ENV 2151 - Sustainability

Credits: 4
This course reviews several ways we may understand and resolve the potentially conflicting imperatives of human development and the maintenance of natural systems - in the present and future. To achieve global and local development that is sustainable, it is widely agreed that a variety of contemporary social and environmental challenges must be overcome concurrently. To this end, this course is focused on examining the critical sustainability challenges we face and their available solutions, drawing heavily on the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals and the Project Drawdown framework, arguably the world’s leading resources for climate and society solutions. We will use international and domestic case studies to understand these sustainability ideas - including their promise and their limitations. To develop your skills in the application of sustainability solutions, we will also review sustainability efforts across campuses in North America, culminating in the semester-long Campus Sustainability Project. This final project will challenge you to assess the state of sustainability at McDaniel College and offer practical solutions to improve its environmental footprint.
McDaniel Plan: Social, Cultural and Historical Understanding; International