Environmental Studies Major

Students graduating from this program will:

• Understand the relations among God, humanity, and the nonhuman creation as revealed in the scriptures, in theology in general, and Reformed theology in particular
• Differentiate various schools of environmental philosophy and ethics and articulate a differentiated Christian environmental ethic
• Understand the interdependent structure and functioning of physical-ecological systems at a variety of scales and their dynamic character even apart from human influence
• Understand the interdependence and interconnectedness of environmental and societal change as well as the history of domestic and international responses to environmental degradation
• Know the interplay of factors that result in human-induced environmental change, including human population, poverty, affluence, and resource consumption
• Understand the spatial patterns of human-environmental interactions
• Know the basic structures of environmental policy and law that pertain to specific environmental issues (water quality, climate change, biodiversity protection, etc.)
• Be able to prioritize environmental issues in terms of their threats/impacts on social and environmental sustainability.

Dr. Jamie Skillen (jrs39@calvin.edu) is the program advisor and will be responsible for the student’s overall academic progress, with particular attention to core requirements and various electives.

Majors will also have an advisor from the department of the chosen discipline. The disciplinary advisor will be responsible for work that the student does in their disciplinary track.