GES 628 - Scientific Practice and Environmental Policy

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This course studies the relationship between science and environmental policy. Class examines the social process by which scientific consensus emerges and the ways in which environmental policy is affected by the practices of scientists. We will also explore how unsettled scientific disputes inform concrete policy making goals, and how the policy-making process, in turn, shapes scientific research. Intersections of science and policy that we will explore include: climate science and climate change policy; ecosystem science and conservation policy; and the role of citizen science and lay expertise in resolving policy disputes.