Program in Science, Technology and Environmental Policy (STEP)

( Please note that some undergraduate courses can be taken for graduate credit depending upon course level with prior approval of both the instructor and the appropriate school administrator)

The dynamics of the emergence and spread of disease arise from a complex interplay between disease ecology, economics, and human behavior. Lectures will provide an introduction to complementarities between economic and epidemiological approaches to understanding the emergence, spread, and control of infectious diseases. The course will cover topics such as drug-resistance in bacterial and parasitic infections, individual incentives to vaccinate, the role of information in the transmission of infectious diseases, and the evolution of social norms in healthcare

An introduction to the biology of viruses, bacteria, fungi, protozoa, worms, arthropods, and parasitic plants. The major emphasis will be on the parasites of animals and plants, with further study of the epidemiology of infectious diseases in human populations. Studies of AIDS, anthrax, and worms, and their role in human history will be complemented by ecological and evolutionary studies of mistletoe, measles, myxomatosis, and communities of parasitic helminths. The course focuses strongly on policy implications, particularly for the dynamics and control of emerging infectious diseases of humans and animals

An introduction to the use of economics in thinking about and dealing with environmental issues. Stress on economic externalities and the problem of dealing with them as instances of organizing gains from trade. Applications to a wide variety of problems, among them air pollution (including, importantly, global climate change), water pollution, solid waste and hazardous substance management, species preservation and population policy.

This course explores the causes and consequences of human-induced climate change, and the range of potential policy responses. By studying the natural climate system and how it is influenced by human perturbation, we will develop a quantitative understanding of how climate is expected to change in the future as greenhouse gases accumulate in the atmosphere. The course also examines scientific themes that should frame any public policy based on risk management, including irreversibility, uncertainty, and surprise. We will also examine the ways in which people, governments and other institutions are actually responding to climate change.