About the Climate School
The Climate School serves as an integrated hub of climate activity at the University to connect, amplify, and advance new areas of inquiry and research in the field of climate at Columbia. The School encompasses the Earth Institute's research center and programs, built on Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory's decades of earth science analysis, and involve schools and departments from across the University.
The MA in Climate and Society was the inaugural education program of the Columbia Climate School, which graduated its first class in October 2022. The Columbia Climate School is pleased to offer this program in partnership with the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences and also benefits from partnerships with many other departments, schools and centers across the University's campuses.
About the MA in Climate and Society
The climate crisis is the single biggest problem facing humanity today. It affects every aspect of society from health to food to energy, among others. How we respond in the coming decades will shape the world for future generations.
Knowing this is one thing. Knowing what to do about it is another.
The STEM-designated MA in Climate and Society is a is a 12-month interdisciplinary graduate program designed to help professionals and academics understand the science of climate change and variability and how to use it to help humanity thrive in the 21st century. The program will prepare you to translate complex scientific information and understand the risks a shifting climate poses as well as how to take advantage of the predictable aspects of natural climate variability. Through classes and research, students gain knowledge in both climate science and social sciences as they relate to climate.
Students come from a variety of backgrounds. Our diversity is our strength. Addressing the climate crisis will require a wide range of skills and interests. Our students learn not just from faculty but from each other. They work together as alumni, approaching the climate crisis from many different avenues. They're city planners, policy advisors, journalists, conservationists and more. If you want to be part of the solution, join us.