Graduate Research Course
Climate Change & Biodiversity
From radiative forcing to the sixth mass extinction — how rising temperatures, ocean acidification, and habitat loss reshape life on Earth, and what science tells us about solutions.
Key Equations of Climate & Biodiversity
Radiative Forcing
\( \Delta F = 5.35 \ln(C/C_0) \quad \text{(W/m}^2\text{)} \)
Climate Sensitivity
\( \Delta T = \lambda \cdot \Delta F, \quad \lambda = \frac{1}{\alpha - \sum f_i} \)
Species-Area Relationship
\( S = cA^z, \quad \Delta S/S \approx z \cdot \Delta A/A \)
Ocean pH Change
\( \text{pH} = -\log[\text{H}^+], \quad \Delta\text{pH} \approx -0.3 \text{ per doubling CO}_2 \)
Thermal Tolerance
\( P_{survival} = \exp\!\left(-\frac{(T - T_{opt})^2}{2\sigma_T^2}\right) \)
Phenological Mismatch
\( W = W_{max} \exp\!\left(-\frac{(\Delta t)^2}{2\sigma^2}\right) \)
About This Course
Earth’s climate has warmed by 1.1°C since pre-industrial times, and atmospheric CO₂ now exceeds 420 ppm — levels not seen in at least 800,000 years. This warming is not merely a physical phenomenon: it is reorganising the biosphere. Species are shifting poleward at 17 km per decade, coral reefs face bleaching thresholds within 1.5°C of warming, and extinction rates now run 100–1,000 times above background levels.
This course unifies climate physics and biodiversity science through quantitative models: radiative forcing equations, species-area power laws, thermal tolerance curves, phenological mismatch functions, and extinction-debt dynamics. Each module pairs rigorous derivations with real-world case studies — from Arctic permafrost carbon feedbacks to tropical coral reef tipping points.
Cross-links to our Ecological Biochemistry and Climatology courses provide deeper dives into biogeochemical cycles and atmospheric dynamics respectively.
Nine Modules
M0
Climate Science Foundations
Greenhouse effect, radiative forcing, IPCC scenarios, the carbon cycle, and Earth's energy budget.
M1
Temperature & Ecosystems
Thermal tolerance curves, metabolic scaling with temperature, biome shifts, and treeline advance under warming.
M2
Ocean Chemistry & Life
Ocean acidification mechanisms, coral bleaching thresholds, deoxygenation dead zones, and fisheries collapse modeling.
M3
Cryosphere & Biodiversity
Arctic amplification feedbacks, permafrost thaw and carbon release, glacier retreat timelines, and polar species adaptation.
M4
Extreme Weather & Ecology
Drought-driven die-offs, wildfire regime shifts, hurricane intensification, and flood impacts on riparian ecosystems.
M5
Migration & Phenology
Climate-driven range shifts, phenological mismatch between species, migratory disruption, and invasive species expansion.
M6
Extinction Dynamics
The sixth mass extinction, extinction debt and time lags, ecological tipping points, and IUCN Red List projection models.
M7
Adaptation & Evolution
Evolutionary rescue under rapid warming, phenotypic plasticity limits, assisted migration ethics, and genetic adaptation rates.
M8
Conservation Solutions
Protected area networks, the 30x30 target, nature-based climate solutions, rewilding programs, and carbon market mechanisms.
Recommended Textbooks
- [1] IPCC (2021). Climate Change 2021: The Physical Science Basis (AR6 WGI). Cambridge University Press.
- [2] Thomas, C.D. (2017). Inheritors of the Earth: How Nature Is Thriving in an Age of Extinction. Allen Lane.
- [3] Hannah, L. (2022). Climate Change Biology, 3rd ed. Academic Press.
- [4] Parmesan, C. (2006). Ecological and evolutionary responses to recent climate change. Annual Review of Ecology, Evolution, and Systematics, 37, 637–669.