A biology professor at Augustana College will finally get to teach a class on climate change. Dr. Steven Hager is very passionate about the subject. And he's already taught workshops about it.
Students who take Hager's current classes, like zoology, learn how climate change affects animal behavior. And in other classes he can relate it to weather such as Hurricane Michael and Florence.
"Hurricane Florence just a few weeks ago just devastated North Carolina - how much is that going to cost us? How many storms can our economy absorb before there is a tipping point at which the cost to maintain these excessive storms out weights the amount of money and resources we have to put into it."
Hager says most colleges and universities do not offer a class on climate change.
"Only 30 percent of the colleges and universities in the United States did [have a class on climate change]. So, students aren't learning about climate change in any kind of detail. So, I want our students to at least get this experience. They're inheriting our planet. It's imperative that I do this. You know what I mean?"
Augustana will begin offering the class next fall. Hager will also continue his workshops on the Art and Science of Climate Change in Davenport and New Mexico with his colleague, photographer Trent Foltz.