This highly interactive course exposes students to the concepts, tools and processes of strategic planning from a climate change policy perspective. It will explore how to set strategic objectives and action plans in order to realize climate change adaptation and/or mitigation goals, especially in a Northern setting. This course teaches tools and tactics to formulate, plan, execute and measure the success of a strategy. It will provide students with a framework to be able to develop climate change policies that

a. simultaneously address adaptation and mitigation measures, and
b. are capable of protecting the environmental and social integrity of communities and regions, and fostering ecologically sustainable economic development.

The course will explore the means to ensure that strategy development addresses real (verified, validated, most pressing) issues and leads toward effective solutions. Under a climate change policy umbrella, tools utilized include scenario building and mapping climate change effects to specific sectors, issues and geographies; risk assessment; and benefit-cost analysis. Indigenous people’s engagement, consultation and consent play a crucial role in the process, and will be addressed at the same time as public participation in general. Finally, this course will address limits to adaptation, maladaptation, climate economics and governance. Students will review case studies and apply critical thinking and problem solving skills.

Prerequisites: Students must be eligible to register in the Climate Change Policy Certificate or obtain permission from the School of Liberal Arts to register in this course.