Sustainability Minor

This minor requires a multidisciplinary study of the environmental, social, and economic dimensions of sustainability

Requirements

To obtain a minor in sustainability a student must complete at least 30 credits (at least 15 of which must be taken in residence at PSU), to including the following:

Courses

ESM 150	Orientation to Environmental Sciences and Management	1
UnSt 224	Environmental Sustainability	4
ESM 222	Applied Environmental Studies: Policy Consideration	4
	Upper-division credits to include at least a total of four courses from the following three categories	15-16

Students must choose at least one course from each category.

Economics and Business Issues

Ec 332U	Economics of Environmental Issues	4
Ec 444	Economics of Green Power	4
Ec 433/ESM 433	Advanced Natural Resource Economics	4
Ec 434/ESM 434	Business Environmental Management Economics	4
Ec 443	Global Environmental Economics	4
USP 490	Green Economics and Sustainable Development	3
Ec 430	Resource and Environmental Economics	4
ESM 357	Business Solutions for Environmental Problems	4

Social and Management Issues

Arch 367U	Fundamentals of Environmental Design	4
Geog 340U	Global Water Issues and Sustainability	4
Geog 345U	Resource Management	4
Geog 346U	World Population and Food Supply	4
Geog 347U	Environmental Issues and Action	4
Geog 442	Sustainable Cities	4
Geog 465	Tuscany: Sustainability in City and Country	4
Hst 339U	The Environment and History	4
Phl 310U	Environmental Ethics	4
PS 319	Politics of the Environment	4
Sci 321U	Energy and Society I	4
Sci 322U	Energy and Society II	4
Soc 341U	Population Trends and Policy	4
Soc 465	Environmental Sociology	4
SySc 334U	Modeling Social-Ecological Systems	4
USP 313U	Urban Environmental Issues	4
USP 325U	Community and the Built Environment	4
USP 419/Soc 441	Population and Society	4

Environmental and Ecological Issues

ESM 355U	Understanding Environmental Sustainability I	4
ESM 356U	Understanding Environmental Sustainability II	4
ESM 420	Ecological Toxicology	4
ESM 424	Wetland Ecology	4
ESM 426	Ecology of Streams and Rivers	4
ESM 428	Urban Ecology	4
ESM 445	Old-growth Forest Ecology	4
ESM 460/CE 488	Air Quality	4
Sci 335U	Water in the Environment I	4
Sci 336U	Water in the Environment II	4
Sci 352U	Science and Policy of Climate Change	4

In addition, students must choose an appropriate capstone or internship:

UnSt 421	Capstone	6
ESM 450	Case Studies in Environmental Problem Solving	0-6
ESM 404	Cooperative Ed/Internship ESM Sustainability Minor	6

(A list of acceptable capstone and internship courses will be prepared for each year).

Total Credit Hours: 30-31

Courses taken under the undifferentiated grading option (pass/no pass) will not be accepted toward fulfilling minor requirements. Courses with omnibus numbers 401, 404, 405, 406, and 407 are not allowed for the minor. Additional courses may be required as prerequisites. Only grades of C- or above count toward satisfying the minor requirement.

NOTE: Students earning the minor in sustainability may not also earn the sustainable urban development minor offered by the Toulan School of Urban Studies and Planning unless the courses presented for the minors differ by at least 12 credits. Only grades of C- or above count toward satisfying the minor requirements.