FALL 2019 COURSES
Courses for the Environmental Studies Major
Courses for the Environmental Science Major
Courses for the Environmental Studies and Sciences Minor
Special Topics Course Descriptions
COURSES FOR THE ENVIRONMENTAL STUDIES MAJOR
Foundation Courses:
- ES 100 Environmental Concerns in Perspective
Core Courses:
- EC 104 Introduction to Microeconomics
- ES 224 Political Ecology
- ES 252 Environmental Justice
Cluster A Courses:
- AN 252C Indigenous Peoples of South American Rainforest
- AN 352D Ritual and Ceremonial Landscapes
- AS 221 The Himalayas: Interdisciplinary Perspectives on the "Roof of the World"
- EC 104 Introduction to Microeconomics
- ES 224 Political Ecology
- ES 252 Environmental Justice
- ES 303 The Politics of Food
- ES 305 Environmental Education
- HI 267 American Indian History
- HP 131 Introduction to Public Health
- HP 351C Public Health Global Perspective
- MB 351D Business and the Natural Environment
- SO 351R Population Dynamics in Sociological Perspective
- WLS 325 Advanced Studies: Environmental Perspectives
Cluster B1 Courses:
- BI 115H Ecology of Food
- BI 140 Marine Biology
- ES 222 Energy Systems and Sustainable Solutions
- GE 101 Earth Systems Science
- GE 112 Introduction to Oceanography
- HP 242 Principles of Nutrition
Capstone:
- ES 374 Environmental Studies Research Capstone
Methods:
- EC 237 Statistical Methods
- ID 210 Introduction to GIS
- MS 104 Introduction to Statistics
COURSES FOR THE ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE MAJOR
Foundation Course:
- ES 100 Environmental Concerns in Perspective
Disciplinary Foundation Courses:
- BI 108 Organismal Biology
- CH 125 Principles of Chemistry
- GE 101 Earth Systems Science
Core Courses:
- ES 205 Ecosystem Science and the Analysis of Forested Landscapes
Cluster A Courses:
- AN 252C Indigenous Peoples of South American Rainforest
- AN 352D Ritual and Ceremonial Landscapes
- AS 221 The Himalayas: Interdisciplinary Perspectives on the "Roof of the World"
- EC 104 Introduction to Microeconomics
- ES 224 Political Ecology
- ES 252 Environmental Justice
- ES 303 The Politics of Food
- ES 305 Environmental Education
- HI 267 American Indian History
- HP 131 Introduction to Public Health
- HP 351C Public Health Global Perspective
- MB 351D Business and the Natural Environment
- SO 351R Population Dynamics in Sociological Perspective
- WLS 325 Advanced Studies: Environmental Perspectives
Cluster B2 Courses:
- BI 241 Ecology
- BI 338 Plant Biotechnology
- CH 221 Organic Chemistry I
- CH 222 Organic Chemistry II
- ES 222 Energy Systems and Sustainable Solutions
- ES 308 - Soil and Watershed Science for a Crowded Planet
- GE 251D/351D Ocean and Atmosphere Dynamics
- GE 301 Hydrogeology
- HP 242 Principles of Nutrition
Capstone:
- ES 374 Environmental Studies Research Capstone
Methods:
- BI 235 Biostatistics
- ID 210 Introduction to GIS
- MS 104 Introduction to Statistics
COURSES FOR THE ENVIRONMENTAL STUDIES AND SCIENCEs MINOR
Foundation Courses:
- ES 100 Environmental Concerns in Perspective
- ES 205 Ecosystem Science and the Analysis of Forested Landscapes
Cluster A Courses:
- AN 252C Indigenous Peoples of South American Rainforest
- AN 352D Ritual and Ceremonial Landscapes
- AS 221 The Himalayas: Interdisciplinary Perspectives on the "Roof of the World"
- EC 104 Introduction to Microeconomics
- ES 224 Political Ecology
- ES 252 Environmental Justice
- ES 303 The Politics of Food
- ES 305 Environmental Education
- HI 267 American Indian History
- HP 131 Introduction to Public Health
- HP 351C Public Health Global Perspective
- MB 351D Business and the Natural Environment
- SO 351R Population Dynamics in Sociological Perspective
- WLS 325 Advanced Studies: Environmental Perspectives
Cluster B1 Courses:
- BI 115H Ecology of Food
- BI 140 Marine Biology
- ES 222 Energy Systems and Sustainable Solutions
- GE 101 Earth Systems Science
- GE 112 Introduction to Oceanography
- HP 242 Principles of Nutrition
Cluster B2 Courses:
- BI 241 Ecology
- BI 338 Plant Biotechnology
- CH 221 Organic Chemistry I
- CH 222 Organic Chemistry II
- ES 222 Energy Systems and Sustainable Solutions
- ES 308 - Soil and Watershed Science for a Crowded Planet
- GE 251D/351D Ocean and Atmosphere Dynamics
- GE 301 Hydrogeology
- HP 242 Principles of Nutrition
SPECIAL TOPICS COURSE DESCRIPTIONS:
AN-252C: Indigenous Peoples of South American Rainforest Instructor: R. Clasby
From lost tribes to head-shrinking, the cultures of the South American rainforests
have long fascinated the Western imagination. With this fascination, however, come
broad misconceptions as Western culture has often characterized tropical forest peoples
as “primitive” and the rainforest as incapable of supporting and sustaining complex
cultural developments. Students will examine these misconceptions and learn about
the indigenous peoples of the South American tropical rainforests from their initial
settlement to the ethnographic present. Students will learn that tropical forest peoples
were not simply products of their environment but actively shaped the rainforest to
their needs and that many groups created complex cultural sociopolitical formations.
Students will examine the nature of the complex interplay between humans and their
environment, as well as modern characterizations of lowland people that are strongly
reflective of cross-cultural exchanges with the Western world. Students will learn
about tropical forest cultures through an archaeological and anthropological examination
of their settlement patterns, sociopolitical organization, economic activities, interaction
with the environment, religious traditions, and material culture. Prerequisites: AN 102. Cross-Listed: ES, LAS, IA
AN-352D: Ritual and Ceremonial Landscapes Instructor: R. Clasby
Landscapes are more than simply environmental zones that people inhabit. Anthropologists
recognize landscapes are culturally constructed spaces that give order and place to
social, ritual, and political practices within a community. In this course, students
will use an anthropological approach to studying the ways in which ancient landscapes
embodied the cosmological and ideological belief systems of their societies, providing
physical space for memory, ritual, and ceremony. Through a survey of case studies
ranging from the Inca to the builders of Stonehenge and the Easter Island Moai, students
will gain an understanding of archaeological approaches towards landscape and an appreciation
for the variation that exists among ancient cosmological systems. Prerequisites: AN 102. Cross-Listed: ES, LA
ES 252 Environmental Justice Instructor: AJ Schneller
An exploration of local, national, and international case studies that highlight the
origin of environmental racism and disproportionate impacts on underserved populations
from environmental hazards, vulnerability, and inequalities in enforcement of regulations.
Cases will demonstrate how unequal distributions of power affect individuals and communities,
through both overt and covert forms of discrimination. We’ll work to dissect the research
and policy challenges to incorporate environmental justice into environmental law,
collaborative problem solving, and advocacy tactics used to alleviate health, ecological,
economic, and equity issues facing communities. The course investigates contemporary
proactive shifts in the EJ Movement to advance climate justice and urban ecosystem
justice, and the provision of urban environmental amenities. Field trips to nearby
environmental justice sites in New York, and classroom visits by community influential,
lawyers, writers, and policy makers. Prerequisites: ES 100.
GE 251D, GE 351D Ocean and Atmosphere Dynamics Instructor: G. Gerbi
An exploration of ocean currents, atmospheric motion, weather systems, and their variability
on timescales of days to decades. Students will investigate atmospheric and oceanic
circulation and how humans interact with these coupled systems. Topics will include
an introduction to fluid motion; waves; transport of heat, water, and other chemical
constituents; and prediction of weather and currents. Student work in GE 251D and
GE 351D will be both qualitative and quantitative, but the quantitative work in GE
351D will be more appropriate for students who have background and comfort with calculus.
Prerequisites: MA 111
HP 351C Public Health Global Perspective Instructor: M. Korre
Knowledge of global public health is critical in today’s interconnected and globalized world. The objective of this course is to enable students to gain a fundamental understanding of global public health concepts that is data and evidence based; and to address health problems, and concerns that transcend national boundaries and may be best addressed by cooperative actions. Students will identify and discuss critical global health concepts including the determinants of health, the measurement of health status, the importance of culture to health, and the global burden of disease. Students will also examine the demographic and epidemiologic transitions, the role of data by the regions of the World Health Organization; and gain an understanding of the application of the public health principles to global health issues and to the complex array of global and local forces that affect them. Prerequisite: HP 131
MB 351D Business and the Natural Environment Instructor: J. Kennelly
This case-based course aims to foster awareness, sensitivity and literacy concerning the major forces and challenges bearing upon the intersection of business organizations and the natural environment. It broadly examines and appraises the role of business enterprise in relation to the current (and future) state of the planet. The course begins by reviewing major ecological and socio-economic challenges facing the planet, including population growth, human poverty, climate change, toxic pollution, loss of biodiversity, etc, paying particular attention to the impacts of business enterprise upon each issue. The course then turns to an assessment of sustainable development and biophysically and socially sustainable business practices. The course concludes with a comprehensive assessment of various ways business may become a proactive force in an evolution to global sustainability.
Prerequisites: MB 107, EC 103, 104. Environmental Sciences and Studies students, and others, are
welcome with permission of instructor.
SO 351 Population Dynamics in Sociological Perspective Instructor: A. Emeka
In this course we will consider the causes and consequences of rapid human population
growth in the 20th century with an eye on the future. This means exploring patterns
of birth, death, and geographic distribution of the human population and all attendant
processes—including but not limited to family formation, sexual practices, neonatal
care and practice, conceptions of childhood, disease transmission/control, international
migration, etc. The destructive potential of climate change, among other things,
has made clear to us the inextricable links between human societies around the world
and the need for interdisciplinary approaches to understand and, we hope, solve pressing
problems that have taken on global dimensions. Therefore, this course will necessarily
have an international/comparative and interdisciplinary orientation. It is, however,
a sociology class that will pay special attention to social forces that bear on demographic
processes.
WLS 325 Advanced Studies: Environmental Perspectives Instructor: O. Perez
A study of a specific aspect of the relationship between culture and the environment
in the Spanish-speaking world. The focus in a given semester can vary between theoretical
approaches (environmental cultural studies, ecocriticism, postcolonial theory, feminist
and queer ecologies, posthumanism, energy humanities), forms (nature writing, ecocinema,
ecopoetry, green media, climate fiction, environmental communication), social and
cultural perspectives (vivir bien, indigenous Pachamama, degrowth, environmental justice),
periods, and geographies. Prerequisites: WLS 211 or WLS 212
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