Education and research are the foundations upon which the world-class reputation of the UW Program on Climate Change is built

Since its beginnings in 2001, the UW Program on Climate Change has fostered integrated courses with the goal of exploring a holistic and dynamic understanding of climate, supporting intense collaborations among faculty and graduate students, and fostering an undergraduate climate minor. Building on a strong foundation in research and graduate education, the PCC also connects scientists to the public through a climate outreach program.

The Graduate Certificate in Climate Science

In order to recognize formally the climate science training that graduate students gain from PCC courses and activities, training that can support career exploration, the PCC offers a Graduate Certificate in Climate Science (GCeCS). This certificate, approved by the graduate school in 2007, combines the integrated courses, specifically designed to address the cross-linkages in the earth system that disciplinary curricula are not able to do, with a capstone project in Communicating Climate Science.

The Undergraduate Climate Science Minor

The Climate Science Minor provides an opportunity for students from all disciplines to gain a rigorous interdisciplinary understanding of the climate system. We encourage students in their second year at UW to define a pathway for meeting the requirements for this minor.

Self-Directed Undergraduate Climate Education

The Self-Directed Undergraduate Climate Education page houses interdisciplinary climate education pathways for students who may not be able to pursue a full climate focused major or minor. This resource is designed to guide students towards climate education in connection with their interests to complement or diversify their major. There are 5 upper-division course listing groupings, each with a different theme.

Quarterly Course Listings

We maintain an active platform of Quarterly Climate Courses to assist students in finding and planning their education. This page features both graduate and undergraduate courses with new additions each year. Past course offerings are also archived so students can explore and project when and by who the courses are offered.

Climate Outreach

A network of experts connected through our Outreach Program is dedicated to providing a current understanding of climate and climate change to the public. For the last 6 years one focal point of this program has been to facilitate the learning of climate science, and the understanding of science and STEM pathways, to high school science teachers and their students.

Learn more about our outreach efforts:

• Speaker Requests (under development Dec 2024)
• Classroom Resources
• Professional Development Workshops for Science Teachers
  • 2016. “Current Climate for Science Teachers” A full day workshop at the University of Washington. Agenda.
  • 2015. Washington Science Teachers Association Annual Conference, Shoreline, WA. Bertram, M.A., Palevsky, H., Schoenemann, S. and Strauch, R. “Bringing Climate Change into your High School Science Classroom”. 1/2 day workshop
• Recent Presentations at National and Regional Science Conferences
  • 2015. Northwest Climate Conference, Coeur d’Alene, Idaho. Bertram, M.A., Esler, J. and Thompson, L. “Engaging Students in Climate Science with Place-Based Data and Models”. Poster Presentation.
  • 2014. Ocean Sciences Meeting, Honolulu, HI. Bertram, M.A., Thompson, L., Palevsky, H. and Flowers, N. Poster Presentation “Faculty, Graduate Students And High School Teachers Working Together For Ocean And Climate Change Education: What’s Data Got To Do With It?. http://www.sgmeet.com/osm2014/viewabstract.asp?AbstractID=16890

Made possible by:

• UW College of the Environment
• Donor Support through the Program on Climate Change Graduate Education Fund
• NASA Global Climate Change Education Grant (2011-2014) that laid the foundation for our current network of collaborating high school teachers.
• UW Collaborating Scientists and Broader Impacts Funding