Germany's Top Climate Scientists Explain Climate Change

Due to start on 9 November 2015, the five-week interdisciplinary course is in German and is open to everyone. In early December, the international community will meet in Paris to negotiate the framework agreement for the protection of the global climate. Since climate change is one of our most pressing problems, it is hoped that those who undertake the course would be able to understand the concepts and implications of climate change, and its consequences for nature and society. Thus, being well-informed of the facts, they would be able to assess for themselves what is at stake at the Paris meeting, said Bettina Münch-Epple, Director of the Department of Environmental Education at WWF Germany. Marie-Luise Beck, Managing Director of the DKK said that the purpose was to bring the findings of climate science into the arenas of politics, the economy and the general public. The emphasis was on the young people as they would be more affected by the consequences; hence they would need to endorse and promote the changes in society. The list of 19 lecturers and their institutions reads like a Who's Who in German climate science. They include Mojib Latif from GEOMAR Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research Kiel, Jochem Marotzke from the Max Planck Institute for Meteorology in Hamburg, Michael Schulz from the Center for Marine Environmental Sciences, University of Bremen, Hermann Lotze-Campen of the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research and Anita Engels, a spokeswoman for Climate Research Cluster of at the University of Hamburg. In addition, Christiane Textor, head of the German IPCC Coordination Office in Bonn, and Paul Becker, vice president of the German Weather Service in Offenbach are among those who would contribute their insights within their areas of specialization. Acting as moderator is ZDF science journalist Dirk Steffens ("Terra X"). The project is funded by the Robert Bosch Stiftung, a foundation in Germany. Students would acquire a basic understanding of the climate system and its increasing interference; learn the causes and consequences of climate change and the options available to address them. In addition, they would obtain a systematic overview of what to do to limit climate change, and also adaptation strategies where climate change is no longer avoidable. The course is in the form of digital learning and is designed to encourage independent thinking, with animations and graphics, and includes short presentations, work orders, creative tasks and parallel thinking games. Every week, the participants can take on the "Challenge of the Week" that allows them to implement what they have learnt into practice. Information and program:  http://www.wwf.de/aktiv-werden/bildungsarbeit-lehrerservice/mooc-online-vorlesung/was-ist-ein-mooc/