Overview
(Weeks 1-2)
An assessment of climate impacts and risks should result in a nuanced understanding of the plausible futures that could unfold, the impacts and risks these could bring, an opportunity to enable risk prioritization, and/or build the capacities needed to advance climate adaptation. In this first unit of the course you will explore the context within which assessments of climate change are carried out. An assessment is fundamentally a tool to make meaning of the complexity of climate change impacts in a specific context or setting. Any tool is limited by its organizing principles and framing assumptions. To begin understanding tools for assessing climate impacts and risks, you will first explore the role of multiple, equally valid perspectives and worldviews, and in particular the importance of considering Indigenous perspectives, the imperative for participation and collaboration, and the need to define both audiences and process in inclusive and culturally sensitive ways.
Climate impacts, vulnerability and risk assessments have grown out of multiple, rich schools of inquiry and can either draw on, or exclude, critical and postcolonial academic traditions. In this course we don’t have time to explore the full breadth and depth of critical, postcolonial, Indigenous, feminist, and queer pedagogies and research methodologies, but we will highlight a light sampling. This unit will provide the foundation for critical thinking in future discussion of vulnerability, capacity and resilience.
An assessment is fundamentally about research and engagement, with the purpose of educating, informing and inspiring informed action based on evidence gathered intentionally. As such, assessment methods and processes can and should be tailored to fit the specific contexts in which they occur. Climate assessments can be developed, modified from, or integrated into many existing assessment methodologies that are publicly available online, each with its strengths and weaknesses. Whether these processes assess risk, vulnerability, resilience, community health, capacity, needs or gaps depends on the context in which they are used, the audience that is intended for the final output, and the decisions they seek to inform. In this unit you will find your own examples of climate-related assessments and reflect on the process and contexts in which they have been employed.
This unit will start the course by exploring Indigenous research methodologies and inviting students to find examples of different assessment processes online and to reflect on the differences in process and intended use of different assessment typologies. You are encouraged to evaluate critically the advantages, limitations, and blind spots and omissions of different assessment approaches.
Activities and Assessment Overview
- Read Unit 1 Readings. Be mindful of your own assumptions and potential biases as you read and digest. Take notes on your main insights as you read.
- Unit 1 Activity 1: Create a team agreement.
- Unit 1 Activity 2: Prepare your student blog.
- Contribute to the MACAL course community.
Unit 1 Activity 1: Complete readings for Unit 1
The readings in Unit 1 focus on understanding the foundations of knowledge, and the way that we each bring our unique set of experiences and identities to our research and work. This includes time spent learning about Indigenous knowledge systems, including their role in climate risk assessment processes.
Unit 1 Activity 1: Create a Team Charter
Working effectively in multidisciplinary, multi-sector teams is a core competency of climate action leadership. The work of establishing a high-functioning team is often rushed or skipped. Creating a team charter provides an opportunity for teams to discuss core concerns regarding how they will function, what roles each team member will take, how decisions will be made etc. Team charters make explicit your agreements, and provide a reference to return to when conflict arises, or when the process of working together gets bogged down or no longer feels safe for one or more members of the team.
For this activity, please review the RRU Teamworks resources you were introduced to during CALS 501: 1) Build Teams Right – Preparation; and 2) What to include in a Team Charter.
Then as a team work together to build your own charter. Remember, this charter is a living document and should be revisited regularly so that you as a team can decide whether it still works for you, whether you need to tweak/change it, and so that you can collectively remind yourselves of your team agreements. When the charter is completed it should be submitted to the appropriate drop box in Moodle.