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Sustainability - Related Courses ’09 – ‘11
ANTHROPOLGY 180 - FS: First-Year Seminar Fall ‘10
What is nature? How does it shape culture, and vice versa? Do societies have a simple choice
between causing environmental collapse and living in harmony with the natural world? This
class explores the insights that anthropology, the study of human cultures, gives us about
questions concerning the complex relationship between people and the environment. Using
numerous case studies from archaeology and ethnography, we work to understand the ways that
different groups of people have engaged with the natural world of which they are a part.
Ultimately, these materials inform the notion of environmental stewardship in our own society.
BIOLOGY 210 - Human Parasitology Spring ‘10
A survey of the phenomenon of animal parasitism, including discussion of the chief
distinguishing structures, life cycles, and functions of major pathogenic parasites infecting
humans and other animals.
BIOLOGY 325 - Ecological Modeling and Conservation Strategies Spring ‘10
This course is an intensive introduction to foundational methods in ecological modeling and their
application, with emphasis on the dynamics of exploited or threatened populations and
developing strategies for effective conservation. Topics include managing harvested populations,
population viability analysis, individual based models, and simulation modeling for systems
analyses. Laboratory course.
BIOLOGY 332 - Plant Functional Ecology Spring 10
The emphasis and location of the study area differs from year to year. Information regarding the
specific course topic and field trip schedule is made available in the fall. Through novel research
projects in a variety of field settings (e.g., on-campus, Appalachian and Blue Ridge Mountains,
The Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem), this field-based laboratory course covers topics which
investigate the vital roles that plants play in shaping Earth’s ecosystems. Topics focus on the
responses of native plants to environmental stresses, such as global climate change (elevated
temperature and carbon dioxide and drought), herbivory, and invasive species. Field and
laboratory exercises focus on testing hypotheses through experiments using a variety of species
from intact plant communities. A review of the pertinent literature is used to develop and
conduct a term research project. Laboratory course.
BUSINESS 180 - FS: First-Year Seminar Spring ‘11
International Corporate Social Responsibility and Sustainability
This seminar explores the interplay between individual citizens, government, and business as
agents for social change. Cross-cultural variation in the relative role of each in addressing such
change is considered, as students spend time in both the U.S. and Copenhagen, Denmark. Site
visits introduce “live” case studies that examine the contrast between CSR perspectives in the
two countries. Students are introduced to the concept of “the triple bottom line” and consider the
responsibility of business, as well as that of government and other organizations, in each of the
three areas (people, planet, profit). Spring 2011 and alternate years
BUSINESS 345 - Business Ethics Fall ‘10
An examination of the moral and ethical issues associated with management policy and
executive decisions. The course examines the basic approaches to moral reasoning, macro-moral
issues concerning the justice of economic systems, and micro-moral issues, such as the
following: conflict of interest, whistle blowing, discrimination in employment, product safety,
environment, and advertising.
ENV. STUDIES 110 - Introduction to Environmental Studies Fall ’10 & Winter ‘11
An interdisciplinary introduction to environmental studies with an emphasis on how societies
organize themselves through their social, political and economic institutions to respond to
environmental problems. The course begins with a discussion of the development of
environmental thought, focusing on the relationship between humans and the environment.
Participants then discuss alternative criteria for environmental decision making, including
sustainability, equity, ecological integrity, economic efficiency, and environmental justice. The
course concludes with an examination of contemporary environmental issues, including global
warming, invasive species, energy and the environment, tropical deforestation, and the
relationship between the environment and economic development in developing countries.
ENV. STUDIES 210 - Biogeography and Sense of Place Spring ‘11
Through field studies of plant species, complemented by discussions of readings that describe the
history of the field of biogeography, from the early 19th century to the present, we explore the
underlying evolutionary and ecological processes responsible for patterns of distribution, and the
lessons this information provides for species conservation. We focus most especially on the work
of Charles Darwin in his groundbreaking narrative, The Voyage of the Beagle. Students practice
a variety of writing techniques to develop their own skills in observation and interpretation.
ENV. STUDIES 250 - Ethics, Ecology and Economics in Land-Use Practices Spring ’11
Think globally, study locally. This course explores globally significant environmental issues
such as biodiversity conservation, sustainable delivery of ecosystem goods and services, and
environmental justice, as they are manifested on a local/regional scale. We examine interactions
among ethical, ecological, and economic concerns that shape these issues. Students are fully
engaged in the development of policy recommendations that could guide relevant decision
makers. The course incorporates readings, field trips, films, and discussions with invited experts.
ENV. STUDIES 395 - Special Topics in Environmental Ethics Winter ’11
Economics, Ecology and Ethics in Environmental Policy
This course focuses on the values that shape environmental decisions. Public policy seeks to
maximize social utility. In economic terms this means allocating resources so as to maximize the
satisfaction of individual preferences. However, our policy decisions regarding the environment
also pursue certain ecological goals, such as the preservation of biodiversity and the maintenance
of healthy and functioning ecosystems. In addition, environmental policy is constrained by
ethical concerns such as the pursuit of environmental justice and our responsibilities to future
generations. This course addresses such questions as: To what degree are these three kinds of
policy goals in tension with one another? How can we clarify our thinking about these policy
goals so as to harmonize them where possible and reasonably negotiate the tradeoffs when they
come into conflict?
GEOLOGY 105 - Earth Lab Spring ‘11
Resources and Consequences & Volcanology
The emphasis and location of the study area differs from year to year. Most course activity
involves outside field work with a series of multi-day to multi-week field trips. The primary goal
of this course is an in-depth introduction to a particular region or field of geological study for
introductory level science students. Information about the course is made available prior to the
end of the fall term.
GEOLOGY 150 - Water Resources Fall ‘11
A seminar examining the quality and quantity of water resources as a limiting factor for future
generations. Issues include resource depletion, pollution, historical use and abuse, remediation,
and habitat maintenance. Resource constraints are analyzed from a scientific perspective in order
to understand or predict water resource problems and solutions.
PHILOSOPHY 108 - Ethics and the Environment Fall ‘10
This course is a philosophical exploration of one’s responsibilities to the natural world. It has
three main objectives: first, to provide an understanding of different dominant ethical theories
and their application to animals, plants, and ecosystems; second, to provide an understanding of
major environmental issues in current political debates, such as climate change, species
preservation, and sustainable development; and third, to facilitate the development of a student’s
own ethic towards the environment.
PHILOSOPHY 352 - Ethics of Globalization winter ’11 & alt. years
This seminar examines a number of ethical issues raised by the phenomenon of globalization.
Though globalization is not new, recent business, technological, and policy developments have
made the world more integrated and interdependent than ever before. Increasing economic,
cultural, and political interconnections have created a host of new questions about how to
conceive of the moral rights and responsibilities of individuals, multi-national corporations,
nation-states, and global institutions within this new global framework. This course identifies
and clarifies some of these questions, and considers how they have been addressed from a variety
of different disciplinary perspectives. Questions concerning the ethics of globalization are
approached through an analysis of a few specific topics, such as immigration, humanitarian
intervention, and global poverty and inequality. Because the issues raised by the phenomenon of
globalization cross disciplinary boundaries, readings are drawn from a wide variety of fields,
including philosophy, business, economics, political science, and anthropology.