Climate, Energy, Congress

3 Credits · Level: Graduate, Undergraduate

Climate, Clean Energy, and Congress: Translating Science to Policy is a seminar course dedicated to understanding how scientific data is translated for policymakers and how environmental policy decisions are made. This course combines training in policy, politics, and communications to better prepare students for a future in environmental advocacy and policy engagement. This course will draw from the Professor’s 20+ years working on environmental policymaking in the U.S. federal government, resulting in historically significant climate, clean air, and environmental protection programs; new clean energy tax incentives; a National Park, and other environment and sustainable energy federal policies. Much of this work was directly in the U.S. Senate Environment and Public Works Committee as well as in the OMB, or the Office of Management and Budget. These real-world scenarios will provide students with an on-the-ground perspective of how environmental policy is understood, negotiated, and made. Good policy depends on good data and informed policymakers, who are guided by experts capable of bridging the divide between science and policy. This course helps students begin to build that bridge, developing the communication skills necessary to effectively engage with policymakers and other stakeholders who rely on science to inform decisions. Using real-world environmental policy scenarios, students will examine how scientific data can help shape public policy and learn how to translate complex data into clear, actionable insights for policymakers. Students will also learn how to apply power-mapping, strategic foresight methods, and other strategies to better prepare e for the ever-changing communication needs for policy engagement. The course will require active engagement from the students, with heavy emphasis on class discussions, group exercises, presentations, and concise writing.