Overview
Climate change is now widely recognised as one of the biggest challenges facing the world. Its effects are already severe in Australia as well as in many other parts of the world. This unit will present you with in-depth knowledge of the issues related to climate change, with a focus on assessing risks of climate change and approaches to deal with the impacts. You will be introduced to the nature of climate change as well as to interdisciplinary approaches and integrative perspectives to problems of anthropogenic climate change. These include response strategies and programs to avert, mitigate, and adapt to climate change.
Details
Pre-requisites or Co-requisites
Prerequisite: Minimum 18 credit points
Important note: Students enrolled in a subsequent unit who failed their pre-requisite unit, should drop the subsequent unit before the census date or within 10 working days of Fail grade notification. Students who do not drop the unit in this timeframe cannot later drop the unit without academic and financial liability. See details in the Assessment Policy and Procedure (Higher Education Coursework).
Offerings For Term 2 - 2023
Attendance Requirements
All on-campus students are expected to attend scheduled classes - in some units, these classes are identified as a mandatory (pass/fail) component and attendance is compulsory. International students, on a student visa, must maintain a full time study load and meet both attendance and academic progress requirements in each study period (satisfactory attendance for International students is defined as maintaining at least an 80% attendance record).
Recommended Student Time Commitment
Each 6-credit Undergraduate unit at CQUniversity requires an overall time commitment of an average of 12.5 hours of study per week, making a total of 150 hours for the unit.
Class Timetable
Assessment Overview
Assessment Grading
This is a graded unit: your overall grade will be calculated from the marks or grades for each assessment task, based on the relative weightings shown in the table above. You must obtain an overall mark for the unit of at least 50%, or an overall grade of 'pass' in order to pass the unit. If any 'pass/fail' tasks are shown in the table above they must also be completed successfully ('pass' grade). You must also meet any minimum mark requirements specified for a particular assessment task, as detailed in the 'assessment task' section (note that in some instances, the minimum mark for a task may be greater than 50%). Consult the University's Grades and Results Policy for more details of interim results and final grades.
All University policies are available on the CQUniversity Policy site.
You may wish to view these policies:
- Grades and Results Policy
- Assessment Policy and Procedure (Higher Education Coursework)
- Review of Grade Procedure
- Student Academic Integrity Policy and Procedure
- Monitoring Academic Progress (MAP) Policy and Procedure - Domestic Students
- Monitoring Academic Progress (MAP) Policy and Procedure - International Students
- Student Refund and Credit Balance Policy and Procedure
- Student Feedback - Compliments and Complaints Policy and Procedure
- Information and Communications Technology Acceptable Use Policy and Procedure
This list is not an exhaustive list of all University policies. The full list of University policies are available on the CQUniversity Policy site.
Feedback, Recommendations and Responses
Every unit is reviewed for enhancement each year. At the most recent review, the following staff and student feedback items were identified and recommendations were made.
Feedback from Unit Coordinator self assessment
New learning materials and assessment items
A new unit has been approved by curriculum committee, which is to replace this unit in 2024. It is recommended that some revisions for the new unit will be incorporated into this existing unit for its final offering in 2023. It will keep the good features of the unit while the learning materials are going to update and assessment items are redesigned accordingly.
- Interpret the scientific concepts underpinning climate change and identify anthropogenic climate change
- Critically analyse the short-term and long-term effects of climate change on societies and ecosystems
- Apply interdisciplinary approaches to assess climate change risk and formulate strategies for climate change mitigation and adaption.
n/a
Alignment of Assessment Tasks to Learning Outcomes
| Assessment Tasks | Learning Outcomes | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | |
| 1 - Report - 50% | |||
| 2 - Written Assessment - 50% | |||
Alignment of Graduate Attributes to Learning Outcomes
| Graduate Attributes | Learning Outcomes | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | |
| 1 - Communication | |||
| 2 - Problem Solving | |||
| 3 - Critical Thinking | |||
| 4 - Information Literacy | |||
| 5 - Team Work | |||
| 6 - Information Technology Competence | |||
| 7 - Cross Cultural Competence | |||
| 8 - Ethical practice | |||
| 9 - Social Innovation | |||
| 10 - Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Cultures | |||
Textbooks
There are no required textbooks.
IT Resources
- CQUniversity Student Email
- Internet
- Unit Website (Moodle)
All submissions for this unit must use the referencing style: Harvard (author-date)
For further information, see the Assessment Tasks.
j.wu@cqu.edu.au
Module/Topic
Global atmospheric systems and climates
Chapter
There is no textbook for this unit. Weekly learning materials will be made available on the unit's Moodle site.
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Climate change: What and how?
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Climate change: The drivers
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Australian climate and climate change
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Impacts of climate change
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Systems modelling
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Climate change risks & risk management frameworks
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Capability and capacity assessment
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Systems modelling of strategies and programs
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Case studies (1): Impacts of climate change on Australian biodiversity
FileChapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Case studies (2): Impacts of climate change on public health and services in Australia
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Identifying opportunities
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
1 Report
The assessment task is to investigate the potential climate changes and their impact on a chosen topic in Australia. Students are required to select a specific topic, such as a community, region, organisation, industry, species, or ecosystem, and write a report evaluating the potential impacts of climate change on the chosen topic. This involves the collection of climate change data and the application of system modelling techniques and risk assessment framework to analyse impacts of climate change. The report should have a minimum length of 2,500 words.
Detailed instructions is provided in the Moodle site of the unit.
Week 8 Friday (8 Sept 2023) 11:45 pm AEST
Online submission
Week 10 Friday (22 Sept 2023)
The reports will be marked and returned in two weeks or as soon as practicable after submission.
Your report will be assessed based on the overall quality of your research and the effectiveness of your written communication. The assessment criteria include:
- Demonstrated understanding of climate change and its impacts on the selected study topic.
- Appropriate application of the systems model of impacts and the risk assessment framework in analysing the topic.
- Quality of written expression and presentation.
Detailed assessment criteria is available on the unit's Moodle site.
- Interpret the scientific concepts underpinning climate change and identify anthropogenic climate change
- Critically analyse the short-term and long-term effects of climate change on societies and ecosystems
2 Written Assessment
This assessment requires students to build upon the findings of Assignment 1 and write a 3,000-word research paper. The focus of the paper is to outline and discuss a plan or strategy for mitigating and managing the impacts of climate change on the chosen topic. This involves discussing strategies for climate change mitigation and adaptation, as well as assessing the capability and capacity of the topic or responsible agencies to cope with these impacts.
Detailed instructions and resources for writing the research paper will be provided on the unit's Moodle site.
Week 12 Friday (6 Oct 2023) 11:45 pm AEST
Exam Week Friday (20 Oct 2023)
Assessments will be marked and returned in the end of the term.
Your paper will be assessed based on the overall quality of your research and the effectiveness of your written communication. The assessment criteria include:
- Demonstrated understanding of the feasibility of managing climate change impact
- Quality of discussion on climate change mitigation, adaptation, and management
- Appropriate application of required methodologies
- Quality of written expression and presentation
Detailed marking guide for the research paper will be provided on the unit's Moodle site.
- Interpret the scientific concepts underpinning climate change and identify anthropogenic climate change
- Apply interdisciplinary approaches to assess climate change risk and formulate strategies for climate change mitigation and adaption.
As a CQUniversity student you are expected to act honestly in all aspects of your academic work.
Any assessable work undertaken or submitted for review or assessment must be your own work. Assessable work is any type of work you do to meet the assessment requirements in the unit, including draft work submitted for review and feedback and final work to be assessed.
When you use the ideas, words or data of others in your assessment, you must thoroughly and clearly acknowledge the source of this information by using the correct referencing style for your unit. Using others’ work without proper acknowledgement may be considered a form of intellectual dishonesty.
Participating honestly, respectfully, responsibly, and fairly in your university study ensures the CQUniversity qualification you earn will be valued as a true indication of your individual academic achievement and will continue to receive the respect and recognition it deserves.
As a student, you are responsible for reading and following CQUniversity’s policies, including the Student Academic Integrity Policy and Procedure. This policy sets out CQUniversity’s expectations of you to act with integrity, examples of academic integrity breaches to avoid, the processes used to address alleged breaches of academic integrity, and potential penalties.
What is a breach of academic integrity?
A breach of academic integrity includes but is not limited to plagiarism, self-plagiarism, collusion, cheating, contract cheating, and academic misconduct. The Student Academic Integrity Policy and Procedure defines what these terms mean and gives examples.
Why is academic integrity important?
A breach of academic integrity may result in one or more penalties, including suspension or even expulsion from the University. It can also have negative implications for student visas and future enrolment at CQUniversity or elsewhere. Students who engage in contract cheating also risk being blackmailed by contract cheating services.
Where can I get assistance?
For academic advice and guidance, the Academic Learning Centre (ALC) can support you in becoming confident in completing assessments with integrity and of high standard.
What can you do to act with integrity?
