Overview

This course seeks to enable participants to become capable and self-reflective practitioners of LCA. Thus, we will delve into the methods of life cycle assessment and risk assessment, working practical problems of real-world significance using state-of-the-art software and data. Once we have developed a practical and in-depth understanding of these methods, we will go further, to consider the strengths, weaknesses, barriers and opportunities associated with current application of the methods in industry and policymaking. Finally, we will look at emerging US and global trends in life cycle methods and application, as this field is increasingly called-upon, since the Johannesburg 2002 World Summit on Sustainable Development, to address the full spectrum of social, economic, and environmental aspects of sustainability.

The class will consist of lectures, discussions, presentations by guest speakers, and seminars lead by teams of students. Our class meets once per week, and we will also make extensive use of the wiki-style course website, co-constructing it and using it to aggregate and exchange resources and ideas throughout the term.