InTeGrate Modules and Courses >Coastal Processes, Hazards and Society > Student Materials > Section 2: Introduction to Coastal Zone Hazards: Long and Short-term Processes of Change and Their Impacts on Society > Module 4: Understanding Sea Level Change > Summary and Final Tasks
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These materials are part of a collection of classroom-tested modules and courses developed by InTeGrate. The materials engage students in understanding the earth system as it intertwines with key societal issues. The collection is freely available and ready to be adapted by undergraduate educators across a range of courses including: general education or majors courses in Earth-focused disciplines such as geoscience or environmental science, social science, engineering, and other sciences, as well as courses for interdisciplinary programs.
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These student materials complement the Coastal Processes, Hazards and Society Instructor Materials. If you would like your students to have access to the student materials, we suggest you either point them at the Student Version which omits the framing pages with information designed for faculty (and this box). Or you can download these pages in several formats that you can include in your course website or local Learning Managment System. Learn more about using, modifying, and sharing InTeGrate teaching materials.
Initial Publication Date: December 7, 2016

Summary and Final Tasks

Summary

So, what about the future of sea level change? What do you think?

The purpose of this module was to introduce students to the concepts and ideas that are necessary for understanding sea level change. We only ask the question about the future rhetorically. By providing a background of knowledge and introducing you to key datasets, it is ultimately up to each person to make sense of data forecasts and projections using their own reasoning. There are numerous videos, including some recent videos, available on sea level rise forecasts for different areas around the world. Many scientists are concerned about the future and about the potential for economic, political, and social loss if sea levels continue to rise according to recent trends. If sea level rise rates don't change, and change dramatically from their current trajectories, nearly all human societies around the world will be impacted in substantial ways. The questions above are yours to ponder and deliberate on. The implications of those questions impact us all.

Your summative assignment for this module asks you to apply the concepts and ideas learned here to datasets you select in order to generate informed hypotheses and potential implications.

Reminder - Complete all of the Module 4 tasks!

You have reached the end of Module 4! Double-check the Module 4 Roadmap to make sure you have completed all of the activities listed there before you begin Module 5.

References and Further Reading

If you are interested in more readings about SLR or to look at trends in SLR, why not check out:

Tides and Currents at NOAA

New South Wales Australia Environment & Heritage website

Climate Central has a new website and visualization resources

A couple of books and book reviews that you might be interested in:

  • Janin, H., & Mandia, S., 2012, Rising Sea Levels: An Introduction to Cause and Impact, McFarland Publishers, 219 p.
  • Englander, J., 2012, High Tide on Main Street: Rising Sea Level and the Coming Coastal Crisis, The Science Bookshelf Publishers, 252 p.
     
  • Pilkey, O.H. & Young, R., 2011, The Rising Sea, Island Press Publishers, 22
    • book review

 

These materials are part of a collection of classroom-tested modules and courses developed by InTeGrate. The materials engage students in understanding the earth system as it intertwines with key societal issues. The collection is freely available and ready to be adapted by undergraduate educators across a range of courses including: general education or majors courses in Earth-focused disciplines such as geoscience or environmental science, social science, engineering, and other sciences, as well as courses for interdisciplinary programs.
Explore the Collection »