UM Geological Sciences

In partnership with the Graham Environmental Sustainability Institute, this course will introduce students to concepts and environmental consequences of sustainable and fossil energy sources. The course will begin with an introduction to the scientific principles and terminology of the field. Students will then gain a deeper understanding of the topic through hands-on experiments using alternate energy systems at Camp Davis, which will include a combination of solar photovoltaic, solar heating, wind generation and/or hydroelectric. The Camp Davis campus will be used as a small experimental “city” where energy and resource use can be carefully monitored and manipulated by students. In addition, the class will travel throughout Wyoming and Idaho visiting and investigating facilities important for power generation including such facilities as a nuclear reactor, hydroelectric generation station, wind farm, solar farm, and gas and coal generators. Studies of the ecological consequences of various power options will take the class to sites which may include a uranium mine, a coal mine and a natural gas field. Finally students will study the ecology of forest growth and succession and deep-well injection to gain an understanding of carbon storage in soils and vegetation, and principles of carbon sequestration.

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Tuition: Tuition for three U of M credits must be paid directly to the University of Michigan and will be billed on June 30th, 2010. Guest students are charged upper division rates. Up to date tuition rates can be found at the U of M Registrar website. Departmental Financial Aid to help offset tuition cost is available. All students ( including guest students ) are encouraged to apply. Please direct any questions to campdavis@umich.edu or call 734-615-8600

Please click the link above to visit our Frequently Asked Questions page for more info regarding Camp Davis.

To apply to the Camp Davis Program, click the link above and fill out the Application. You may be asked for recommendation letter from a current or former faculty member.

Acceptance into GEOSCI 344 requires evaluation by the Graham Environmental Sustainability Institute.