Course Descriptions

Course descriptions for courses central to the Minor

EV 150: Earth Environment: Introduction to Physical and Human Geography
(Gateway to Environmental Studies)
An examination of the spatial patterns of the natural forces that build up and break down the earth's exterior, and their impact on human life; it studies the spatial patterns of human behavior, in its impact on the earth and on other human beings. The use and understanding of maps will be stressed, in the consideration of continental drift, oceans, earthquakes, volcanoes, soil formation, weather systems, natural resources and the impact of population growth, agriculture, urbanization and mass migrations. No prerequisites.

EV 200/AE 284: Environmental Ethics
A survey of the environmental problems that arise in our attempts to reconcile the demands of human fulfillment, economic activity and the requirements of ecological balance. Issues considered include the diverse perspectives of conservation, preservation and deep ecology. Student projects cover the wise use of resources; pollution of land, air, and water; conservation of species and open space; global climatic change; and the future stewardship of oceans, forests and the atmosphere. Prerequisite: one course in philosophy, one course in religious studies.

EV 300/AE 384: Seminar on the Environment (Capstone Experience)
Environmental Studies naturally integrates the hard sciences (biology, chemistry, and physics), the social sciences (including politics, law, and business) and the humanities (especially English literature and religious studies). It already has its own Ethics component, interdisciplinary in content between policy studies and philosophy. The Capstone Experience will provide each student with an opportunity to review perspectives on the natural environment from each of these disciplinary groups, and to conduct an independent research project which must demonstrate, in one limited problem, a mastery of the scientific basis, the policy options, the ethical implications of these options and their larger cultural significance. Prerequisites: two courses in philosophy, two courses in religious studies, and at least one course in ecology or environmental science.

EV 299 and EV 399: Independent Study on the Environment
Any student may propose, and having acquired support from one faculty member and the Dean proceed to execute, an interdisciplinary project on environmental issues. EV 299 may be taken at any stage in the student's career; EV 399 is reserved for seniors who are minoring in Environmental Studies, and is conjoined with an internship with some organization involved in preserving or managing the natural environment.

BI 75: Ecology and Society
Students examine the available scientific evidence, and are encouraged to draw their own conclusions concerning environmentally sensitive issues. These issues are covered through lectures, readings, films, and occasional off-campus field trips (by arrangement). Areas of concern include environmental issues raised by modern society's conflicting needs for land, water, a livable environment, and renewable/nonrenewable resources. This course is open to all except biology majors. Note: this course counts as a science core course, but does not satisfy requirements for the Biology major or minor.

BI 78: Introduction to Marine Science
This course is designed to introduce the non-science major and the marine science minor to the field of oceanography. Consideration is given to the interdisciplinary nature of the study of the world's oceans by including topics dealing with the geological, physical, chemical and biological aspects of the science.

BI 79: Rainforest Ecosystems
This course is designed to introduce the non-science major to the rainforest. The rainforest ecosystem is examined from a botanical and environmental perspective. Temperate (North American) and tropical (South American, African and Asian) rainforests are examined in this context. The importance of biological diversity and natural products is emphasized. Solutions for saving rainforests are analyzed.

BI 260: Ecology
A hierarchical approach to scale and complexity is used to present ecology at different levels such as species, populations, communities and ecosystems. Through quantification of natural history, the course investigates mechanisms of and responses to environmental change. Concepts of energy flow and nutrient cycles are introduced and discussed within local, synoptic and global frameworks. Laboratory exercises and field trips to local ecosystems are used to demonstrate ecological interconnections. This is a 4-credit laboratory course required of (and normally restricted to) biology majors. Admission to others with permission of instructor.

CH 85: Chemistry, Energy and the Environment
This course explores the flow of energy in modern society from the perspective of chemistry. Topics of discussion include energy sources such as hydrocarbons, biomass, hydro, solar, tidal, wind, and nuclear. The concepts of bonding, thermodynamics, kinetics and work are employed to investigate these and related questions. Economic and political forces which shape our use of energy are discussed. Mathematics prerequisite: basic algebra. No formal prerequisites.

PS 93: Energy and Environment
This course introduces topics relating to work, energy, and power. Many of the environmental consequences resulting from our use of energy will be explored. The finite nature of our fossil fuels will be examined, as well as many of the alternatives to energy resources, including solar energy, wind, tidal, and geothermal energy, nuclear fission, and nuclear fusion. Mathematics prerequisite: arithmetic and simple algebra. No formal prerequisites.

PS 220: Pollution in the Environment
This lecture/laboratory course introduces students to a range of physical and chemical techniques used to monitor and assess the sources, level and flux of pollutants in the environment. The course considers the specific pollution sources, the pathways by which pollutants travel through the ecosystem, the deleterious effects of pollution, and approaches to pollution prevention and remediation. Prerequisites: CH 11-12.

EC 120: Environmental Economics
This course gives an overview of the theory and empirical practice of economic analysis as it applies to environmental issues. First, it establishes a relationship between the environment and economics. Then it develops the concept of externalities (or "market failures") and the importance of property rights. Next it explores the valuation of non-market goods. Of most current interest, it examines the practice of benefit-cost analysis. Finally, it offers economic solutions to market failures, while highlighting pollution control practices, especially those based on incentives. Throughout, the course examines current issues regarding environmental protection around the globe.

BU 120: Environmental Management and Policy
This course provides an opportunity to consider the environmental impact of policy decisions, business decisions in the context of environmental concerns, and environmental issues in economic contexts. There are no prerequisites. The course format combines readings, cases, simulations, in-class discussions, student papers and presentations.

EN 378: The Spirit of Place-Environment as a Shaper of Identity in America
This course explores the psychological, sociological, and physical effects of the American Environment from the East coast to the West coast through essays, drama, novels and poetry. Through the writings of Arthur Miller, Tennessee Williams, Robert Frost, Emily Dickinson, Willa Cather, Edith Wharton, Nathaniel West, Wendell Berry, Philip Levine, M. Scott Momaday, among many others, the student studies the connection between place and soul as the sociological history of America unfolds chronologically. The student is able to better understand his/her identity rooted in a particular place through the mirror of literature.

HI 287: A Green History of Latin America
This course deals with the history of the understanding and treatment of human and natural resources in Latin America from the time of triumphant indigenous empires, ca. 1500, through the colonial Spanish and Portugese empires, the unstable 19th century independent republics, the "modernizing" 20th century republics and the neo-liberal empire of the "New World Order." The course examines how the ruling elites throughout these eras understood and utilized human and natural resources, how voices of dissent responded to the policies of those ruling elites, and how those voices fared under those elites.

HI 362: The Frontier: Man, Nature, and the American Land
The interaction of man and the American land from the earliest colonial settlements to the present. The course includes an analysis of the Turner thesis; a survey of regional evolution (New England and the Southwest, for instance); the westward movement; the experience of the pioneer women; and mining, cattle, and farming frontiers. Finally, the course examines changing attitudes toward the environment as reflected in the writing of American naturalists.

AE 275: Global Environmental Issues
A survey of environmental issues on the global scale, exploring ethical and economic dilemmas of liberty and law, justice and welfare, as they arise in the increasing interaction of developed and developing nations. One focus of the course will be the role of science-with special reference to scientific uncertainty-in the articulation of issues like global warming, the depletion of the ozone layer, and species extinction. The ethical dilemmas and environmental implications of the work of multinational corporations will be examined through case studies and group discussion; term projects will focus on selected areas and industries. Prerequisites include one course each in Economics, Environmental Science, Philosophy and Religious Studies.

Alternating with

AE/EV 271: The Sacred Balance
This course examines contemporary perspectives and diverse cultural worldviews demonstrating a reciprocal relationship between humanity and the natural world. This approach analyzes the ways established and new fields in the sciences can reunite knowledge of the world with a sense of the sacred. Extending into the realm of meaning and value, scientific as well as spiritual perspectives jointly address the ecological challenges confronting contemporary society and the evolution of human consciousness.

AE 283: Environmental Justice
An examination of the political impact of our global environmental crisis through the lens of the relationship of the self to the society at large. Noting our current scientific, ethical, spiritual and ecological dilemmas, the course explores alternative cultural models and current initiatives aimed at creating a globally sustainable future.

AE 297 Ecofeminism
This course explores the historically strong association between women and nature, in which the image of Mother Earth is central, and critiques the power-as-domination assumption of our culture shown in the exploitation of women and of the earth itself. Religious, psychological, social, historical and scientific manifestations of this assumption will be examined, along with alternative models of power and responsibility.