Earth and Sustainability, Minor

Program Code: EASUS_UMNR

Program Description

By the time current undergraduates send their children to college, Earth's population will have increased to more than eight billion people. One or more metropolitan areas in our increasingly crowded world will have experienced a devastating earthquake or volcanic eruption, sea level rise will be inundating low-lying coastal cities such as Jakarta along with whole island nations, energy resources will be less available and more expensive, and our climate will be warmer and characterized by more frequent extreme weather events.
How we choose to plan for and attempt to mitigate these "grand challenges" will have consequences for individuals, nations, and our global socioeconomic and political systems.

Personal and collective actions are needed to ensure the sustainable use of our natural resources and environmental systems—land, air, and water—in an ethical and responsible manner. The United States needs to build robust educational pathways for its citizenry to develop the global perspective, cultural sensitivity, economic wisdom, and scientific acumen to inform their actions and address these grand challenges. The geosciences (marine, Earth, and atmospheric sciences) that explain the workings of the Earth system  provide critical insight into all of these challenges and, consequently, must be firmly integrated into those educational pathways. These programs seek to promote that integration through engaging the geoscience community and their colleagues in allied disciplines in the development of high-quality educational materials, and mechanisms by which these materials can be effectively brought to large numbers of students.

The goal of this minor is to dramatically increase geoscience literacy of undergraduate students, including   the large majority that do not major in the geosciences, and especially adult learners through the online program, such that they are better positioned to make sustainable decisions in their lives and as part of the broader society.

What is Earth and Sustainability?

The Earth and Sustainability minor program is designed to provide students with the knowledge needed to make well-informed, environmentally sustainable decisions. It increases geoscience literacy and addresses key sustainability issues, such as the impact of climate change on Earth and its inhabitants, access to clean drinking water, sustainable energy, and the hazards posed by our overpopulated coastal regions.

You Might Like This Program If...

  • You are passionate about sustainability and the environment.
  • You want a better understanding of the science behind and potential effects of climate change.
  • You want to know more about the complexities, challenges, and opportunities involved in planning for the Earth's future.
  • You would like to explore both the scientific and the social aspects of big problems like population growth, resource management, and climate change.

Program Requirements

Requirement Credits
Requirements for the Minor 18

Requirements for the Minor

A grade of C or better is required for all courses in the minor, as specified by Senate Policy 59-10. In addition, at least six credits of the minor must be unique from the prescribed courses required by a student's major(s).

Prescribed Courses
Prescribed Courses: Require a grade of C or better
EARTH 103NEarth in the Future: Predicting Climate Change and Its Impacts Over the Next Century Keystone/General Education Course3
EARTH 402Modeling the Earth System3
Additional Courses
Additional Courses: Require a grade of C or better
Select three of the following:9
Climate, Energy and Our Future Keystone/General Education Course
EARTH 111
Coastal Processes, Hazards and Society Keystone/General Education Course
Food and the Future Environment Keystone/General Education Course
Supporting Courses and Related Areas
Supporting Courses and Related Areas: Require a grade of C or better
Select 3 credits from the approved list of EMS courses. Approved courses are:3
Energy in a Changing World
Global Energy Enterprise
Geo-resource Evaluation and Investment Analysis
GEOG 412
Human Use of Environment
Geography of Water Resources
Energy Policy
Human Dimensions of Global Warming
Energy Industry Applications of GIS
Natural Disasters
Natural Resources: Origins, Economics and Environmental Impact
Hydrogeology
From Meteorology to Mitigation: Understanding Global Warming

Academic Advising

The objectives of the university's academic advising program are to help advisees identify and achieve their academic goals, to promote their intellectual discovery, and to encourage students to take advantage of both in-and out-of class educational opportunities in order that they become self-directed learners and decision makers.

Both advisers and advisees share responsibility for making the advising relationship succeed. By encouraging their advisees to become engaged in their education, to meet their educational goals, and to develop the habit of learning, advisers assume a significant educational role. The advisee's unit of enrollment will provide each advisee with a primary academic adviser, the information needed to plan the chosen program of study, and referrals to other specialized resources.

READ SENATE POLICY 32-00: ADVISING POLICY

University Park

Timothy Bralower
Professor of Geosciences
535 Deike Building
University Park, PA 16802
814-863-1240
bralower@psu.edu

Contact

University Park

DEPARTMENT OF GEOSCIENCES
503 Deike Building
University Park, PA 16802
814-865-6711
contact@geosc.psu.edu

https://www.geosc.psu.edu