life by emulating the countless recipes and strategies that nature has developed (bacteria, crustaceans, birds, plants, forests, etc.) in 3.8 billion years of evolution. This course involves an active search, a conscious foresight; it does not imply extracting from nature, it implies learning from it. Human beings are not simply observers of nature, as if we were looking at it from a bubble. We are 100% in nature. Therefore, ingenious and beautiful as well as the countless strategists on which this course is inspired, it is time to intensify the inventiveness and look for more practical applications and answers based on the sustainable, effective and even aesthetically attractive solutions that nature developed a long time ago. In general, designs, products,... [-]

As the natural ecology on which we depend shifts due to climate change, how do we adapt? How do we map and explore possible pathways for action in order to bridge the recent past, ongoing changes, and projected futures?

Workshop Dates: August 19-23, 2019

Faculty: Francesca Desmarais & Kelton Minor

Although carbon emissions continue to rise, global energy and consumption systems are in the midst of a transformation towards low carbon futures. But what happens in the meantime? How do we react to the climatic changes that we already see, changes which we expect to intensify in the coming decades: more frequent, intense weather events, prolonged droughts, rising sea levels, and more dangerous heatwaves? How do we address the indirect effects brought on by these changes, from changing disease vectors and shifting species habitats to human migration and relocation?... [-]

Join a small community of students interested in moving beyond “green” toward understanding what will be necessary to achieve a truly sustainable future. Learning and living together with a group of equally concerned and engaged people, you will explore how Smith College and our neighboring communities are practicing the ideals and principles of sustainability. We’ll talk about what is working, and what still needs to be done.