Spring 2026 - GEOG 104 D100
Climate Change, Water, and Society (3)
Class Number: 3829
Delivery Method: In Person
Overview
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Course Times + Location:
Jan 5 – Apr 10, 2026: Tue, 2:30–5:20 p.m.
Burnaby
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Instructor:
Audrey Pearson
audrey_pearson@sfu.ca
Office Hours: TBA -
Instructor:
Audrey Pearson
audreyp@sfu.ca
Description
CALENDAR DESCRIPTION:
An examination of climate change, its interaction with water availability, and how humans cope with these altered circumstances. Students who have completed GEOG 102 prior to the fall 2011 term may not complete this course for further credit. Breadth-Social Sci/Science.
COURSE DETAILS:
Course Details
This course examines the causes of climate change, considers the impacts on natural and human systems, and explores climate justice and options to mitigate and/or adapt to changing climatic conditions. We also discuss the governance of climate change and investigate why this issue is still a highly controversial topic in politics and the media, despite overwhelming scientific consensus that Earth’s climate system is warming.
COURSE-LEVEL EDUCATIONAL GOALS:
- Explain the complexity of the climate system and identify linkages between its components, including stocks, flows, and feedback processes
- Think critically about the science behind natural and human disruptions to the climate system, and the socio-economic drivers of anthropogenic climate change.
- Explore the impacts of climate change on natural and human systems
- Examine human responses to climate change, including adaptation, mitigation, climate justice, and governance.
- Differentiate between evidence-based claims and pseudo-science, and debunk common misconceptions about climate change.
- Practice diverse modes of communication of climate change causes, impacts, and solutions, demonstrating awareness of audience.
Grading
- • Learning check-ins 6%
- • Climate change conversations 9%
- • Knowledge applications 15%
- • Knowledge tests 26%
- • Poster project 20%
- • Final synthesis exercise 24%
Materials
RECOMMENDED READING:
Understanding Climate Change: Science, Policy, and Practice, Second Edition
Author: Sarah Burch and Sarah E. Harris
Publisher: University of Toronto Press
REQUIRED READING NOTES:
Your personalized Course Material list, including digital and physical textbooks, are available through the SFU Bookstore website by simply entering your Computing ID at: shop.sfu.ca/course-materials/my-personalized-course-materials.
Registrar Notes:
ACADEMIC INTEGRITY: YOUR WORK, YOUR SUCCESS
At SFU, you are expected to act honestly and responsibly in all your academic work. Cheating, plagiarism, or any other form of academic dishonesty harms your own learning, undermines the efforts of your classmates who pursue their studies honestly, and goes against the core values of the university.
To learn more about the academic disciplinary process and relevant academic supports, visit:
- SFU’s Academic Integrity Policy: S10-01 Policy
- SFU’s Academic Integrity website, which includes helpful videos and tips in plain language: Academic Integrity at SFU
RELIGIOUS ACCOMMODATION
Students with a faith background who may need accommodations during the term are encouraged to assess their needs as soon as possible and review the Multifaith religious accommodations website. The page outlines ways they begin working toward an accommodation and ensure solutions can be reached in a timely fashion.