Combine studies of ecological and environmental health with a calling for economic welfare and social justice.
Sustainability is most commonly defined as meeting the needs of the present generation without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs. The field of Sustainability Studies explores and critiques ways to do this in the context of maintaining ecological and environmental health while generating economic welfare and ensuring social justice.
The Sustainability Studies curriculum integrates across disciplines with its goal of instilling understanding, appreciation and thoughtful problem solving skills in students regarding the relationships and interactions of human society and the environment. Students examine issues related to sustainability and explore how those issues impact and are addressed at local, national and global levels, providing an interdisciplinary background that is needed to understand many of the complex challenges facing our world and equipping students with the skills needed to develop solutions to these problems. We seek to build a community of faculty and students with a diversity of perspectives and areas of expertise committed to seeking creative solutions for sustainability.
In class and on campus, sustainability grows and thrives.
The College again receives a STARS Gold Rating for campus sustainability efforts and is named a national leader in water conservation by the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education.
This fall, Claire Pancoast ’22 intends to interview peers to discover what it might take for them to switch to more environmentally friendly options.
The College is also on the Great College Theater and Green Colleges lists.
Amanda Clark ’22 conducted summer research exploring Indigenous perspectives on the environment and how they might be better incorporated into the field of sustainability studies.
