When the 2024–2025 cohort of Duke’s Climate and Sustainability Teaching (CAST) Fellows began their work last summer, they shared a common challenge: how to bring the urgency of climate change into courses that ranged from language instruction to health sciences to political science. By the end of the academic year, each Fellow had not only redesigned a course but also contributed to a collective effort that is reshaping how Duke students encounter climate and sustainability themes across disciplines.
Supported by LILE and the Office of Climate and Sustainability, the Fellows received pedagogical guidance on how to embed climate content in ways that deepened learning, fostered student engagement, and made connections between disciplinary concepts and real-world challenges.
Climate Education as a University-Wide Priority
The CAST Fellows program is a direct response to Duke’s Climate Commitment and the vision of the Climate Commitment Advisory Council’s (CCAC) Education Subcommittee, which aims for every student—regardless of major or school—to graduate with climate and sustainability fluency. The Subcommittee’s strategy emphasizes weaving climate into high-enrollment and introductory courses, supporting instructor learning, and engaging students in immersive, real-world opportunities.
A Range of Course Innovations
Each Fellow tailored climate content to their discipline, illustrating the diversity of ways climate change can be addressed across Duke’s curriculum:
- CHN 451S: China and the U.S. in the Age of Climate Change (Yan Liu) offers advanced Chinese-language learners a deep dive into policy, technology, and cultural perspectives on climate in both nations.
- FRENCH 101: Elementary French I (Germain Choffart) introduces sustainability themes such as food systems, fast fashion, and environmental justice into beginning language study, reinforced through visits to TROSA, the Nasher Museum, and the Duke Campus Farm.
- GLHLTH 571: Global Maternal and Child Health (Aunchalee Palmquist) connects climate justice and reproductive justice through immersive learning at Duke Gardens, Duke Forest, and the Campus Farm.
- INFOSCI 302: Urban Informatics and Sustainable Design (Renee Richer & Charles Chang, Duke Kunshan University) engages students in redesigning the DKU campus for sustainability goals like biodiversity and reduced heat effects, in collaboration with DKU Operations and community partners.
- Physician Assistant Program (Perri Morgan) introduces a climate-health “thread” across the Physician Assistant curriculum, weaving climate impacts into courses on pulmonary and psychiatric health and social determinants of health.
- POLSCI 128: The Political Economy of Climate Change (Clara Park) examines how global political and economic systems both drive and respond to climate change, from green finance to international institutions.
- WRITING 101: H2O 101 (Jamie Browne) guides first-year students in connecting climate impacts to water systems and indigenous ecologies, while developing their academic writing and research skills.
Additionally, Catherine Admay revised PUBPOL 761 “Human Rights and Conflict,” Charlie Cox revised CHEM101 “Core Concepts in Chemistry” and CHEM401 “Analytical Chemistry,” and Zbigniew Kabala revised CEE 301L “Fluid Mechanics.”
Resources for All Instructors
Beyond their individual courses, the Fellows collaborated on a collection of Climate and Sustainability Education Resources, providing other instructors with materials, strategies, and examples for embedding climate themes in their teaching.
Other campus resources available to instructors who wish to incorporate climate and sustainability concepts into their courses include the Duke Campus Farm, the Duke Forest, and the Duke Gardens. Additionally, Duke SCALe (Sustainability and Climate Applied Learning) cultivates transformative learning collaborations between students, faculty, and staff to address real-world challenges and opportunities at Duke.
Building a Culture of Climate Fluency
Together, the CAST Fellows’ work reflects the CCAC Education Subcommittee’s call to make learning communal and immersive, and engage diverse voices in climate education. By redesigning courses that touch students at different stages of their academic journeys, the Fellows are helping to build a culture in which climate and sustainability fluency is a core part of a Duke education. As Duke continues to expand climate and sustainability education across schools, programs, and co-curricular experiences, the CAST Fellows’ contributions offer models for how to transform courses—and how to empower students to see themselves as part of the climate solution.
Generative AI transparency statement: This story was originally drafted using ChatGPT 5 and then revised and edited by Blythe Tyrone.
