Climate change is affecting communities across the world, with 2023 the hottest year on record globally. In Australia, we are experiencing changes in extreme weather, with more frequent and intense heatwaves, storms, flooding and bushfires.

Environmental regulators such as the New South Wales (NSW) Environment Protection Authority (EPA) are increasingly being called on to respond to the acute and chronic impacts of climate change, including clean-up and environmental recovery efforts in the aftermath of extreme weather and pollution events. 

This Climate Essentials short course is offered for NSW EPA staff and provides an overview of the latest climate science and social research around climate change. 

Delivered by the ANU Institute for Climate, Energy & Disaster Solutions (ICEDS), the course brings together leading researchers from across the University to discuss the science of climate change and policy-practice response options across a range of sectors.

Scope and program

The course covers six broad topics:

• Understanding climate change and extremes - Professor Mark Howden
• Climate change adaptation - Emeritus Professor Ian Noble
• Climate change mitigation and technologies - Prof. Valeska Ting
• Communicating climate change - Associate Professor Bec Colvin
• Mainstreaming disaster risk reduction across multiple sectors - Emeritus Professor Stephen Dovers
• Aboriginal science and knowledges on climate change - Brianna Gordon

The course provides a summary of the latest climate science, followed by an overview of climate change extremes, climate change adaptation and mitigation technologies, communicating climate change, mainstreaming disaster risk response, and Aboriginal science and knowledges on climate change.

The inaugural NSW EPA Climate Change Policy and Climate Change Action Plan 2023-2026 (the first for any Australian environment regulator), which sets the stage for how the EPA will evolve to further minimise and manage the impacts of climate change as NSW transitions to a prosperous, zero emissions economy and society, will be considered in the course.

This includes discussions on ways to embed climate change considerations explicitly into decision-making processes, support regulated sectors to implement plans to minimise emissions and exposure to climate risks, and learn from as well as meaningfully engage with Aboriginal people and young people on the EPA's climate change responses. 

Details

• The course is delivered online, in real time.
• Two topics are presented per day, with each session punctuated by a short break and group discussions.
• Participation is via Zoom video conferencing, allowing direct interaction and discussion between lecturers and course participants.
• Course timings between 9:30 am–1 pm each day.

Important information

• To register for this course or obtain more information, contact the NSW EPA Professional Learning & Development team via learning@epa.nsw.gov.au.
• Please note that this program is subject to change. Information about course logistics will be provided to participants 4 days before the course begins.
• To receive an ANU Certificate of Participation, participants must attend at least 50% of the course. The ANU Certificate of Participation is not an Australian Qualifications Framework qualification and cannot be used for course credit or exemption at ANU.
• To find out more about ICEDS short courses, contact Rachel England (Executive Education Manager) at icedscourses@anu.edu.au.

Registration privacy notice

By registering for this course, you are also subscribing to the ANU Institute for Climate, Energy & Disaster Solutions mailing list. You can unsubscribe at any time by clicking on the unsubscribe button at the bottom of correspondence. Find out more information in the course registration privacy notice.