Contemporary climate change

Presentation of causes, effects and manifestations of contemporary climate change as well as tasks, which help to protect the environment.

Lectures:

1. The development of the notions and definitions of climate.

2. Climate change and climate variability.

3. The past and present-day climate change.

4. Natural and human induced climate change.

5. Thermal manifestations of present-day climate change.

6. The changes of other meteorological elements, indicators and meteorological phenomena.

7. Climate extremes.

8. Projections of future climate change, IPCC reports, climate forecasts and climate change extrapolation, the modeling of climate.

9. The ecological effects of present-day climate change, the changes in hydrological processes, the cryosphere, sea level rise.

10.Climate change and its impact on water resources and water management.

11. The impact of climate change on agriculture.

12. The impact of climate change on settlement in coastal areas.

13. The social consequences of climate change.

14. The prevention of, and adaptation to climate change.

15. Climate policies.

Classes:

1. The Macro - processes and the processes taking place in the atmosphere, atmospheric processes and phenomena, the weather, meteorological elements, the relations and interdependencies among meteorological elements, the climate, climatic factors, the dependence of the values of elements of climate on climatic factors, climate indicators and basic statistical characteristics of the climate.

2. The homogeneity of observation stretches as a condition for the detection of climate change.

3. A selection of published materials and meteorological studies on the special diversity of the climate of: Poland, the Carpathian Mountains, the area near Cracow, or Cracow itself. A critical evaluation in the light of the climate change taking place.

4. Statistical measurements of the variability of selected meteorological elements. The classification of temperature and precipitation deviations from the norm, in the light of the climate change taking place.

5. The changes of air temperature observed in Poland and some of their consequences.

6. The values of selected thermal and precipitation indicators in the Polish part of the Carpathian Mountains depending on the altitude above sea level, the lie of the land, and slope exposure in the light of global warming.

7. Precipitation and the balance of water in various regions of Poland in the light of the climate change taking place.

8. The change, variability and agricultural effectiveness of precipitation in the light of global warming.

9. The possibilities of cultivating stenothermal plants, the possibilities of cultivating stenothermal plants.

10. The chances and sources of threats to recreation areas in the country in the light of both: the climate change taking place and the one expected.

11. The biometeorological conditions and global warming.

12. The modeling of thermal and pluviothermal regionalizations of the area of Poland in the light of the climate change taking place.

1. Cowie J. 2007. Climate Change. Biological and Human Aspects, Cambridge University Press.

2. Kożuchowski K. (red.). 1990. Materiały do poznania historii klimatu w okresie obserwacji instrumentalnych. Wydawnictwo Uniwersytetu Łódzkiego, Łódź.

3. Kundzewicz Z.W., Kowalczyk P. 2008. Zmiany klimatu i ich skutki. Wydawnictwo KURPISZ, Poznań.

4. Neelin J., D. 2011. Climate Change and Climate Modeling, Cambridge University Press.

5. Newell P., Paterson M. 2005. Climate Capitalism, Cambridge University Press.

6. Ziernicka-Wojtaszek A., Zawora T.: Thermal regions in light of contemporary climate change in Poland. Polish Journal of Environmental Studies, Vol. 20, No. 6 (2011), 1627-1632.

KNOWLEDGE – student knows and understands:

basic knowledge of the causes, manifestations and effects of present-day climate change.

interprets the effects of present-day climate change on global and local scales.

SKILLS – student is able to:

applies the statistical methods he or she is familiar with to describe climate change.

formulates recommendations for the practice of agricultural engineering with regard to the prevention of, and adaptation to manifestations of the observed air temperature increase and the increased frequency of extreme meteorological phenomena.

SOCIAL COMPETENCIES – student is ready to:

work in a team and think creatively while organizing field research.

understands the need to raise his or her qualifications constantly in the light of both: the climate change taking place and the need to protect the climate.

Methods and criteria of grading:

Lectures: Credit based on a multiple-choice test; at least 50% correct answers are required for a positive grade. Counts for 50% of the final grade for the module.

Classes: Credit for reports on exercises (the condition for credit is to submit all reports, which must receive a grade of at least 3.0). Counts for 50% of the final grade for the module.

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