First-Year Courses in EnvironmentConsult the new Course Guide at: http://www.lsa.umich.edu/lsa/cg_subjectlist/0,2030,8,00.html?show=20&termArray=f_04_1510&cgtype=ug This page was created at 1:08 PM on Wed, May 5, 2004. Fall Academic Term, 2004 (September 7 - December 23)ENVIRON 110(UC 110) / BIOLOGY 110 / GEOSCI 171 / GEOG 110 / NRE 110 / AOSS 171 / ENSCEN 171. Introduction to Global Change: Physical Processes.Section 001.Instructor(s): Ben A Van Der Pluijm (vdpluijm@umich.edu)Prerequisites & Distribution: (4). (NS). (BS). May not be repeated for credit. Satisfies the geography requirement for State of Michigan certification for social studies teachers. Credits: (4). Course Homepage: No homepage submitted. Instructor(s):
Every day, millions of human and natural activities are altering the planet on which we live. Over the past century, through our ever-increasing population and mastery of technology, we have been changing the global environment at a pace unknown to natural history. The University of Michigan Global Change Program offers an interdisciplinary, introductory course sequence which investigates the causes and potential impacts of these changes using a combination of traditional lecture-based and modern web-based teaching methodologies. The Fall Academic Term course deals with issues relating to the physical, chemical, and biological cycles contributing to Global Change. Students apply learned knowledge by using spreadsheet and systems modeling software to investigate the dynamics of natural systems. The Web-based course curriculum provides unparalleled opportunities to conduct on-line Internet research. In fact, you will create your own web-based poster on a topic of your choosing. The interactive laboratory exercises provide you the opportunity to use computers to examine how natural systems function as well as develop projections of the future consequences of changes in the environment. And, perhaps most important of all, you will have ample time for discussion of the critical issues in human development and how they relate to the international business community, global economics, society as a whole and the individual. All topics are developed in a manner that students will find both accessible and enjoyable. The course grade is based on two midterm exams, a final exam, completion of laboratory modules, and a course project based on some aspect of global change. There are no prerequisites for the course and no science background is assumed. The course is appropriate for all undergraduate students, irrespective of intended concentration, and is the first of a series of courses that can be taken as part of the Global Change Minor. You will discuss...
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ENVIRON 139. First-Year Seminar in the Environment.Section 001 — Environmental Conflict: Science, Policy and Social Dimensions.Instructor(s): Julia Wondolleck (juliaw@umich.edu)Prerequisites & Distribution: Only first-year students, including those with sophomore standing, may pre-register for First-Year Seminars. All others need permission of instructor. (3). (ID). May not be repeated for credit. First-Year Seminar Credits: (3). Course Homepage: No homepage submitted. Environmental problems are complex. They are a tangled web of scientific, political, historical, social, economic, legal, and psychological factors. This seminar will use the lens of "environmental conflict" to examine these multiple dimensions of environmental problems. Three conflicts will be explored in detail: the restoration of wolves to Yellowstone National Park; the decline of New England's fishery; and the toxic chemicals conflict portrayed in the book and movie A Civil Action.
ENVIRON 139. First-Year Seminar in the Environment.Section 019 — Environment, Sustainability & Social Change. MEETS WITH UC 154.001.Instructor(s): James E Crowfoot (crowfoot@umich.edu)Prerequisites & Distribution: Only first-year students, including those with sophomore standing, may pre-register for First-Year Seminars. All others need permission of instructor. (3). (ID). May not be repeated for credit. First-Year Seminar Credits: (3). Course Homepage: No homepage submitted. The purpose of this seminar is to begin to understand at both the global and local levels, the emerging responses to major problems resulting from unprecedented environmental changes. Initiatives to achieve future sustainability will be the focus of the seminar. We will begin with a multidisciplinary examination of global environmental and related social changes. Focus will be on the needs of humans and other life forms, including the biophysical conditions on which life depends. Interconnections between the natural environment and social and cultural systems will be emphasized. To help develop a "global" perspective, we will identify implications of these changes for local communities, particularly in the U.S.A. By critically examining the multiple meanings of "sustainable development" and "sustainability" and related practices, the seminar will address the emerging choices and actions for change. Emphasis will be on changes being pursued by communities, organizations, and individuals in response to growing perceptions of the unsustainability of established values and behaviors. Also, we will examine our own lifestyles in relation to achieving greater sustainability. To understand initiatives to achieve greater sustainability in local geographical communities, we will study the topics of sustainable consumption, land use, food security and agriculture, materials use, and business and economy. Discussions of these topics will draw upon print and electronic resources, presentations by guest practitioners, and community based experiences of the seminar's members. Readings will come from a wide range of publications including core books of readings by different authors (e.g.,People, Land and Community, Vital Signs 1999, and Eco-Pioneers) and articles from a variety of journals (e.g., The Futurist, Science, Resurgence, Harvard Business Review, and Co-op Quarterly). Seminar members over the course of the academic term will select and complete a project of their choice. Each seminar member will be expected to involve herself/himself in relevant learning activities of their choice beyond the seminar and within the University as well as the surrounding community. If they choose to, students will have the opportunity to pursue and integrate into their seminar work service learning experiences related to the pursuit of sustainability. Information and other learning from these involvements will be incorporated in the seminar. Writing assignments will include options for individual choice and utilize the forms of a journal and integrative essays expressed as op-ed articles, short research papers directed to different audiences, news articles, and book reviews. Essential parts of the seminar learning process will include thorough preparation for discussions and active participation in presenting and discussing ideas as well as in actively listening and responding to other seminar members. Assignments will be mostly individual but some will involve groups.
ENVIRON 201. Ecological Issues.
Section 001.Instructor(s): James Stephen DianaPrerequisites & Distribution: (4). (NS). (BS). May not be repeated for credit. Credits: (4). Course Homepage: No homepage submitted. A course involving lectures and discussions on ecological principles and concepts underlying the management and use of natural resources, with consideration of socioeconomic factors and institutional roles. Throughout the course, emphasis is placed on the importance of interdisciplinary approaches to matters concerning the allocation of natural resources and the quality of our environment. Topics covered include biodiversity, endangered species, exploitation practices, tropical deforestation, agriculture, air and water pollution, energy production and use, waste disposal, and the role of politics and economics in environmental issues.
ENVIRON 270 / NRE 270. Our Common Future: Ecology, Economics & Ethics of Sustainable Development.
Section 001.Instructor(s):Prerequisites & Distribution: (4). (Excl). May not be repeated for credit. Credits: (4). Course Homepage: No homepage submitted. An interdisciplinary foundation of the concepts and strategies of sustainability from an ecological, economic, and sociopolitical perspective. The quest for sustainable development is the most critical, yet challenging, issue of our times. Defining what sustainable development is and how it ought to be accomplished is profoundly influencing government, academics, business, science, and people's culture and livelihoods at the local, national, and global scale. The disciplines of ecology, economics, sociology, and politics are experiencing major paradigm shifts that seek to re-address our proper role and influence on the planet and its resources.
Through readings, discussions, and assignments, we will explore the discourse, perspectives, methodologies, and limitations of interrelated disciplines — all essential for charting a new common future. Full (book) case studies in environmental and natural resource issues from three major professional perspectives are presented as real working examples of how environmental policies and outcomes are shaped in practice. The aim is to foster critical thinking and to evaluate what we all can contribute to the pursuit of a sustainable biosphere.
Consult the new Course Guide at: http://www.lsa.umich.edu/lsa/cg_subjectlist/0,2030,8,00.html?show=20&termArray=f_04_1510&cgtype=ug This page was created at 1:08 PM on Wed, May 5, 2004.
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