The Petition

By Bruce C. Allen, Clyde Freeman Herreid

Abstract

The goal of this dilemma case study is to teach students about global climate change. The setting is a faculty meeting where the discussion has turned to a petition circulating in the scientific community against signing the Kyoto Treaty. Students read graphs and interpret data and consider the political, economic, and ethical issues surrounding the controversy. The case would be appropriate for use in a variety of courses, including biology, geology, chemistry, physics, meteorology, economics, political science, and ethics.

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Date Posted

09/06/2002

Overview

Objectives

Learn about global warming and its possible causes.
Understand how temperature and carbon dioxide changes can be estimated.
Understand what controls weather patterns.
Learn about geochemical cycles.
Practice reading graphs and interpret data.
Understand how humans may impact the earth’s environment.
Explore the ethics, politics, and economics of scientific issues.

Keywords

Global warming; greenhouse effect; greenhouse gases; climate change; weather; CO2, carbon dioxide; Kyoto Protocol

Subject Headings

Atmospheric Science

Biology (General)

Climatology / Meteorology

Earth Science

Geology

EDUCATIONAL LEVEL

High school, Undergraduate lower division

FORMAT

PDF

TOPICAL AREAS

Ethics, Policy issues, Social issues

LANGUAGE

English

TYPE/METHODS

Dilemma/Decision, Discussion

Teaching Notes & Answer Key

Teaching Notes

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Answer Key

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