The diploma thesis is focused on solving specific issues related to the manifestations, causes and impacts of the global environmental change, with possible adaptations and also with procedures that will lead to the mitigation of negative impacts. The thesis has the character of a scientific study of basic or applied research. Depending on the topic, the graduate also demonstrates mastery of contemporary field, laboratory, cartographic, geoinformatics and statistical methods and techniques.

The student prepares the thesis in the form of a comprehensive dissertation (60 to 80 pages of text), which also includes a research overview of the current state of affairs and a discussion of their own results in the context of current knowledge about the issue. For each diploma thesis, the fulfillment of the requirements arising from its assignment, professional level, formal and linguistic adjustment, quality and aesthetics of the performance are evaluated.

At least one week before student will obtain the review. The defense is public. The defense of the thesis is a debate during which the candidate presents the topic of the thesis, the problems solved, the methods used and the results obtained. He/she responds to the comments contained in the opinions of the supervisor and the opponent of the thesis, and answers questions raised during the defense.

General scenario:

• student’s PPT presentation (cca 15 minutes, appropriate structure will be recommended)
• supervisor and reviewer read their opinion/evaluation,
• student responds to reviewer’s questions
• general discussion - questions from the commission members or from the auditorium

Global environmental change

The content of the compulsory part is the substance of the four basic profiling subjects listed below. You will answer one specific question from the topics below.

Global change issues - Physical geography

1. Significant changes in the climatic system (recent climate change, depletion of ozone layer, ENSO): causes, impacts, current situation
2. Global hydrological issues and hydrological changes in watersheds: river system, hydrological change, watershed
3. Human impact on landforms in the context of ongoing environmental change: drivers of landforms’ change, direct and indirect human impact on landforms
4. Components of cryosphere and global warming: state and distribution of contemporary cryosphere, evidences for cryospheric changes, and methods of observations
5. Ecological impacts of global change: concepts, structures, processes, biodiversity, pressures, assessment methods, DPSIR scheme

Global change research methods

1. Basic data sources in contemporary climatology, climate variability in time, time series components and methods of time series analysis
2. Assessment of current river condition: data and methods (hydromorphological monitoring, evaluation of change, field measurements)
3. Data and methods for predicting species distributions in space and time
4. Methods of field research in human geography (quantitative and qualitative methods, primary and secondary data, questionnaire survey, interview, focus group, observation, mental map)

Global change issues - Human geography

1. The evolution of geographical thought - behavioral geography, humanistic geography, radical geography, feminist geographies, postmodern geographies, poststructuralist geographies.
2. The global dimension of mobility – mobility, motility, mobility turn,
   accessibility, crisis-driven migration, eco-ableism.
3. Economic geography - global economic processes, economic development, globalization, international division of labour, foreign direct investment, mass tourism, overtourism.
4. Urban geography – global settlement processes, urbanization, metropolization, world cities, urban inequalities.

Mapping of global change

1. Technical and mathematical foundations of geoinformatics and cartography (data models, data formats, software tools, web services, coordinates systems, data classification)
2. Basic methods of geospatial data processing and analysis (transformations of data models and coordinates systems, spatial analysis and modeling, selections, overlay algebra operations, basic raster analysis)
3. Environmental geospatial data sources (metainformation, licenses, finding available relevant data, open data, crowdsourcing – OpenStreetMap)
4. Applications of GIS and remote sensing technologies relevant to environmental research (introduction to remote sensing, satellite systems, land cover changes, agricultural and other applications)

Student will choose one of the subjects listed below (depending on the focus of his/her thesis) and answer one specific question from the topics listed below.

1. Physical basis of environmental changes

• Recent climate change – causes, carbon cycle (sources and emissions, changes in carbon concentrations in the past, carbon footprint) and impacts of climate change
• Urban heat Island (UHI) – its formation, basic types, data for UHI analysis, UHI intensity estimates, measures to mitigate UHI negative impacts
• Interactions between the environment and human society: the Anthropocene, natural resources and natural hazards, impact and risk, planetary boundaries concept, major human actions affecting the environment, the IPAT equation, the UN sustainable development goals
• Interactions among climate change and anthropogenic pressures in freshwater ecosystems: degradation, restoration, pressure types, indicators, water management

2. Human aspects of environmental changes

• Participation in scientific research - citizen science typologies, principles, projects and platforms. Volunteer engagement, management and care. Open science and open technologies.
• Data quality in citizen science research, basic regulations and ethics, research integrity, Sustainable Development Goals.
• Spatio-temporal and population research (spatio-temporal dynamics, mobilities, rhythms, applied demography, population projections)

3. Environmental change geoinformatics

• Interpretation of satellite imagery (false and true colour, digital image properties, physical principles)
• Analysis of remote sensing data (spectral indices, radiation transfer model, types of classification)
• Cartographic visualizations related to environmental research (thematic cartography, space-time visualization, spatial data quality and uncertainty principles and visualization, user aspects of cartographic visualizations)
• Basic principles of SDI – Spatial Data Infrastructures (data management, web services, policies, monitoring and reporting)