Many cities around the world are threatened by the emerging urban and environmental challenges, such as rapid urbanization, climate change, and low fertility, undermining long-term sustainability. The course will provide students with a systematic framework of the interplay between urbanization and environmental sustainability, examine the most pressing environmental challenges accompanied by urban development worldwide, and discuss the implications of 21st-century trends from various perspectives. The course is designed for students who wish to gain deeper insights into the tension and synergy between urban development and the environment from a global perspective; and at the same time, to enhance their analytical reasoning and quantitative skills to assist evidence-based study and policy design evaluation, scenario-based forecasting, and implication assessments for the future urban sustainability. It aims to guide and explore the causes and consequences of urban environmental quality dynamics and provide identification methods and tools to quantify such relationships.
As we step into the 21st century, we are witnessing a surge in new phenomena and events that have never been experienced in the past. These occurrences pose challenges that are difficult to address using conventional perspectives and logic, constantly presenting us with diverse new obstacles. However, if we adopt a proactive mindset and prepare ourselves for the dynamic changes ahead, these transformations can also present us with fresh opportunities. The essence of the proposition 'Inventing the Future' lies in our ability to keenly observe the macroscopic flow of change while actively shaping the future we desire. It is essential to recognize that everything currently existing in the world was once non-existent and has been brought into being through human invention and discovery. In this course, our objective is to nurture the skills necessary to shape the future we envision by fostering creative imaginations of 'things that do not exist in the world' and formulating strategies to turn them into reality.
This course explores how the development of science and technology can influence and be influenced by public policy and discusses the government’s future strategies for science and technology. Students will learn the changing inter-relationship between science and politics as well as analyzing the role played by various key factors and participants—scientists, lay people, and institutions—in the present and future policy-making process.
This course aims to promote an understanding of future foresight methodology, structure, strategies, techniques, and tools. To enhance the capacity to perform future foresight projects and academic thesis, this course will provide students with a systematic framework of the interplay between future foresight theory, methodology, and techniques. In addition, students will have an opportunity to practice forecasting possible future directions of the most pressing contemporary issues.
This course addresses the scientific foundations of climate change, along with its social and economic impacts, while exploring various topics including resilience in urban planning and environmental studies, multi-hazard risk assessment in disaster risk management, and adaptation strategies in both public and private sectors. Also, it provides basic theoretical and technical knowledge on atmospheric sciences, climate dynamics, and earth system modeling. It delves into the resilience and adaptive capacities in the fields of social, natural, and applied sciences to respond to climate change, critically analyzing key literature to equip students with an understanding of practical applications in the built environment. The course integrates theory and practice through a balanced combination of lectures, seminars, and case study reviews. Assessment is conducted through class participation, assignments, and final examinations. Ideal for students interested in atmospheric science, environmental science, urban planning, civil engineering, and policy studies, this course prepares them for advanced studies in climate change planning, disaster risk management, environmental planning, and urban adaptation.