Adaptation and Climate Change Costs
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Provided by: MIT Environmental Solutions Initiative|Published on: December 9, 2022
Lesson PlansScientist Reviewed
1112AP
Scientist Reviewed This resource has been reviewed by SubjectToClimate's climate scientists and verified for scientific accuracy and up-to-date information. Learn about our review process →
Synopsis
- This lesson introduces students to the financial costs already experienced because of climate change and highlights some ingenious solutions to help reduce the costs of investing in climate solutions.
- The lesson includes a teacher's guide, a podcast, three activities, data on the costs of extreme weather events, and case studies of adaptation projects.
Subjects: Economics, Engineering
Authors: MIT Environmental Solutions Initiative
Region: Global
Languages: English
Teaching Materials
Positives
- This lesson is a great way to integrate solutions thinking and introduce students to multisolving.
- The teacher's guide includes discussion questions, an answer key, and background information.
Additional Prerequisites
- Each activity can be used as a standalone, in sequence, or integrated with other curriculum needs.
- Although the information in the lesson is relevant everywhere, the data presented in the second activity focuses on the United States.
- Students should be comfortable reading graphs and charts and should know that climate change can increase the severity or frequency of extreme weather events before starting the lesson.
Differentiation
- Extra care should be given to students whose families have been affected by storms, floods, fires, or other extreme weather events.
- To make the final activity more relevant to students outside of the United States, students can be tasked with researching a case study in their country or region and answering the questions accordingly.
- This resource can also be used in math or statistics classes during lessons about analyzing and interpreting data and in English classes during lessons about communicating complex information.
- Use this online course as an extension to learn more about climate adaptation.
Scientist Notes
Teaching Tips
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Resource Type and Format
About the Partner Provider
MIT Environmental Solutions Initiative
Founded in 2014, the Environmental Solutions Initiative (ESI) is MIT’s institute-wide effort to mobilize the substantial scientific, engineering, policy, and design capacity of the MIT community to contribute to addressing climate change and other environmental challenges of global import. ESI pursues multidisciplinary research, education, events, and partnerships to help move society toward an environmentally and socially sustainable future. Based in Cambridge, Massachusetts on MIT’s main campus, ESI is powered by a lean staff working closely with students and faculty across the full spectrum of disciplines. Led by architecture professor John E. Fernandez, a leading scholar in the emerging field of urban metabolism, ESI is advised by students, faculty, alumni, and thought leaders from many sectors of society.
Scientist Reviewed
This resource has been reviewed by SubjectToClimate's climate scientists and verified for scientific accuracy and up-to-date information. Our review process ensures that every resource in our library reflects the current state of climate science.
Learn about our review process →
