The Transformative Power of Climate Science

THANKS TO COLLABORATIVE PROFESSORS AND REAL-WORLD OPPORTUNITIES, NORTHLAND’S FIRST CLASS OF CLIMATE SCIENCE GRADS IS READY FOR THE WORK AHEAD.

By Meghan Salmon-Tumas

Rising temperatures, more extreme storms, wetter winters, and drier summers—these are some of the big changes happening around our little College on the big lake as a result of climate change. As students in Northland’s burgeoning climate science major study these changes and their impacts, they also learn how to create, collaborate on, and advocate for solutions to the problems that these climatic changes bring for people and ecosystems.

“Did I tell you I got the internship?” Brianna Hauke ’24 said, in the midst of a meeting. I stopped suddenly, unbelieving that we could have been talking about work for over twenty minutes without a mention of this big news. This was a big deal for Brianna; she had applied for numerous internships this year and last, determined to get more experience working with remote sensing. Realizing she was serious, I started firing the questions—which one? Where? With whom? As the details emerged, my office filled with excitement until we were both too giddy to focus back on our previous task.

As a newer faculty teaching in a newer major, I have only a handful of stories like this so far, yet they are the highlights that I recall and reflect on when the job feels hard. And indeed, teaching about climate change all day every day can get to feeling hard sometimes. Another thing that helps me through those moments is keeping my focus on possibility; while many people consider climate change to be a big problem, I see it as a big opportunity. Climate change shows us our power—for good and for bad. It also shows us the critical importance of community and collaboration because the issues of climate change cannot be solved in a vacuum: We need to work together to solve them.

The Power of Collaboration

This is one reason why I prioritize collaboration throughout my teaching and research. I teach students how to work together on complex problems because the future needs people who are able to do this effectively. I also collaborate with students on research because it not only builds their confidence and skills in data analysis and project management, but it makes the work more fun and rewarding for me. Climate solutions should be technically feasible, effective, culturally appropriate, and produce minimal negative impacts. Developing such solutions requires collaboration. In classes, students build collaboration skills through supported group work and group projects. And those interested in research apply these skills by working with faculty mentors on research projects. For students in the new climate science major, learning how to collaborate is a particular key to success in their careers as it helps them learn to listen to people’s ideas with an open mind, explain their own thinking as it develops, and give and receive feedback with respect and resilience.

For students interested in the scientific perspective on climate change, the climate science major offers specific skills needed for success in this field. Students develop their data science skills through courses like Math Modelling and Monitoring Climate Change. Some students also develop these skills through

CHANGE MAKERS, REPORTING FOR DUTY

Northland graduates its first class of climate scientists!

In 2019, Northland initiated a degree program in climate science to build students’ skills for being leaders in the transition to a low-carbon economy in a warming world. The major is unique for a small liberal arts college; it includes the math and physics required to understand the dynamics of the climate system and how it can be modeled, as well as coursework in atmospheric chemistry, paleoclimate, and sustainable community development. This year, we’ll send our first crop of climate science graduates out into the world! It’s been exciting to see these smart and passionate students find their paths beyond Northland: research experiences with Northland faculty. Students

John Barnett ’23 plans to take a gap year before going to graduate school to get a master’s degree in meteorology.

Catherine McComas-Bussa ’23 plans to spend a year volunteering with Open Arms of Minnesota, using her education in sustainable agriculture to explore how food justice and climate justice are tangibly entwined.

Kayla Priesler ’23 will be heading off to a master’s program at the University of Arizona, with a plan to focus on aerosol particles in the atmosphere and their impacts on climate. Her long-term goals include getting her doctorate and working as a research scientist at NASA.

Elijah Rickman ’23 will be taking a gap year before heading to graduate school for his master’s. His plan is to get his doctorate and pursue research on the use of artificial intelligence and machine learning to more accurately categorize and predict hurricanes.

Kayla Preisler ’23 and Brianna Hauke both completed research projects that honed their skills in areas like Python programming and geographic information systems (GIS). Kayla’s research examined several ways in which a changing climate in Wisconsin affects opportunities for outdoor recreation; Brianna’s research examined changes in the timing of spring green-up and fall senescence in the forested landscapes around western Lake Superior. Both projects were presented at the annual meeting of the American Geophysical Union in Chicago, with Kayla and Brianna attending with the support of the Parsonage Fund.

The Power of Northland’s Liberal Arts Approach

Climate science programs are popping up at schools across the country to prepare graduates with the skills needed to understand human’s influence on Earth’s climate and help to solve the challenges that climate change poses to humans and ecosystems. However, Northland College’s climate science major is unique because it is situated in a liberal arts education.

Research and Development

Research and applied projects in courses and internships bring the curriculum home for students and help them develop their skills related to project management, communication, and data analysis (not to mention soft skills like patience and dealing with frustration). We do everything we can to provide these opportunities for students because we want them to leave prepared to meet all the challenges they’ll face as responsible global citizens.

Economies

Leah Kiser ’21 and Quentin Borremans ’21 created an infographic to educate the public on climate change impacts on fruit farms and orchards.

Education

Alaina Kuhlman ’22, Gabriella Mathis ’24, and Daniel Aspro created a guide to climate change education in K-12 schools utilizing place-based resources in the Chequamegon Bay area.

Northland’s environmental liberal arts education equips students to look at the connections between societies and their natural environments from a variety of perspectives. While at Northland, students are likely to hear about climate change in a lot of their classes. Along the way, they will pick up ideas, theories, and practical tips that will help them navigate lives in a changing climate and advocate joyfully for climate-friendly and socially-just approaches in all arenas. They also get practice with approaching climate change from different theoretical frameworks, which develops the flexible thinking needed to communicate effectively with diverse audiences about climate change solutions. This liberal arts approach makes the climate science major at Northland different from that at larger state universities.

As we move into the future of educating the leaders of tomorrow, we will continue to prepare them to be change-makers who can collaborate across disciplinary boundaries and make impactful, data-guided decisions.

Andrew Kundel ’25 and Kurt Price ’26 coordinated a climate change teach-in on Northland College’s campus. The event featured student and faculty speakers on a diversity of climate-related topics.

Emily Cardenas ’24, Elijah Rickman ’23, Isabel Pruitt ’23, and Nolan Hemmesch ’25 developed a one-hour lesson on climate change for forty-five third graders at Washburn Elementary.

Increased Flooding

Students in Regional Climate Change Solutions helped to restore a degraded streambank on the Marengo River by planting trees.

Threatened Water Quality

Students in Regional Climate Change Solutions collected macroinvertebrate samples on the Marengo River and identified them for use in water quality monitoring.

Tracking and Reducing Greenhouse Gas Emissions

Kevon Powell ’25, Kristen Vensland ’24, and Andrew Piispanen ’25 are analyzing the greenhouse gas emissions reductions associated with Northland’s past energy projects.

Climate Justice

Tribes represented by Great Lakes Indian Fish and Wildlife Commision (GLIFWC) were concerned about impacts of Enbridge’s Line 5 pipeline reroute to ecosystems, water quality, and treaty rights. Students Cameron Kadlubowski ’22, Taya Streit ’23, Kayla Preisler ’23, and Hannah Fennern ’24 worked with the GLIFWC to produce documentation on the accuracy of field photos in Enbridge’s documents as well as a list of culturally-significant species located along the proposed reroute.

Rowan Goldman ’23

Drawing from his background in sustainable community development and geographic information systems (GIS), Rowan Goldman supported the development of an asset map of climate data points used to shape economic, institutional, and policyrelated decisions across twelve states. Rowan presented findings from his research at the Midwest Climate Summit (hosted by the Midwest Climate Collaborative) in February.

“The conference was geared to industry professionals who work in climate science, and it covered all scopes of environmental science ranging from climate policy to watersheds,” said Rowan. “It was a great opportunity to be a part of the summit, to network with other climate professionals, and see how the work I did on the asset map fit into the larger picture of helping facilitate solutions for the specific climate issues we’re facing in the Midwest. It also helped me see how important it is to compile and share concise and actionable data.”

Rowan plans to pursue a PhD in geography, focusing his studies on arctic communities, their historical and geographic differences, and how these factors impact future sustainable development.

Brianna Hauke ’24

When Northland changed its meteorology major to the more encompassing climate science major in 2019, it threw Brianna Hauke for a loop. “I originally came to Northland for the meteorology program, but the summer before I was supposed to start, they changed the major to a climate science program. I was a little bit saddened, but I decided to still come because Northland is just such a cool place!”

“The fact that I was able to work on research projects as an undergrad really sets me apart from students at larger universities,” she said. “I even got to experience going to the American Geophysical Union (AGU) conference in Chicago with my professors.” Brianna is looking forward to doing more research in her senior year, after which she intends to pursue a graduate degree in atmospheric science.

Kayla Priesler ’23

Kayla Preisler’s experience of working on research with Professor Salmon-Tumas at Northland came with the added benefit of getting to present a poster at the annual American Geophysical Union (AGU) meeting. This opened up a path to her future that she never saw coming.

“At the AGU meeting I had the opportunity to meet many students, scientists, and learn more about the climate science field. I believe communicating science is important, and being able to communicate it in an effective way to a broad audience is a skill that this experience has given me. This conference also helped me solidify my decision to attend graduate school. At the exhibit hall, I connected with the University of Arizona where I learned about the research professors are doing in the hydrology and atmospheric science department. I’m looking forward to starting their master’s program this fall.”