Researching climate change solutions: Climate solutions topics
Climate solutions topics
On campus and around the globe, there are literally hundreds of different ways that people are addressing climate change. For a college research project, you should pick ONE solution and research that deeply.
Take some time to explore possible topics. Your project will be most interesting for you (and your instructor!) if you select something that excites your curiosity and that you want to learn more about. Do some background reading or "pre-searching" of your topic before committing to a topic. A simple web search or browsing a Wikipedia page is a good option for "pre-searching."
See below some of the solutions included in the PCC Climate Action Plan, and additional resources for learning about a range of solutions already in the works.
This 5 minute video provides advice on finding a topic and a research question to guide a college assignment. “Turning an Interest into a Researchable Question”
Solutions included in the PCC Climate Action Plan
Here are some examples of the many ways that PCC is addressing the issue through the PCC Climate Action Plan. Any one of these examples could be the focus of a great research project.
Reduce energy use
- Energy efficient buildings
- LEED certified construction
- Educating building users to change behavior
Renewable energy
- Solar energy (on campus and community solar)
- Wind turbines
- Renewable natural gas
- Emerging technologies such as solar thermal energy, battery storage, carbon capture and fuel synthesis.
Transportation
- Electric vehicles
- Reduce single occupancy vehicle travel
- Shuttle services
- Public transportation
- Carbon offsets
Resource conservation and waste diversion
- Water conservation
- Recycling
- Waste prevention - reusable and durable products
Equity and climate justice
- Centering BIPOC communities in climate justice work
- Including sustainability and climate justice in classes across the curriculum
- Food justice
- Learning gardens
- Educate and empower students to be sustainability and climate justice practitioners
- Culturally responsive sustainability programming
- Partnering with Portland Clean Energy Fund
Resilience
- Green spaces
- Address climate grief and eco-anxiety
- Emergency preparedness planning for high heat and poor air quality days
Additional climate solutions resources
Enlarge the graph: Project Drawdown. The graph shows the sectors that are adding greenhouse gases to the atmosphere, the sinks that are taking them out, and the amount that remains in the atmosphere, which causes warming.
Recommended resources for exploring climate change solutions:
- Climate Solutions 101Six-part streaming video series from Project Drawdown, "the future point in time when levels of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere stop climbing and start to steadily decline."
- M.I.T. Climate Portal—SolutionsIncludes explanations, podcasts and interactive tools.
- Center for Climate and Energy SolutionsAn independent, nonpartisan, nonprofit organization working to forge practical solutions to climate change.
- Responding to Climate Change—NASANASA provides the robust scientific data needed to understand and respond to climate change."
- Actions and SolutionsFrom PCC Library's Climate Change research guide.
How to Avoid a Climate Disaster: the solutions we have and the breakthroughs we need by Call Number: Cascade, Rock Creek and Southeast Libraries 363.738/747Publication Date: 2021
Drawdown : the most comprehensive plan ever proposed to reverse global warming by Call Number: Rock Creek and Cascade Libraries 363.738 D73 2017Publication Date: 2017
Regeneration : ending the climate crisis in one generation by Publication Date: 2021-09-21
