Charting the Path Forward: Deep mapping for empowered, transformative climate solutions education

Abstract

Scientific knowledge alone has proven insufficient for addressing complex, post-normal environmental challenges. This recognition has prompted calls for inter- and transdisciplinary, systems-based education models that empower students to develop creative and holistic solutions. This study examines the impact of the DEEP CLIME curriculum on four measures of student psychological empowerment: meaning, competency, self-determination, and impact under a systems-based climate change framework. DEEP CLIME was developed for this study and is an eight-week, online intervention that uses deep maps to integrate geographic, ecological, historical, and socio-cultural data within a place-based learning framework. Participants included master’s and upper-level bachelor’s students at two American universities: Unity Environmental University and University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point. An explanatory mixed methods design was used whereby student empowerment outcomes were assessed using pre- and post-intervention Likert surveys, analyzed through multiple measures, and interpreted through student discussion board comments and personal observation. Results indicate consistent positive shifts across all domains, with statistically significant gains in competence and self-determination, suggesting increased skills, autonomy, and perceived agency. Changes in the meaningfulness domain were limited, with high pre-intervention scores, suggesting ceiling effects. Shifts in the impact domain were also limited, reflecting the difficulty of shifting perceptions of systemic influence over short timeframes. These findings suggest that a deep mapping curriculum centered on transdisciplinary systems-thinking and solutions can strengthen personal empowerment but may require extended engagement and community-linked feedback to foster perceived impact. The study supports deep maps as a promising pedagogical tool for cultivating empowered, solutions-oriented climate learners.