Climate Change Education Across the Curricula, Across the Globe

Climate Change Education Across the Curricula

Tag: Literature

Audio: Climate Change Literature

Posted by on in Humanities

An audio podcast titled ‘Climate Change and Literature: Reading Change’ that features Dr. Jemma Deer, Harvard University Center for the Environment. The podcast discusses the role of literature to understand and deal with climate change. The podcast discusses how analysing literature can allow for various interpretations and perceptions of climate change and the anthropocene. The podcast further discusses how literature allows for physical traces of society to be tracked and linked to climate change and nature, hence can potentially influence solutions.  

Students will learn about the role of literature in understanding climate change and human society. They will also learn about the influence of literature on perceptions of climate change. Students will further learn about how understanding the anthropocene can influence climate change policy and solutions.   

Use this tool to help your students find answers to: 

  1. How does literature help understand climate change?
  2. What is the anthropocene?
  3. How can interpretations of literature influence how society responds to climate change?

About the tool

Tool NameClimate Change and Literature: Reading Change
DisciplineHumanities, English 
Topic(s) in DisciplineLiterature,  Anthropocene
Climate Topic Climate and Society
Type of tool Audio (28 mins)
Grade LevelUndergraduate
LocationGlobal 
LanguageEnglish 
Translation
Developed byAlice Evatt, Henry Tann
Hosted atThe Oxford Research Center in Humanities, University of Oxford 
Linkhttps://podcasts.ox.ac.uk/climate-change-and-literature-reading-change
AccessOnline
Computer SkillsBasic 

Reading: A Climate Fiction (Cli-Fi) Syllabus

Posted by on in Humanities

An article published by Yale Climate Connections on resources for teaching climate fiction. The article features Elizabeth Rush, a climate fiction educator at Brown University, who discusses the ways in which climate fiction can create a relationship between humans, their environment and technology. The article provides educators a list of climate fiction novels and short stories. Cli-Fi resources reviewed in the article include ‘The Tamarisk Hunter’ by Paolo Bacigalupi, ‘Gold, Fame, Citrus’ by Claire Vaye Watkins, ‘Monstro’ by Junot Díaz, ‘New York 2140’ by Kim Stanley Robinson, and ‘10:04’ by Ben Lerner.

Through the Cli-Fi books listed, students will learn about climate change and the importance of Cli-Fi. 

Use this tool and the resources listed therein to help your students find answers to: 

  1. How does climate fiction link society, climate change and technology?
  2. How can cli-fi provide solutions to mitigate climate change?

About the Tool 

Tool NameWhat’s on your climate fiction syllabus?
DisciplineHumanities
Topic(s) in DisciplineClimate Fiction, Cli-Fi, Literature 
Climate Topic Climate and Society
Type of tool Reading
Grade LevelHigh School, Undergraduate 
LocationGlobal
LanguageEnglish 
Translation
Developed byYale Climate Connections with Elizabeth Rush, Brown University 
Hosted atYale Climate Connections
Linkhttps://yaleclimateconnections.org/2018/04/whats-on-your-climate-fiction-syllabus/
AccessOnline
Computer SkillsBasic

Audio: Climate Change Poems read by Celebrities

Posted by on in Humanities

An audio resource that contains 21 poems on climate change. Compiled by UK poet laureate, Carol Ann Duffy, the resource provides audio files on themes of climate change by renowned poets, narrated by celebrities. The resource includes the following poems read by different celebrities:

  1. James Franco reads ‘Causeway’ by Matthew Hollis
  2. Jeremy Irons reads ‘Storm’ by Michael Longley 
  3. Ruth Wilson reads ‘Vertigo’ by Alice Oswald 
  4. Gabriel Byrne reads ‘Zoological Positivism Blues’ by Paul Muldoon 
  5. Michael Sheen reads ‘Scratching for Metaphor in the Somerset Coalfields’ by Sean Borodale
  6. Kelly Macdonald reads ‘Extinction’ by Jackie Kay 
  7. Maxine Peake reads ‘A Mancunian Taxi-driver Foresees His Death’ by Michael Symmons Roberts 
  8. Tamsin Greig reads ‘Last Snowman’ by Simon Armitage
  9. Iain Glen reads ‘Nostalgia’ by Don Paterson
  10. Iwan Rheon reads ‘Cantre’r Gwaelod*’ by Gillian Clarke 
  11. James Franco reads ‘Still like with Sea Pinks and High Tide’ by Maura Dooley
  12. Jeremy Irons reads ‘Turbines in January’ by Colette Bryce
  13. Ruth Wilson reads ‘Silent Sea’ by Rachael Boast
  14. Gabriel Byrne reads ‘The Solace of Artemis’ by Paula Meehan
  15. Michael Sheen reads ‘The Rhinoceros’ by Robert Minhinnick 
  16. Kelly Macdonald reads ‘X’ by Imtiaz Dharkar
  17. Maxine Peake reads ‘Doggerland’ by Jo Bell  
  18. Tamsin Greig reads ‘A Language of Change’ by David Sergeant
  19. Iain Glen reads ‘California Dreaming’ by Lachlan McKinnon
  20. Gabriel Byrne reads ‘Late Sentinels’ by Peter Fallon 
  21. James Franco reads ‘I was Born into a World’ by James Franco 

Both audio mp3 and text versions of the poems are available on the website

Students will learn about climate change through the use of poetry. They will also understand the techniques involved in writing and analysing poetry.  

Use this tool to help your students find answers to: 

  1. How is climate change portrayed in modern poetry?
  2. How do you analyse a poem? 

About the Tool 

Tool Name‘Our melting, shifting liquid world’: celebrities read poems on climate change
DisciplineHumanities
Topic(s) in DisciplinePoetry, Literature 
Climate Topic Climate and Society
Type of tool Reading, Audio
Grade LevelHigh school, Undergraduate
LocationGlobal
LanguageEnglish 
Translation
Developed byCarol Ann Duffy
Hosted atThe Guardian
LinkAudio Link
AccessOnline/Offline
Computer SkillsBasic

Video/Micro Lecture: Amitav Ghosh on History and Climate Change

Posted by on in Humanities

A video lecture by Amitav Ghosh, author of ‘The Great Derangement: Fiction, History, and Politics in the Age of Global Warming’ as part of a 4 part lecture series delivered at the University of Chicago’s Randy L. & Melvin R. Berlin Family Lectures. In this video lecture, Ghosh discusses the link between history and climate change. The video also discusses impacts of climate change on historical narratives of capitalism and imperialism in Asia. 

Students will understand the role of climate change in shaping history. They will further understand how global warming has contributed to shaping societies in the Asian continent.   

Use this tool to help your students find answers to: 

  1. Discuss the link between climate change and history. 
  2. Discuss how climate change influenced the history of South Asia.

About the Tool 

Tool NameThe Great Derangement: Literature, History, and Politics in the Age of Global Warming
DisciplineHumanities
Topic(s) in DisciplineHistory, Political History, Imperialism, Colonialism,  Non-fiction, Literature, Climate Fiction
Climate Topic Climate and Society
Type of tool Video/ Micro Lecture (1 hr 13 mins)
Grade LevelUndergraduate, Graduate 
LocationGlobal
LanguageEnglish 
Translation
Developed byAmitav Ghosh at the Berlin Family Lectures, The University of Chicago 
Hosted atYouTube
Linkhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LlKJ0r_2__Y&list=PLWEhymgNyZb8tuULW2lwe9AD5F8fOPKIV&index=20 
AccessOnline
Computer SkillsBasic

Reading: Climate Change in Literary Fiction

Posted by on in Humanities

An article by Amitav Ghosh, author of ‘The Great Derangement: Climate Change and the Unthinkable’ in The Guardian that discusses the lack of climate change in fictional writing. The author discusses the evolution of the narrative in novels and why fiction writers have been resistant to include the topic of climate change in their work. He further discusses why novelists tend to address the topic of climate change through non-fiction since fiction derived from climate change deviates from trends of ‘gradualism’ in contemporary narratives and yet does not belong to ‘surrealism’ and ‘magic realism’ due to its nature of being ‘real’.

Students will learn about the genre of Climate Fiction (Cli-Fi) and how it differs from science fiction (Sci-Fi) . They will also learn about the evolution of narratives surrounding environmental phenomena in contemporary works of literature. Students will understand challenges that contemporary authors face when trying to write about ‘real’ topics like climate change.   

Use this tool to help your students find answers to:

  1. What is Climate Fiction (Cli-Fi)?
  2. Discuss why climate change has not caught the collective imagination of writers.
  3. How do history, culture and politics influence works of literature?

About the tool

Tool NameAmitav Ghosh: where is the fiction about climate change?
DisciplineHumanities
Topic(s) in DisciplineLiterature, Fiction, Climate Fiction, Cli-Fi, Non-fiction, Writing, Literary Analysis, Narrative
Climate Topic Climate and Society
Type of tool Reading 
Grade LevelUndergraduate, Graduate
LocationGlobal
LanguageEnglish 
Translation
Developed byAmitav Ghosh
Hosted atThe Guardian
Linkhttps://www.theguardian.com/books/2016/oct/28/amitav-ghosh-where-is-the-fiction-about-climate-change-
AccessOnline
Computer SkillsBasic 

Reading: Can Cli-Fi Save The Planet?

Posted by on in Humanities

A short article by Dan Bloom in The Medium about potential ways in which climate fiction (Cli-Fi) is now helping students engage with climate change and can provide potential solutions to the crisis. In this short article, Bloom, who is thought to have coined the term ‘Cli-Fi’ discusses the increase in climate fiction in the fields of education, writing, and media across the world. 

Students will learn about Cli-Fi, and how it is helping with youth engagement in the current climate crisis. Students will further understand the importance of popular media in youth involvement for the climate movement.

Use this tool to help your students find answers to: 

  1. How can Cli-Fi impact the climate movement?
  2. Why is it important to include Cli-Fi in today’s classrooms?

About the Tool 

Tool NameCan “Cli-Fi” Help Keep Our Planet Livable?
DisciplineHumanities
Topic(s) in DisciplineClimate Fiction, Cli-Fi, Literature, Education  
Climate Topic Climate and Society
Type of tool Reading
Grade LevelHigh School, Undergraduate 
LocationGlobal
LanguageEnglish 
Translation
Developed byDan Bloom
Hosted atThe Medium
LinkGo To Link
AccessOnline
Computer SkillsBasic

Video/Micro Lecture: What is Cli-Fi?

Posted by on in Humanities

A video micro lecture by Stephanie LeMenager, Radcliffe Institute, Harvard University, that discusses the genre of climate fiction (Cli-Fi). The video introduces this new genre of writing and includes definitions by contemporary artists, authors and filmmakers. This video further highlights new sub-genres such as ‘anthropocene fiction’ and ‘solar punk’ that have their origins in Cli-Fi.

Students will learn about the new genre of climate fiction in literature. They will also learn how authors, artists, and filmmakers portray the current global crisis and their challenges. 

Use this tool to help your students find answers to: 

  1. What is climate fiction (Cli-Fi)? 
  2. How can Cli-Fi inform and provide solutions to help mitigate climate change?

About the Tool 

Tool NameWhat is Cli-Fi?
DisciplineHumanities
Topic(s) in DisciplineClimate Fiction, Cli-Fi, Literature, Anthropocene Fiction, Solar Punk
Climate Topic Climate and the Anthroposphere; Climate and Society
Type of tool Video/ Micro Lecture (2 mins 30 secs)
Grade LevelUndergraduate, Graduate 
LocationGlobal
LanguageEnglish 
Translation
Developed byStephanie LeMenager, Radcliffe Institute, Harvard University
Hosted atYouTube
Linkhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P9XuxHtfOxQ
AccessOnline
Computer SkillsBasic

Video/Micro Lecture: Amitav Ghosh on Literary Fiction

Posted by on in Humanities

Video lectures by Amitav Ghosh, author of ‘The Great Derangement: Fiction, History, and Politics in the Age of Global Warming’ as part of a 4 part lecture series delivered at the University of Chicago’s Randy L. & Melvin R. Berlin Family Lectures. In this set of two video lectures, Ghosh discusses the impact of global warming and climate change on fiction. He discusses climate narratives in literary fiction and the lack of climate change narratives in contemporary literature. 

Students will understand the importance of climate change narratives in literary fiction. They will also understand the influence of climate change on everyday narratives. 

Use this tool to help your students find answers to: 

  1. Discuss climate narratives in literary fiction.
  2. Why has the climate crisis been underrepresented in literary fiction?

About the Tool 

Tool NameThe Great Derangement: Literature, History, and Politics in the Age of Global Warming
DisciplineHumanities
Topic(s) in DisciplineLiterature, Fiction, Climate Fiction, Cli-Fi, Contemporary Literature, Literary Analysis, 
Climate Topic Climate and Society
Type of tool Two Video Lectures (1 hr 15 min & 1 hr 17 min)
Grade LevelUndergraduate, Graduate 
LocationGlobal
LanguageEnglish 
Translation
Developed byAmitav Ghosh at the Berlin Family Lectures, The University of Chicago
Hosted atYouTube
LinkVideo Lecture 1: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZW8n6RAAxTg&t=2408s
Video Lecture 2: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SvvilBabbog 
AccessOnline
Computer SkillsBasic

Video/Micro Lecture: Amitav Ghosh on the Politics of Climate Change

Posted by on in Humanities

A video lecture by Amitav Ghosh, author of ‘The Great Derangement: Fiction, History, and Politics in the Age of Global Warming’ as part of a 4 part lecture series delivered at the University of Chicago’s Randy L. & Melvin R. Berlin Family Lectures. In this video lecture, Ghosh discusses the politics of climate change. 

Students will understand the importance of political narratives in climate change writing. They will also learn about the parallel evolution of political narratives and rise in carbon emissions. Students will further understand why novelists often find it difficult to integrate politics and climate change in their writing. 

Use this tool to help your students find answers to: 

  1. Discuss the politics of climate change.
  2. Why is it important to discuss the evolution of political narratives and climate change?
  3. How do political movements influence literature?

About the Tool 

Tool NameThe Great Derangement: Literature, History, and Politics in the Age of Global Warming
DisciplineHumanities
Topic(s) in DisciplinePolitics, Climate Politics, Literature, Fiction
Climate Topic Climate and Society
Type of tool Video/ Micro Lecture (1 hr 15 min)
Grade LevelUndergraduate, Graduate 
LocationGlobal
LanguageEnglish 
Translation
Developed byAmitav Ghosh at the Berlin Family Lectures, The University of Chicago 
Hosted atYouTube
Linkhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KNoSxNTPFHU&t=8s
AccessOnline
Computer SkillsBasic

Video/Micro Lecture: ‘The Great Derangement’: A conversation

Posted by on in Humanities

A short discussion led by Dr. Maya Dodd, FLAME University, India on Amitav Ghosh’s book, ‘The Great Derangement: Climate Change and the Unthinkable’, that summarizes key points of Ghosh’s work.This video includes discussions on topics such as

  1. Why is climate change ‘unimaginable’ or ‘unthinkable’?
  2. Why does the missing narrative of climate change require the unmasking of ‘unbelievable choices’ we have made in the past?
  3. How did the rift in narrative between the human and the non-human come about? 
  4. How has the association of nature and culture evolved historically?
  5. How does Western individualism as opposed to non-Western collective values affect climate action?
  6. Why is there a need for a more philosophical approach with the contextualization of history to deal with global climate change?

Students will learn about the complex narrative of climate change and the challenges it poses to fiction. They will also learn about how non-fiction caters to a specific demographic and, therefore, the need to include climate change in fictional works to reach a wider audience. Students will also learn about the importance of using ‘realism’ as opposed to ‘surrealism’ as a way of communicating this global crisis. 

Use this tool to help your students find answers to: 

  1. Why have climate change topics been underrepresented in fiction writing?
  2. What does Amitav Ghosh mean by ‘The Great Derangement’?
  3. How does the evolution of historical narratives influence contemporary narratives on climate change?

About the Tool 

Tool NameA Conversation on Amitav Ghosh’s ‘The Great Derangement’
DisciplineHumanities
Topic(s) in DisciplineLiterature, Fiction, History, Contemporary Literature, Literary Analysis 
Climate Topic Climate and Society
Type of tool Video/ Micro Lecture (19 min 30 sec)
Grade LevelUndergraduate, Graduate 
LocationGlobal
LanguageEnglish 
Translation
Developed byDr Maya Dodd with Paloma Chandrachud, FLAME University, India. Produced for TROP ICSU by Science Media Centre, IISER Pune
Hosted atTROP ICSU platform
Linkhttps://drive.google.com/file/d/1zF2VIWoF5_yJs_zzw5XLc42TskGhImu8/view
AccessOnline/Offline
Computer SkillsBasic