Managing for a Changing Climate

Managing for a Changing Climate was developed as a free online course through the South Central CASC to provide participants with an integrative understanding of the components of the climate system including the range of natural climate variability and external drivers of climate change. Additionally, the course introduces participants to the impacts of a changing climate on multiple sectors such as the economy, policy, ecosystems, and indigenous populations. In 2018, we shifted from one long course into four shorter online courses that focused on specific themes. In 2023, we shorted the series to three courses: an introductory course and two deeper dive courses. All of the videos used in the course series are available on our  YouTube channel.   

The South Central CASC has reached over 2000 people across the world with this online course series since 2016, including undergraduate and graduate students, natural resource managers, tribal environmental professionals, and members of the general public. These numbers clearly show there is a need for online training options, especially for those in remote areas or who are unable to travel long distances. Our completion rates since transitioning to four short courses has consistently exceeded the median for most online courses ( Martin et. al., 2020 ).

In 2016, our course reached 622 individuals. In 2017, there were 203 registrants. This number has fluctuated each year, but in general we continue to see a need for this course to be offered yearly. The following StoryMap highlights our geographic reach of registrants starting in 2018 when we began collecting geographic information in the registration form.

In Fall 2018, the South Central CASC offered the Managing for a Changing Climate course as four short courses on the Janux platform: Intro to the Climate System; Climate Models and Assessments; Societal Impacts; and Physical Impacts.  

Among the course registrants were 27 members of tribal nations and residents of 31 different states.

In 2019, the South Central CASC offered the Managing for a Changing Climate course again as four distinct short courses and the courses were transferred over to the CANVAS platform. 

In the US, 39 states were represented by 224 registrants. In addition, we had 41 registrants that represented 18 different countries across the world.

2018: 31 States and 9 Countries | 2019: 39 States and 18 Countries

In Fall 2020, we once again offered two of our short courses: (1) Introduction to the Climate System and (2) Climate Models, Downscaling, and Assessments. In Spring 2021, we offered our remaining two courses: (1) Societal Impacts of Climate Change and (2) Physical Impacts of Climate Change & Adaptation Strategies. 

In the US, 48 states were represented by 933 registrants. In addition, we had 503 registrants that represented 78 different countries across the world.

In Fall 2021, we once again offered two of our short courses: (1) Introduction to the Climate System and (2) Climate Models, Downscaling, and Assessments. In Spring 2022, we offered our remaining two courses: (1) Climate Change & Society and (2) Climate Change Impact & Adaptation. 

In the US, 47 states were represented by 404 registrants. In addition, we had 109 registrants that represented 33 countries across the world.

In 2023, we updated our short courses series to reduce the number of courses from four to three. In Fall 2023, we offered two short courses, including (1) Brief Introduction to Climate Change and (2) Deeper Dive into Monitoring and Modeling Change. In the US, 43 states were represented by 317 registrants. In addition, we had 312 registrants that represented 52 countries across the world. 

In Spring 2024, we will offer two short courses: (1) Brief Introduction to Climate Change and (2) Deeper Dive into Climate Impacts and Adaptation. 

“I enjoyed the course a lot, and hope to complete more courses soon”

“great course! I hope more people take it”