Schools, Departments & Programs

Environmental and Sustainability Studies

Minor in Environmental and Sustainability Studies

The curriculum of the Environmental and Sustainability Studies minor is designed to provide students a broad introduction to the complex system-scale challenges of sustainability as well as the tools needed to address problems that transcend solely social or environmental domains. It combines introductory coursework with classes on human–environment systems. Students then choose one of five concentrations (Sustainable Food Systems, Sustainable Energy and Resources, Environmental Ethics and Justice, Biodiversity and Sustainability, or Sustainability Individualized Program).

Requirements

Students must complete at least 18 credit hours in Environmental and Sustainability Studies coursework, including the following:

  1. One Introductory Sustainability course (3 cr.)
    • ANTH-E 101 Sustainability and Society
    • BIOL-L 222 The City as Ecosystem
    • GEOG-G 208 Environment and Society
    • GEOL-G 105 Earth: Our Habitable Planet
    • SPEA-E 162 Environment and People
  2. One Human–Environment Systems course (3 cr.)
    • ANTH-E 328 Ecological Anthropology
    • ANTH-E 418 Globalization and Consumer Culture
    • ANTH-E 444 People and Protected Areas: Theories of Conservation
    • GEOG-G 315 Environmental Conservation
    • GEOG-G 341 Ecological Restoration: Science, Politics, and Ethics
    • GEOG-G 343 Perspectives on Environmental Decisions
    • GEOG-G 411 Sustainable Development Systems
    • GEOG-G 444 Climate Change Impacts
    • GEOG-G 448 Capitalism and Nature
    • GEOG-G 449 Political Ecology
    • GEOG-G 453 Water and Society
    • GEOG-G 478 Global Change, Food, and Farming Systems
    • POLS-Y 313 Environmental Policy
    • SPEA-E 332 Introduction to Applied Ecology
    • SPEA-E 457 Introduction to Conservation Biology
    • SPH-O 305 Integrated Resource Management
    • SPH-O 343/CLLC-L 300 (Approved topic: Fundamentals of Sustainable Agriculture)
    • SPH-O 360 Human Health and Natural Environments
  3. A minimum of twelve credit hours in one concentration. Concentration Areas are:
  4. At least 9 credit hours in the minor must be completed at the 300–400 level.
  5. At least 9 credit hours must be completed on the Bloomington campus.
  6. One course that is required for the minor (with the exception of the Introductory Sustainability course) may count toward two minor requirements.

Note: Students pursuing the Bachelor of Science in Environmental Science are not eligible to earn the minor. In fulfilling the above requirements, students must also meet all other College requirements for minors.