UT Martin joined the Climate Leadership Network on 22 October 2019 when Chancellor Keith Carver signed the Climate Resilience Commitment. The Climate Leadership Network is a signature program of Second Nature that provides resources, networking, and national engagement opportunities for signatory institutions.
There is much information regarding climate available on the internet today, but not all of this information is reliable. This lib guide is meant to serve as a compendium of reliable sites and sources of information regarding the state of and changes in our global climate, impacts of changing climate on the Earth and on humanity, and humanity’s response to these impacts.
Agricultural Economics
AGEC 120 - Agriculture and Climate Change
An introductory course on the impacts of climate change on agriculture, food security, and food systems. Topics include basic understanding of the science of climate and climate change, evaluating and measuring economic impacts of climate change on agriculture, policy issues in climate change and agriculture, and climate-smart agriculture.
Botany
BOT 431 - Plant Ecology
Relations of plants to their environment with emphasis on climate and biotic factors influencing their structure, growth, behavior and distribution. Prerequisite(s): BIOL 130-BIOL 140 with grades of C or better.
Geoscience
GEOS 140, 140H - Weather and Climate
An introduction to the elements and processes that occur in the Earth’s atmosphere and their impacts on society. Topics include atmospheric structure and composition, moisture, energy, precipitation, wind, processes producing weather phenomena, and principles of climatology.
History
HIST 470 - Topics in World History: [Topics Title]
Classes in selected aspects of world history dealing with a global or comparative approach, such as, but not limited to, urbanization, technology, sports, disease, climate, demographics, food, rise and fall of civilizations, transportation, industrialization and migrations. May be repeated for credit (with different topic). Only six hours of undergraduate topics courses (HIST 460, 470, HIST 480, or HIST 490) can be counted toward the major or minor.
Meteorology
METR 420 - Applied Meteorology and Climatology
This course surveys the applications of meteorology and climatology to societal and environmental issues. Topics covered in the course include application of climate and meteorology to agriculture, forestry, urban environments, architecture, transportation, energy, and human health. Prerequisite(s): GEOS 140 or equivalent honors course or permission of instructor.
METR 430 - Statistical Analysis in Meteorology and Climatology
A survey of statistical techniques in climatology and meteorology including the use of statistics in assessing probabilities of weather phenomena, in weather and climate forecasting, in forecast verification, and in time series analysis. An emphasis of this course is the examination of weather events in the context of multi-year climate variation. Prerequisite(s): GEOS 140 or equivalent honors courses.
METR 445 - Weather for Agriculture and Natural Resources
A study of how weather and climate impacts agriculture, forestry, fishing, and water resources. Weather and climate events that impact soil and plant energy budgets, temperatures, moisture availability and water budgets in agricultural and natural environments are emphasized. Prerequisite(s): GEOS 110 or GEOS 110H or NRM 100.
Natural Resources Management
NRM 101 – Wildlife, Conservation, and Environmental Issues
This course is intended for students who are interested in wildlife and conservation issues. Includes a review of wildlife and resource history and a survey of current resources at global, national and regional scales. Issues will be discussed including biological diversity and endangered species, pollution and habitat loss, values of natural resources to humans and human philosophies and perspectives on conservation.
NRM 355 - Ethics and the Environment (cross-listed with PHIL 355)
Discussion of major ethical issues regarding nature and the environment, including the value of nature, human treatment of animals, natural resource management, anthropocentrism, species and biodiversity, population growth, global poverty, and climate change.
Philosophy
PHIL 355 - Ethics and the Environment (cross-listed with NRM 355)
Discussion of major ethical issues regarding nature and the environment, including the value of nature, human treatment of animals, natural resource management, anthropocentrism, species and biodiversity, population growth, global poverty, and climate change.
Plant Science
PLSC 445 - Plants, Environment and Design
Principles of plant composition and theory of plants in design with emphasis on historical and contemporary approaches to planting design. Understanding the functional abilities of plants in altering the environment with emphasis on architectural, engineering, aesthetics and climatological uses of plants. Plant characteristics, requirements and selection for use in natural and man-made environments with reference to soils, topography, climate, as well as maintenance issues. Prerequisite(s): PLSC 242 and PLSC 462.
Sociology
SOC 333 - Society and Environment
An examination of the interrelated nature of society and the biophysical environment. The course will focus on cultural values and attitudes toward the environment as well as various contemporary environmental issues and problems such as land use patterns, natural resource extraction, economic growth and the environment, pollution, climate change, population growth, and the social distribution of environmental “bads” and “goods. ”
Sustainability Studies
SUST 200 – Introduction to Sustainability
Introduction to Sustainability is a required foundational course for the Sustainability Studies minor that provides student from all academic majors and programs an overview of the field of sustainability studies. The study and practice of sustainability is for humanity to meet “the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.” The concept of sustainability is inherently complex and socially constructed and as such, there is much room for competing ideas about how to achieve sustainability. Sustainability seeks to integrate three dimensions: ecological, economic, and social; which are seen as equally important aspects of a sustainable social system.
Updated Fall 2025