Increasingly frequent and severe wildfire, flooding and storm events are raising concerns about how society can adapt to environmental change. Key to identifying opportunities for adaptation is the concept of social vulnerability. Social vulnerability refers to the geographic and socio- economic influences on the chance of harm to humans and the capacity of people to prepare and respond. This course will introduce students to the concepts of social vulnerability and adaptation as well as frameworks for assessing vulnerability in human communities. The course will not address these concepts  from an environmental policy of politics perspective. Rather, that course will explore theories and methods for investigating social vulnerability and adaptation from a behavioral perspective. Students will learn methods and skills for analyzing community exposure, sensitivity and adaptive capacity, and evaluating vulnerability assessment. The focus will be on climate change and related natural hazards relevant to coastal and inland areas of the US, including wildfires, drought, flooding, sea level rise and storm events Small group discussions, projects and conversations with practitioners will engage students in co-learning.