University of California (UC) San Diego has introduced a mandatory program for all new students, regardless of major: “Climate Change Education.”
The graduation requirement, officially named the Jane Teranes Climate Change Education Requirement (JTCCER) after a Scripps Institution of Oceanography professor who died in July 2022, was implemented this fall, the school announced in a press release.
The initiative was “designed to ensure that undergraduates across all majors on campus are equipped to understand and address climate change,” the university said.
Over 7,000 first-year students will need to complete a one-quarter course from a list approved by the UC San Diego Academic Senate in order to graduate.
“The program was thoughtfully designed to ensure that approved climate courses align with general education and major-specific requirements, allowing students to meet the mandate without increasing their overall workload,” school officials said, noting that transfer students are exempt but “welcome and encouraged to enroll in one of the approved courses.”
The list of more than 40 approved courses that can fulfill the requirement includes “Gender and Climate Justice,” “Indigenous Approaches to Climate Change,” “California Politics,” and simply, “Water.”
While the Scripps Institution of Oceanography offers many of the JTCCER courses, others are being offered by arts, political science, and gender studies professors.
“UC San Diego has a long history of leadership in climate research and education, and the Jane Teranes Climate Change Education Requirement marks a new path forward,” Chancellor Pradeep K. Khosla said in the press release. “Whether undergraduates are majoring in STEM, the humanities, arts, social sciences or any other field, this requirement will equip them with a strong understanding of climate change and how they can contribute to meaningful solutions.”
The idea for the climate change courses was introduced in 2022, with Muir College Provost Wayne Yang saying that UC San Diego administration drew inspiration from the school’s Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) requirement implemented in 2011, which mandates that all undergraduates pass at least one approved DEI class.
“We took the best learnings from the DEI requirement — which Jane [Teranes] was also involved with — ensuring that the requirement does not add additional time to degree for students,” said Yang. “The climate requirement incentivizes and encourages faculty to integrate climate change education into their upper division courses, and thus deepens the curriculum by focusing on what students can actually do about climate change from their disciplines. Importantly, it treats climate change as an interdisciplinary issue.”
Teranes was among those finalizing the proposal when she suddenly fell ill and passed away, leading to the program being named after her.
“Jane had been an integral part of both getting the idea on the table and then co-chairing the workgroup, so we quickly reached a consensus to name the requirement in her honor,” said Scripps professor Sarah Gille. “She had a deep understanding of how to teach climate to students, and her absence leaves a significant void. This new requirement is just one way of paying tribute to her lasting impact on campus.”
“We set up the new requirement with the best intentions to make sure that UC San Diego produces graduates who are ready to meet the challenges of a changing climate, regardless of their field of study,” Gille added. “We need everyone engaged in this work, and we hope the JTCCER program will inspire others to follow suit.”
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