The Calculus of Sustainability - Lessons from Complex Societies

Catalog description

Sustainability research asks to what extent our planet, with a finite environmental resource base, can accommodate the faster than exponentially growing human population. The concept of carrying capacity contains many resource limitations originating from available water, energy, and ecosystem services. The course covers the calculus behind these limitations beginning from models of population growth, proceeding to the 'Doomsday Equation' and human-biosphere interactions. Dynamical systems will be used to enlighten linkages between humans and the Earth's carrying capacity, renewable versus non-renewable resources, peak-oil, peak-water, and peak-grain. Prerequisite: (Mathematics 105L and 106L) or Mathematics 111L.