Sustainability (SUS)

The purpose of this interdisciplinary, advanced topic course in sustainability is to assist students in the process of integrating the material from the core courses in the minor into a unified whole. Through reading and discussion of seminal and contemporary texts, students will examine and analyze the contemporary debate on if and how our globalized society can transition from conventional operating systems which experts say have us on a crash course for extinction, toward modes of living and being which prioritize human need, well-being and planetary biophysical boundaries, and ideally, result in sustainable prosperity for more than just a small percentage of wealthy and powerful groups. This course will also challenge students to look at how interdisciplinary sustainability issues manifest within their chosen disciplines. The course is meant to provide students with the intellectual tools they need to examine current events and problems, as well as suggested “fixes” for those problems, through a systems thinking lens, and with an enlightened and percipient view of future impacts. It is also meant to counter the “doom and gloom” feelings that are inevitably conjured up in environmental and sustainability courses, with a hopeful view of the potential for social change and a viable way forward, of which they should feel better prepared to be a part of after completing this course.

Prerequisite(s): Completion of at least 12 credits of the Required Courses in Sustainability Minor, including BI360.

The sustainability internship is a 90-hour (2 credit) or 120-hour (3 credit) sustainability-based/career-oriented work experience performed outside the university. It is arranged and developed by the individual student in conjunction with the sustainability director. The purpose of the internship program is to encourage students to gain firsthand experience in a specific sustainability-based career, or provide students opportunities to satisfy personal learning objectives that require facilities outside the university.

Prerequisite(s): Completion of 12 credits in the minor.