The University of Connecticut is offering a new course this semester to address a very important subject.
"Climate Crisis: Take Action" is the third "pop-up class" being offered at UConn. A “pop-up class” is a course that the academic community pulls together quickly to address current concerns.
Uconn created an Anti-black racism course in the fall 2020 semester and a COVID-19 pop-up course in the spring of 2020.
"There was a lot of interest among our student body on the climate crisis,” said Mark Urban, Arden Professor of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology at the University of Connecticut. “Particularly as we get done with this crisis how do we meet this longer-term crisis of climate change."
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Unlike traditional courses, these classes are offered to undergraduate and graduate students as well as faculty and staff and are taught by more than two dozen UConn professors.
"We're able to reach a broader audience,” said Urban. “And recognize that we can't keep teaching standard courses in the standard way."
The eight-week online course covers everything from the science, politics, economics, communication, law and even art addressing climate change. It's something students are eager to learn more about.
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"Students recognize that this is one of their great challenges for themselves going forward,” Urban said. "There's been a great interest in understanding the problem but also how we can solve it."
“The University taking this step to kind of say 'we recognize that climate change is a crisis facing the world and we need to be a part of the solution is a really big step to kind of show people in Connecticut that it really matters,'” said UConn sophomore Maggie Singman.
The course has attracted more than 1,400 students, faculty, and staff members.
"It's one of the biggest courses that Uconn has ever offered," Urban said.
Singman, who is currently studying Environmental Science and Human Rights said the course was something she felt she needed to take.
“I just thought I had to take advantage of this opportunity because it’s a challenge that faces all of us and I think we all have to do our part to get educated about it,” Singman said.