June 2019: Sustainability minor

Interested in pursuing a Minor in Sustainability Studies? This interdisciplinary minor is designed for students who are interested in working in the sustainability field, green entrepreneurships and startups, and want to be a part of the change to protect the environment in an equitable way. It offers a model for new undergraduate curriculum that emphasizes the central academic role of UCSC's college system. This is open to all UCSC students!

The curriculum is structured to:(i) facilitate interdisciplinary academic and research collaborations among faculty and students across multiple UCSC divisions (drawing on but outside of the divisional structure)

(ii) teach and train students to apply entrepreneurial design skills to the ecology and sustainability of design and application in the built environment, and combine STEM skills and social science knowledge to these ends

(iii) meet undergraduate demand for a sustainability curriculum with focuses distinct from those offered in existing UCSC departments

(iv) prepare students for professional careers in sustainability and entrepreneurship

The minor is designed to be a complement to students’ majors, allowing them to broaden their applied skills and knowledge, and their ability to analyze and understand complex systems and their interactions through society and the environment.  The minor will provide skills useful for work with non-profits, government agencies, small businesses and startups.  Businesses are increasingly interested in sustainability and specific positions are difficult to fill. Institutions of higher education, government agencies and others are also seeking staff with expertise in sustainability.

Learning objectives:Through the program’s learning objectives, students will:

1. Understand the causes, features, data, complexities, policies and practices giving rise to and needed to address the contemporary global socioecological crisis; the role of production, consumption, politics, policies, markets and behavior in this crisis; and options and alternatives for moving toward and achieving sustainability.

2. Learn basic applied STEM skills needed for dealing with real-world applications including assessments, measurements, technologies, behavior and other factors related to objective

3. Become cognizant of appropriate social science knowledge and methods needed to design and implement social enterprise and service learning projects in sustainability and ecological design and practice.

4. Design and conduct interdisciplinary research projects in issues and topics that are related to sustainability, including energy, food, water, the built environment, life-cycle analysis, waste disposal and recycling.

5. Design and participate in service-learning projects in collaboration with on- and off-campus units, agencies and organizations, and apply the knowledge and skills acquired through the minor.

To learn more about courses, see this page.
To learn more about program goals and course learning objectives, see this page.