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Skidmore College
Environmental Studies and Sciences

SPRING 2010 COURSES

Please note that we have several special topics that do not appear on the master schedule list for ES. Please see the description of these courses below.

Courses for the new ES major (for Class of 2012 and beyond)
Courses for the old ES major (for Classes of 2010 and 2011)
Courses for the new ES minor (for Class of 2012)
Courses for the old ES minor (for Classes of 2010 and 2011)
Special Topics Course Descriptions

Courses for the new ES Major (for Class of 2012 and beyond) 
Social and Cultural Perspectives Track (for Class of 2012 and beyond)

Foundation Courses:

  • ES 100 Environmental Concerns in Perspective
  • ES 105 Field Studies in Environmental Science

Core Courses:

  • GO 231 Environmental Policy and Politics

Cluster A Courses:

  • AN 252 Culture, Natural History and Conservation in Madagascar
  • AN 345 Ecological Anthropology
  • EN 280 Environmental Journalism
  • ES 351 Environmental Art
  • ES 351 Environmental Legal Issues
  • HI 217 American Environmental History
  • IA 101 Introduction to International Affairs
  • GO 231 Environmental Policy and Politics
  • PH 225 Environmental Philosophy
  • RE 225 Religion and Ecology

Cluster B1 Courses:

  • BI 325 Tropical Ecology
  • ES 251D The Engineering and Ecology of Energy
  • GE 112 Introduction to Oceanography
  • GE 310 Hydrogeologic Systems
  • GE 316 Stratigraphy

Capstone:

  • ES 375 Case Studies in Environmental Sustainability

Methods:

  • EC 237 Statistical Methods
  • MS 104 Introduction to Statistics
  • SO 226 Social Research Analysis

Courses for the new ES Major (for Class of 2012 and beyond)
Environmental Science Track (for Class of 2012 and beyond)

Foundation Course:

  • ES 100 Environmental Concerns in Perspective

Disciplinary Foundation Courses:

  • BI 106 Biological Sciences II: Diversity of Life
  • CH 105 Chemical Principles I
  • CH 106 Chemical Principles II

Core Courses:

  • ES 206 Watershed Assessment: Dynamics and Integrity of Aquatic Systems

Cluster A Courses:

  • AN 252 Culture, Natural History and Conservation in Madagascar
  • AN 345 Ecological Anthropology
  • EN 280 Environmental Journalism
  • ES 351 Environmental Art
  • ES 351 Environmental Legal Issues
  • HI 217 American Environmental History
  • IA 101 Introduction to International Affairs
  • GO 231 Environmental Policy and Politics
  • PH 225 Environmental Philosophy
  • RE 225 Religion and Ecology

Cluster B2 Courses:

  • BI 325 Tropical Ecology
  • CH 222 Organic Chemistry II
  • ES 251D The Engineering and Ecology of Energy
  • GE 310 Hydrogeologic Systems
  • GE 316 Stratigraphy

Capstone:

  • ES 375 Case Studies in Environmental Sustainability

Methods:

  • MS 104 Introduction to Statistics

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Courses for the old ES Major (for Classes of 2010-2011)
Social and Cultural Perspectives Track (for Classes of 2010 and 2011)

Foundation Courses:

  • ES 100 Environmental Concerns in Perspective
  • ES 105 Field Studies in Environmental Science

Cluster A Courses:

  • EN 280 Environmental Journalism
  • ES 351 Environmental Art
  • ES 351 Environmental Legal Issues
  • HI 217 American Environmental History
  • IA 101 Introduction to International Affairs
  • GO 231 Environmental Policy and Politics
  • PH 225 Environmental Philosophy
  • RE 225 Religion and Ecology

Cluster B1 Courses:

  • BI 325 Tropical Ecology
  • ES 251D The Engineering and Ecology of Energy
  • GE 112 Introduction to Oceanography
  • GE 310 Hydrogeologic Systems
  • GE 316 Stratigraphy

Cluster C Courses:

  • AN 252 Culture, Natural History and Conservation in Madagascar
  • AN 345 Ecological Anthropology

Note: The ES Program will consider counting one or more Cluster C courses toward your Cluster A requirements. Please consult your advisor and/or Karen Kellogg, Director of ES, if you would like to make a request for substitution.

Capstone Course:

  • ES 375 Case Studies in Environmental Sustainability

Courses for the old ES Major (for Classes of 2010-2011)
Environmental Science Track (for Classes of 2010 and 2011)

Foundation Courses:

  • ES 100 Environmental Concerns in Perspective
  • ES 105 Field Studies in Environmental Science

Core Courses:

  • CH 105 Chemical Principles I
  • CH 106 Chemical Principles II

Cluster A Courses:

  • EN 280 Environmental Journalism
  • ES 351 Environmental Art
  • ES 351 Environmental Legal Issues
  • HI 217 American Environmental History
  • IA 101 Introduction to International Affairs
  • GO 231 Environmental Policy and Politics
  • PH 225 Environmental Philosophy
  • RE 225 Religion and Ecology

Cluster B2 Courses:

  • BI 325 Tropical Ecology
  • CH 222 Organic Chemistry II
  • ES 251D The Engineering and Ecology of Energy
  • GE 310 Hydrogeologic Systems
  • GE 316 Stratigraphy

Cluster C Courses:

  • AN 252 Culture, Natural History and Conservation in Madagascar
  • AN 345 Ecological Anthropology

Note: The ES Program will consider counting one or more Cluster C courses toward your Cluster A requirements. Please consult your advisor and/or Karen Kellogg, Director of ES, if you would like to make a request for substitution.

Capstone:

  • ES 375 Case Studies in Environmental Sustainability

Methods:

  • MS 104 Introduction to Statistics

Courses for the new ES Minor (for Class of 2012)
Social and Cultural Perspectives Track (for Class of 2012)

Foundation Courses:

  • ES 100 Environmental Concerns in Perspective
  • ES 105 Field Studies in Environmental Science

Cluster A Courses:

  • AN 252 Culture, Natural History and Conservation in Madagascar
  • AN 345 Ecological Anthropology
  • EN 280 Environmental Journalism
  • ES 351 Environmental Art
  • ES 351 Environmental Legal Issues
  • HI 217 American Environmental History
  • IA 101 Introduction to International Affairs
  • GO 231 Environmental Policy and Politics
  • PH 225 Environmental Philosophy
  • RE 225 Religion and Ecology

Cluster B1 Courses:

  • BI 325 Tropical Ecology
  • ES 251D The Engineering and Ecology of Energy
  • GE 112 Introduction to Oceanography
  • GE 310 Hydrogeologic Systems
  • GE 316 Stratigraphy

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Courses for the old ES Minor (for Class of 2010-2011)

Foundation Courses:

  • ES 100 Environmental Concerns in Perspective

Cluster A Courses:

  • EN 280 Environmental Journalism
  • ES 351 Environmental Art
  • ES 351 Environmental Legal Issues
  • HI 217 American Environmental History
  • IA 101 Introduction to International Affairs
  • GO 231 Environmental Policy and Politics
  • PH 225 Environmental Philosophy
  • RE 225 Religion and Ecology

Cluster B1 Courses:

  • BI 325 Tropical Ecology
  • ES 251D The Engineering and Ecology of Energy
  • GE 112 Introduction to Oceanography
  • GE 310 Hydrogeologic Systems
  • GE 316 Stratigraphy

Cluster C Courses:

  • AN 252 Culture, Natural History and Conservation in Madagascar
  • AN 345 Ecological Anthropology

Note: The ES Program will consider counting one or more Cluster C courses toward your Cluster A requirements. Please consult your advisor and/or Karen Kellogg, Director of ES, if you would like to make a request for substitution.

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Special Topics Course Descriptions:

ES 251 The Engineering and Ecology of Energy - Instructor: Karen Kellogg. Energy is a principle means for providing basic human needs, and it facilitates various opportunities for the achievement of a decent quality of life. Access to affordable, adequate, and sustainable energy sources is a prerequisite for sustainable development, and understanding the design, efficiencies, and environmental impacts of different energy systems is critical to our transition to a cleaner, more equitable energy future. We will explore the fundamental physics of energy, the evolving designs and efficiencies of more traditional and alternative energy production, and the comprehensive ecological impacts of various energy sources and systems. Prereqs. ES 100 and QR1.

ES 351 Special Topics in Environmental Studies: Environmental Art - Instructor: Alison Barnes. From its roots in land art of the 1960's to more recent ecological interventions, environmental art encompasses a range of approaches to connecting art with the environment. In this course, we will examine these approaches and question how they serve environmental concerns and current issues in art. Critical texts, such as Sue Spaid's Ecovention: Current Issues to Transform Ecologies and Brian Wallis and Jeffery Kastner's Land and Environmental Art, will guide our study as we explore environmental art through both theory and practice. Analytical writing assignments and a collaborative environmental art project will be required. Artists discussed will include Robert Smithson, Richard Long, Andy Goldsworthy, Agnes Denes, Mel Chin, and Lynne Hull. Prerequisites: ES100, AR131 or AR132 or permission of instructor. Lab fee: $25

ES 351 Environmental Legal Issues - Instructor: Mark Schachner. This course will entail study, discussion and writing about environmental legal issues at the Federal, State and Local levels. Topics covered will include laws governing air and water pollution, hazardous waste disposal and governmental zoning powers. After initial focus on the "birth" and evolution of environmental regulatory schemes, principally at the Federal level, emphasis will shift to analysis of environmental legal issues of regional and local significance. Class assignments will include analysis of environmental law statutes, regulations and cases, as well as other writings, including current articles, regarding local environmental issues. Students will also learn to find, research and analyze Court Decisions involving environmental law. Discussion group format will enable students to develop advocacy skills in debates among each other and group assignments may include the opportunity to participate in community or regional legal issues of environmental social relevance. Prereq. ES 100.

HI 217: American Environmental History – Instructor: Eric J. Morser. This course explores American environmental history from pre-colonial times through the modern era. We will investigate a number of themes including how the different landscapes and ecologies of North America shaped the continent's history, the links between industrialization and the environment, economic and political struggles for control of natural resources, and changing American perceptions of nature. Ultimately, by examining these themes we can understand how the nation's rich environmental history has crafted the world that we inhabit today.

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