Every year there appears to be an increase in the number of MOOCs (Massive Open Online Courses) available on sustainability topics. These courses are available for free online and open to anyone with an interest in the topic, lasting between three and fourteen weeks and taking three to eight hours per week to complete. Below is a selection of such courses offered this Spring 2016, listed by topic, from PRME signatory and non-signatory schools. These courses focus on urban development and environmental issues.
Urban development
Technological, Social, and Sustainable Systems: Explore how social, technological, and sustainable systems are interacting to create the modern world, and how you can use that knowledge to create a better one. From Arizona State University – started January 11, 2016.
Sustainable Urban Development: Learn why cities are key in resolving global urbanization and sustainability challenges, and how you can engineer tomorrow’s cities today. From TU Delft and Wageningen University – started January 31, 2016.
Greening the Economy: Sustainable Cities: How can we shape urban development towards sustainable and prosperous futures? This course will explore sustainable cities as engines for greening the economy. Lund University – Starts February 22, 2016
Designing Cities: This course explores all the different aspects of a city, ideas that shape cities, how to make cities sustainable, and creating visionary cities. From University of Pennsylvania – starts February 22 2016
Advertising and Society: Examines the relation of advertising to society, culture, history, and the economy using contemporary theories about visual communications to analyse the complex levels of meaning in both print advertisements and television commercials. From Duke University – started February 1, 2016
Greening the Economy: Lessons from Scandinavia: Explores greening the economy on four levels – individual, business, city and national, including the relationships between these levels. From Lund University– started February 8, 2016
Environmental Issues
Environmental Management: Social-Ecological Systems: Explores how we, as humans, impact nature and the environment. From University of Leeds – started February 8, 2016-02-05
Introduction to Ecosystems: Gain an understanding of the natural world and how the web of life works with illustrations from around the world. From The Open University – starts February 22, 2016
Elements of Renewable Energy: Learn how sustainable energy from the Green elements – Earth, Air, Fire and Water – can replace fossil fuels and nuclear power. From The Open University – starts March 14, 2016
Climate Change Challenges and Solutions: Aims to explain the science of climate change, the risks it poses, and the solutions available to reduce those risks. From University of Exeter – started January 25, 2016
Environmental Humanities Remaking Nature: Explores how the new environmental humanities field is shaping our understanding of environmental issues. From UNSW Australia – started January 11, 2016
Climate Change: Find out how climate change will affect us, why we should care about it, and what solutions we can employ. From Macquarie University – starts February 15 2016
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