Desertification: Problems and Solutions (FutureLearn)

Desertification: Problems and Solutions (FutureLearn)

What happens when fertile earth degrades? Discover the complex problem of desertification and consider potential solutions. Get an introduction to desertification and other related environmental issues. Desertification is when previously healthy or fertile land degrades and becomes desert. But how does this happen? And why is it a major issue for our world?

Class Deals by MOOC List - Click here and see FutureLearn's Active Discounts, Deals, and Promo Codes.

Get answers with this course introducing desertification and related issues including soil depletion, dust bowls, dust storms and global warming.
Not only will you understand the process of desertification, you will also use critical thinking and creative problem-solving to address the causes and consequences of desertification, applying the 6-step ‘FPS model’.

What topics will you cover?

  • Research global issues surrounding desertification, including global warming, soil depletion, dust bowls, and environmental degradation
  • Use the 6-step Future Problem Solving model to identify challenges, generate and evaluate solutions, and develop an action plan for reversing desertification
  • Use the 4 Cs of learning and innovation to brainstorm potential solutions related to desertification: creativity, critical thinking/problem-solving, communication, collaboration

What will you achieve?
By the end of the course, you‘ll be able to...

  • Identify causes and consequences of desertification around the globe
  • Apply the 6-step Future Problem Solving (FPS) model to identify challenges, generate and evaluate solutions, and develop an action plan
  • Demonstrate the 4 Cs of learning and innovation--creativity, critical thinking/problem solving, communication, and collaboration--to generate potential solutions to desertification
Go to Class
MOOC List is learner-supported. When you buy through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.

Related Courses

Skills to Succeed at University (FutureLearn) FutureLearn
University of Leeds

Skills to Succeed at University (FutureLearn)

Prepare for university and master academic skills that are essential for undergraduates studying in the UK. Get a head start with your undergraduate studies by learning key academic skills. This two-week course is designed by experienced educators at the University of Leeds to help you transition to higher education smoothly. You’ll pick up top tips and first-hand advice on how to start and thrive at university from current students who came to the University of Leeds through different routes such as after completing a BTEC, A levels or as mature students.

Self Paced
3 Weeks
One Health: Connecting Humans, Animals and the Environment (FutureLearn) FutureLearn
University of Basel

One Health: Connecting Humans, Animals and the Environment (FutureLearn)

BBecome familiar with One Health, a promising concept, and the effective solutions it provides for urgent health problems. Expand how you address health issues, learning from top One Health experts. In today’s globalised world, old diseases persist and new illnesses spread faster than ever thanks to interconnected ecosystems and the close ties between humans and animals.

Oct 9th 2023
5-12 Weeks
Migration, Mobilities and Citizenship (FutureLearn) FutureLearn
University of Bristol

Migration, Mobilities and Citizenship (FutureLearn)

Explore who counts as a ‘migrant’ to better understand the processes and experiences of migration. Develop critical thinking skills around the concepts of migration and mobilities. This two-week multidisciplinary course will enable you to develop all the critical thinking skills you need surrounding the twin concepts of migration and mobilities. You’ll explore contemporary human movements within their historical context, and will also cover the current global situation of COVID-19, as well as the relation of race and racism to migration.

Self Paced
2 Weeks
Planet Earth: Understanding and Protecting our Environment (FutureLearn) FutureLearn
University of Leeds

Planet Earth: Understanding and Protecting our Environment (FutureLearn)

Learn about the physical geography of Earth and discover how to use this knowledge to protect our natural environment. Discover the Earth’s natural systems and how human activity affects them. On this two-week course from the University of Leeds, you will discover the processes of the hydrosphere, the geosphere, and the biosphere and explore the impact of human activity and climate change on our planet.

Self Paced
2 Weeks
Bushfires: Response, Relief and Resilience (FutureLearn) FutureLearn
The University of Newcastle, Australia

Bushfires: Response, Relief and Resilience (FutureLearn)

Discover strategies in preparing for, responding to and recovering from bushfire natural disasters from the world's leading minds. This course is significant for individuals and the public interested in gaining knowledge about reducing their vulnerability to bushfires, effective coping strategies in the aftermath of a bushfire event and building resilience in the face of future disasters.

Aug 24th 2020
3 Weeks
Introduction to Environmental Cost-Benefit Analysis (FutureLearn) FutureLearn
Deakin University

Introduction to Environmental Cost-Benefit Analysis (FutureLearn)

Boost your sustainability career as you gain the practical skills to conduct an environmental cost-benefit analysis. This two-week course will arm you with the skills to be able to choose and implement strategies for carbon reduction in your organisation. What’s more, you’ll gain expertise in environmental cost-benefit analysis to translate climate action into real value for your company.

Aug 28th 2023
2 Weeks
Logical and Critical Thinking (FutureLearn) FutureLearn
University of Auckland

Logical and Critical Thinking (FutureLearn)

Improve your logical and critical thinking skills in this free online course. Identify common obstacles to effective thinking. We are constantly being given reasons to do and believe things: to believe that we should buy a product, support a cause, accept a job, judge someone innocent or guilty, that fairness requires us to do some household chore, and so on. Assessing the reasons we are given to do or believe these things calls upon us to think critically and logically.

Available now
5-12 Weeks
Teaching Migration Through Data and Storytelling (FutureLearn) FutureLearn
SOAS University of London,PositiveNegatives,MIDEQ

Teaching Migration Through Data and Storytelling (FutureLearn)

Explore how migration can be taught using both visual storytelling and big data sets. Help learners understand where, why, and how migration happens. There have been urgent recent calls for curricula to address issues of migration. Yet 78% of British teachers asked by the Runnymede Trust said they needed more support “to equip them to teach migration more sensitively and effectively.” On this course, teachers can develop their skills to explain where and why migration happens.

Dec 5th 2022
3 Weeks
Academic Writing in English for ESL Learners (FutureLearn) FutureLearn
University College London

Academic Writing in English for ESL Learners (FutureLearn)

Develop your academic writing skills in English as a second language (ESL) learner and advance your English writing at university. Improve your academic writing skills for essay writing in English. This course will equip you with the skills to write good persuasive essays in English at university level, as well as improve your critical thinking skills, argument reasoning, and use of external sources for writing in English.

Self Paced
3 Weeks
Impact of Technology: How To Lead Classroom Discussions (FutureLearn) FutureLearn
Raspberry Pi Foundation,National Centre for Computing Education

Impact of Technology: How To Lead Classroom Discussions (FutureLearn)

Learn how to keep 14-16 year-old students engaged in discussions while teaching computer science. Supported by Google. Discover how to keep discussions productive and meaningful in the classroom. On this course, teachers will explore the ethical, legal, cultural, and environmental concerns surrounding computer science. You will build the skills needed to hold relevant, open, and exciting discussions in the classroom.

Nov 1st 2021
3 Weeks
Environmental Challenges: Hierarchy in Property Rights (FutureLearn) FutureLearn
University of Leeds

Environmental Challenges: Hierarchy in Property Rights (FutureLearn)

How does language help us develop our relationship with nature and determine the rights of access and ownership? Increasing populations and social changes are pressurising our relationship with the environment. Property rights are embedded in power structures and land management. This course explores the different ways that nature is perceived by different types of societies and the impact of property rights on natural resource management.

Self Paced
2 Weeks
Environmental Justice (FutureLearn) FutureLearn
University of East Anglia

Environmental Justice (FutureLearn)

Understand how climate change, biodiversity loss and deforestation affect people, exploring justice in environment management. The world faces challenging environmental problems. They are challenging because different people typically contribute differently to environmental change, and because its effects will be felt differently by different people in different places.

Oct 11th 2021
5-12 Weeks