We are thrilled to announce that the Jane Teranes Climate Change Education Requirement (JTCCER) was approved at the Academic Senate’s Oct. 10, 2023 Representative Assembly meeting. The establishment of this new graduation requirement for incoming first-year students, beginning fall 2024, is designed to empower our students with the knowledge and skills needed to confront the urgent global challenge of climate change. UC San Diego has long been a leader in climate change research. The JTCCER builds upon the faculty’s commitment by expanding educational engagement with climate change across a range of disciplines and responds to the growing demand by undergraduates for climate-related courses and content.
About the Jane Teranes Climate Change Education Requirement
Starting with the first-year student cohort entering in fall 2024, candidates for the Bachelor’s degree will be required to complete a one-quarter course approved by the Academic Senate to fulfill the JTCCER. A few important notes:
- The JTCCER does not increase the number of courses required for graduation. Courses approved to satisfy the JTCCER will overlap with general education or Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) courses, as well as courses that apply to major and minor requirements.
- Incoming transfer students are exempt from completing the JTCCER. We will explore applying the requirement to transfer students in the future.
- Satisfaction of the JTCCER does not apply to currently matriculating students. The list of courses that can satisfy the JTCCER will be made publicly available by fall 2024. Currently matriculating students interested in climate change are welcomed and encouraged to enroll in one of these courses but are not required to do so.
In the coming months, faculty, departments, programs, and colleges may propose new and existing courses to the Academic Senate for approval to be included on the list of courses that satisfy the JTCCER (see next steps below). Coursework from a broad range of disciplines will apply to JTCCER to provide students with the opportunity to consider the complex nature of climate change and potential solutions (e.g. mitigation, adaptation, and justice) from multiple perspectives (scientific, technical, cultural, psychological, political, and economic).
Background on the Jane Teranes Climate Change Education Requirement
The proposal to establish the JTCCER was developed by a joint Senate Administration Workgroup on Climate Change Education for All. The workgroup was asked to consider a climate change education requirement for undergraduate students and included a broad range of input from the faculty, administration and students, culminating in final approval of their proposal by the Representative Assembly.
This new requirement honors the legacy of the late Jane Teranes, Teaching Professor in the Scripps Institution of Oceanography, and her contributions to climate change education at UC San Diego. Professor Teranes worked with colleagues across campus to create the Climate Change Studies minor in 2019 and served as co-chair of the workgroup until her passing.
Next Steps
The Academic Senate is in the process of forming a new Senate committee, the Jane Teranes Climate Change Education Requirement Committee, to oversee implementation. The committee will be charged with finalizing the criteria for JTCCER courses and reviewing existing courses that address climate change. A call will be sent later this academic year inviting instructors, programs, and departments to submit proposals to add courses to the list approved to satisfy the JTCCER. The call will include information on the course criteria and proposal guidelines. An amendment to add the JTCCER to the Senate Regulation for undergraduate campuswide graduation requirements (SD Regulation 600) will be posted to the Senate website in December.
We invite the entire UC San Diego community to join us in celebrating this extraordinary step forward - the first of its kind in the UC system. We thank all those involved in advancing this initiative through their work on climate change action and education and look forward to collaborating with our students to create pathways towards a more sustainable future.
