The Environmental Studies Major & Minor

General Information

The educational objective of the Environmental Studies Program is to provide resources and cultivate an atmosphere whereby students

1. appreciate the intellectual and practical complexities of environmental problems and solutions,
2. master key concepts and methods of environmental analysis drawn from, and integrating, a broad range of disciplines, and
3. fuse this background knowledge and analytical ability with leadership and communication skills to successfully devise and implement creative, academically grounded solutions to environmental problems.

A major in Environmental Studies is appropriate for students desiring future employment in the environmental arena, or as a broad, systematic liberal arts background to support further scholarly study in related natural science, social science, and humanities fields. Environmental Studies also offers a minor (see below).

For more information see the Catalog. Recent course syllabi can be downloaded below.

The Major Program & Requirements

The major includes core courses in environmental studies, breadth courses in the natural sciences, social sciences, and humanities, and a concentration or second major. Core courses are designed to weave together concepts and skills drawn from breadth course fields in order to build an intellectually coherent understanding of environmental problems and solutions. The core sequence starts with a broad introductory course, followed by development of quantitative and qualitative analytical skills, and advanced treatment of environmental problems and solutions, culminating with a senior project representing original scholarly research on a topic of practical relevance. Breadth courses in fields including biology, geology, economics, sociology, international affairs, history, and philosophy provide important discipline-specific tools for environmental analysis. Students choose courses defining a concentration in order to gain greater depth in one particular subfield of environmental studies as preparation for research culminating in the student’s senior project.

Major requirements are spelled out in the Catalog; additional resources are provided on our help page. Updated course syllabi for each course are available by following the course link. Requirements total a minimum of 63 semester credits:

1. 21 semester credits of core Environmental Studies courses, including Environmental Studies 160, 220, 310, 320, and 400, plus a one-credit 499 independent study as preparation for 400. 160 should ideally be taken during the freshman year, 220 and 310 during the sophomore year, 320 during the junior year, and 400 during the senior year. This schedule can be adjusted somewhat to account for overseas study, which all majors are urged to pursue in conjunction with a number of environmental research opportunities (see below).
2. 26 semester credits of breadth courses in the natural sciences (any two of Biology 141, Chemistry 110, and Geology 150), social sciences (Economics 260 and Sociology/Anthropology 305 or International Affairs 257), and humanities (Philosophy 215 and one 4-credit humanities elective, to be approved prior to taking the course).
3. A 16-credit concentration, designed to build thematic specialization in a coherent research area the student will choose for the senior project, plus adequate analytical preparation to do this research. The concentration may take a natural science, social science, or humanities focus, but must be proposed at the time the major is declared, and no later than spring semester of the sophomore year. At least two courses must be upper-division. Please contact the Environmental Studies Program or visit the help page for proposal details. The concentration requirement is fulfilled if the student is completing a second major at Lewis & Clark, but the student will be expected to complete a senior project applying this second field to environmental studies.

The Minor Program & Requirements

1. Four ENVS core courses, including 160, 220, 310, and 320.
2. Any two ENVS breadth courses, drawn from Biology 141, Chemistry 110, Geology 150, Economics 260, International Affairs 257, Sociology/Anthropology 305, or Philosophy 215.
3. Note: Enrollment preference given to departmental majors fulfilling degree requirements.

Honors

Students who distinguish themselves academically (GPA of 3.5 in the major and overall) are invited to apply for the opportunity to participate in the honors program. Honors candidates work with faculty advisers to develop proposals for research projects, whic must be approved by a committe of three environmental studies faculty members. Generally, the project will be completed as a part of Environmental Studies 400 (Senior Seminar). Each student prepares a written thesis in draft form, which must be circulated to the committee no later than the ninth week of the student's final semester. After the student completes the final version of the thesis and makes a formal oral presentation to the faculty, the faculty determine whether to grant honors on graduation.

Course Syllabi

Download PDF versions of recent course syllabi: