Interested in environmental issues, but unsure where to start? This is the course for you! High quality water, to be provided for drinking and irrigation purposes to the world’s ever-growing population, is one Great Challenge in the near future. Explore the links between biology, chemistry and soil science that lead to what people often take for granted: good quality water. This course is an introduction to environmental sciences. Using only basic knowledge from inorganic chemistry and biology, the course will lead you to an exploration of every day issues around the world. We will tackle some basic questions: Why did the “dust bowl” or the Assouan River dam have so profound an impact on soil fertility? How do we explain the mass poisoning affecting tens of millions of people in SE Asian deltas? Why is nitrate, but not potassium, a pollutant linked to agriculture even through NPK fertilizers are used? Besides plants, are there other photosynthetic organisms? Can we reconstruct water quality from centuries ago although no water samples remain? Are biofuel or coal gasification plants viable energy solutions? Why does deforestation result in loss of fertility in the Amazon basin but not in temperate Europe? What critical water issues will be raised by megacities, which will soon represent 2/3 of the world’s population? How has the relationship between humans and water changed over the centuries? The class will consist of lecture videos, which are between 10 and 15 minutes in length. Every week, you will have related quiz questions and exercises. These optional assignments will not be graded and the solution will be provided the week after the assignment is posted. At the end of weeks 4 & 10, there will be a graded MCQ (each counting for 15% of the final grade). There will also be two peer-graded homework assignments, together with two MCQ, at the end of week 7 and week 13 as mid term and final exams. Join us as you startyour environmental science journey!

Freshwater scarcity, stress, and crisis are increasing worldwide. More than a billion people live in water-scarce regions, and 3.5 billion could experience water scarcity by 2025. These pressures disproportionally affect vulnerable and marginalized people, including those living in poverty and displacement. Rising pollution levels accelerate the crisis by reducing water availability for human use and impacting aquatic life in rivers, lakes, aquifers, and the oceans. Transboundary basins account for roughly 60% of freshwater resources, serving 2.8 billion people, or 42% of the world’s population. Complex shared transboundary freshwater and ecosystems cut across myriad sectoral needs, themes, and political boundaries. Setting effective policy goals, coupled with investments, means working at multiple scales with a range of public and private stakeholders throughout the watershed, from source to sea and beyond. This course presents multiple facets of governance for transboundary freshwater security – from financing mechanisms to negotiation skills – while emphasizing the urgency of sustainable development and cooperation at many levels. It extends from basic building blocks and concepts to advanced thinking about transboundary governance, and applies theory to practice through examples and case studies. Topics covered in six modules range from the fundamentals of transboundary water security to international water law, water diplomacy, negotiations, institutions, management tools, and sustainable finance. The course is designed for professionals who manage and make decisions about transboundary waters within line ministries and river basin organizations; managers of transboundary water projects and the Global Environment Facility (GEF) International Waters Portfolio; the GEF IW:LEARN Network; NGOs, academics, and private sector actors working on basin management; development practitioners; young professionals and future leaders in transboundary waters, including undergraduate and graduate students; and anyone else who is keen to learn about the topic. This MOOC was produced by the Global Water Partnership in collaboration with GEF IW:LEARN and its partners. Over 80 water professionals from around the world brought their experiences to lectures and case studies. Modules are coordinated by United Nations University, Northumbria University, Stockholm International Water Institute, IHE-Delft, United Nations Economic Commission for Europe, and the Global Water Partnership.

The demand for safe and healthy food is rapidly increasing. The world population is growing and is projected to reach 9.8 billion in 2050. How do we prepare for this and how are we going to be able to feed all these people? It is clear that the food production mainly has to come from improvements in agricultural water management on existing agricultural lands. Global climate change raises the pressure on supply and demand for water. Changing temperatures and long-term variation in annual precipitation amounts and regional distribution patterns require more ways to control water levels. In addition to the changing climate, cropping patterns are diversifying and field irrigation methods are changing. In light of all these changes in water demand, supply and use, the role of (subsurface) drainage has changed from a single-purpose measure for controlling waterlogging and/or salinity to an essential element of integrated water management under multiple land use scenarios. Join this course to advance your knowledge in drainage, drainage systems and solutions, and to help securing a sustainable food supply. In this course, you will work on different modules, apply the knowledge gained directly to your home country drainage situation. Furthermore, you will learn from other cases and learners worldwide, expanding your horizon on the global importance of drainage. Structure of the course The course consists of five modules. In Module 1, the need for drainage, the drainage methods and the design approaches for agricultural drainage systems are introduced. In Module 2 you will learn more about the hydrological principles related to drainage and drainage design equations. Module 3 discusses the general aspects of drainage of saline and sodic soils and Module 4 is an introduction to the implementation and operation & maintenance of drainage systems. Depending on your background and interest, you may decide by yourself in which sequence you do these three modules. But you should realize that in Module 5, all these different aspects of drainage are integrated to discuss the changing role of drainage in agricultural water management. For who This course was developed for professionals and students from various backgrounds, especially those who are interested in agricultural water management and want to broaden their understanding of drainage planning, design, and management, and drainage-related research and training. Although specifically watermanagers and waterengineers, agricultural engineers, irrigation professionals, hydrologists, and agricultural policy makers join this course, the course is open and accessible to everyone. Do not miss out on the opportunity to join this free online course and upgrade your knowledge on drainage for agricultural lands.

Water within the environment is often modelled both to fill-in gaps in data as well as to predict future water quality and quantity. This course brings together the different aspects of the hydrologic cycle and introduces several common watershed modelling techniques. Often the models used are considered black boxes where data goes in and answers come out. This course will look inside that black box and provide participants with the skills to dig deeper into understanding the basics of many watershed models used around the world.

Within the duration of the lectures, you will gain an insightful understanding of the standardized requirements for an environmental management system that an organization can use to enhance its environmental performance. The aim of the course is to provide basic knowledge about application of ISO 14001 for waste prevention in order to provide value for the environment, the organization itself and its interested parties. The practical examples and cases of the course are focused at the industrial waste prevention at companies’ level. Competences which you will obtain: ● Development of waste management system in accordance with ISO 14001 (environmental policy development, significant aspects' identification, stakeholder analysis, environmental program creation, audit conducting, etc.). ● Enhance quality and effectiveness of environmental management system of organizations related to waste prevention. ● Achieving outcomes of an environmental (waste) management system: enhancement of environmental performance; fulfillment of compliance obligations; achievement of environmental objectives and waste prevention.

Did you know that experts estimate an additional three billion people will live in cities by 2050? What will the impact be on the current world population – half of which currently lives in cities and contributes to about three-fourths of global economic output? The opportunities are vast –but so, too, are the potential issues. In Sustainable Cities , you will learn about the major challenges currently faced by urban areas around the world – including poverty, unemployment, poor housing infrastructure, and constraints on productivity – and the extraordinary potential of these areas to enable change in the future. From infrastructure to culture to economic opportunity, learn how harnessing the power of urban development for global progress is imperative. This course examines how urban sustainability can be delivered with increasing productivity and reduced inequality; provision of universal basic services and infrastructure; protection of the urban environments; and other solutions and investments, both speculative and in action around the world. You will emerge from this course understanding how governments, private stakeholders and other actors can improve urban development to heed the call of Sustainable Development Goal 11 – “making cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable“ by 2030. This course has been developed through a partnership between the SDG Academy and the Indian Institute for Human Settlements (IIHS) , which is working to transform the current nature of urban education and practice in India. This course is for: Anyone interested in the concept of sustainable cities – including those interested in the development of their own local community – who wants to understand the foundations of modern urban development Graduate students and advanced undergraduate students in architecture, real estate development, sustainable development, sustainable business, international development, public policy, and other related fields Sustainable development practitioners interested in the elements of sustainability that impact urban areas worldwide Private-sector actors , such as those who work in real estate development, technology, telecommunications, transportation, or energy – whose work can contribute to and redefine urban areas

How can ecosystems contribute to quality of life and a more livable, healthier and more resilient urban environment? Have you ever considered all the different benefits the ecosystem could potentially deliver to you and your surroundings? Unsustainable urbanization has resulted in the loss of biodiversity, the destruction of habitats and has therefore limited the ability of ecosystems to deliver the advantages they could confer. This course establishes the priorities and highlights the direct values of including principles based on natural processes in urban planning and design. Take a sewage system or a public space for example. By integrating nature-based solutions they can deliver the exact same performance while also being beneficial for the environment, society and economy. Increased connectivity between existing, modified and new ecosystems and restoring and rehabilitating them within cities through nature-based solutions provides greater resilience and the capacity to adapt more swiftly to cope with the effects of climate change and other global shifts. This course will teach you about the design, construction, implementation and monitoring of nature-based solutions for urban ecosystems and the ecological coherence of sustainable cities. Constructing smart cities and metropolitan regions with nature-based ecosystems will secure a fair distribution of benefits from the renewed urban ecology. Instructors, with advanced expertise in Urban Ecology, Environmental Engineering, Urban Planning and Design, will equip designers and planners with the skills they need for the sustainable management of the built environment. The course will also benefit stakeholders from both private and public sectors who want to explore the multiple benefits of restored ecosystems in cities and metropolitan regions. They will gain the knowledge and skills required to make better informed and integrated decisions on city development and urban regeneration schemes. This course forms a part of the educational programme of the AMS Amsterdam Institute for Advanced Metropolitan Solutions and will present the state-of-the-art theories and methods developed by the Delft University of Technology and Wageningen University & Research, two of the founding universities of the AMS Institute.

Examine our reliance on the Earth’s resources –and vice versa – and you will discover a stunning tapestry of complex interactions between ecosystems and human life. From preventing the extinction of species (from plants to animals) to mitigating the effects of long-term environmental shifts, how do we ensure that our interaction with the world around us doesn’t leave it destroyed? In this course, you’ll learn the science behind the capacities of various ecosystems including extinction rates, desertification and how their physical makeup has evolved with environmental shifts. You’ll experience the lives of local populations dependent upon these resources, from their economic activities to their societal norms. After taking this course, you will be equipped with an understanding of diverse ecosystems and how responsible use of these resources is imperative to our planet’s survival. This course is for: Graduate students and advanced undergraduate students studying ecosystem management, forestry, sustainable development, economics, sustainable business and related fields Practitioners in forestry, ecosystem management, conservation and related fields who are interested in current science and research around use and preservation Sustainable development practitioners – as well as private-sector actors, such as those who work in corporate sustainability and responsibility, land development or tourism – who need to understand responsible consumption and interaction with our ecosystems

While any major sport event can pose great opportunities for the host city or region, there are also challenges associated with hosting these events. The environmental impact on the country's natural resources, the workforce, and infrastructure are just some of the considerations. It is essential to ensure that your major sport event is sustainable for your city throughout the event, but also after the event has been completed. So, what does a sustainable major sport event look like? Thiscourse will introduce you to the concept of a sustainable major sport event by using the five pillars of sustainability as the foundation. These five pillars; human, social, economic, governance and environmental, are explored in this course with a focus on the core principles of each pillar and how these need to be considered in this context. Real-world examples are presented to further highlight the importance of these factors when planning and hosting a major sport event.

Water that falls on the earth embarks on a journey that imparts on it the qualities of the land forms with which it interacts. It is both influenced and influences the watercourses through which it travels. In keeping with this, the role of water in shaping and molding watercourses will be discussed. Land use and its impact on water will also be examined. This includes the implications of agriculture and urbanization on water movement and quality within a watershed.