55 courses with the subject ENV, each shown exactly as we captured it from the college's catalog, with every element we hold. Where the wording looks broken, that is our reading of the catalog, not the college's text.
Instructor Staff The Environmental Studies Department will welcome a new faculty member in the environmental social sciences in the 2018-19 academic year. As of this time, the instructor and topic of the course are still to be determined, but the course will count toward the social sciences track of the Environmental Studies major and minor.
Instructor Joshi Overview of social science approaches to environmental issues, with problem-based and topical approaches to the study of interactions between society and the environment. This course teaches students to integrate concepts and the qualitative and quantitative methods of the social sciences (primarily anthropology, economics, geography, psychology, political science, and sociology) in interdisciplinary analyses of environmental issues. Satisfies a requirement for the Environmental Studies major or interdisciplinary minor. Satisfies the Social-Scientific Thought requirement.
Instructor Peacock, Swenson-Lengyel Overview of humanistic approaches to environmental issues, including perspectives from art, cultural studies, history, literature, philosophy, and religion. This course emphasizes humanistic methodologies such as close reading and analysis of primary and secondary materials in both written and visual forms. Satisfies a requirement for the Environmental Studies major or interdisciplinary minor.
Instructor Chapman A study of basic geologic principles and critical issues in environmental geology on a global scale. Topics to be covered can include: minerals, rock types and cycles, earthquakes and tectonics, volcanoes, mass wasting, stream systems, coastlines, soils, water resources, mineral and rock resources, fossil fuels, and climate change. Generally, the class will divide time between learning introductory geologic principles and applying those principles to understand environmental issues associated with geology. Satisfies the Natural Science requirement. Satisfies depth or breadth course requirement in Natural Science Track of the Environmental Studies major or interdisciplinary minor.
Instructor Nyairo This course will explore how five elements changed earth’s past and will shape our future. Hydrogen, oxygen, carbon, nitrogen, and phosphorus are five of life’s essential elements. Over the course of our planet’s history, microbes, plants, and people have used these fundamental building blocks of life to alter climate, and with it, the trajectory of life on earth in the past, present, and future. Although these elements underpin the success of human civilization, their mismanagement threatens catastrophic unintended consequences. The course will illuminate a potential path to sustainability, informed by the constraints imposed by life’s essential elements. Satisfies Environmental Studies major and minor requirement.
Instructor Peacock This course introduces students to the concepts, contexts, and conflicts of environmental justice, both in the U.S. and globally. After covering some general history and theoretical frameworks, the course is organized according to six cases studies (Love Canal, Hurricane Katrina, Hydro-Quebec, US migrant farmworkers, Bhopal, and Ogoniland). Throughout this interdisciplinary course based in the environmental humanities, students will make connections among various kinds of information sources (literary, documentary, ecocritical, theoretical, ethical, historical, etc.). For the final course project, students will create their own environmental justice case study, based on a case not covered in class, and with their choice of relevant literary text, documentary film, and background readings. Satisfies a requirement for the Environmental Studies major Satisfies a requirement for the Environmental Studies minor Satisfies the Cultural Diversity requirement
Subject Varies Prior offering Professor: A. Tutwiler Global Food Systems Transformation Global food systems are failing. Globally, 30% of the world’s population is food insecure and 30% of global population is malnourished. The sector employees 1 out of 3 people, who are often living at or below the poverty line. Nearly 30% of food is lost or wasted. Food and agriculture account for 30% of greenhouse gas emissions; 80% of deforestation, 70% of global biodiversity loss, 25% of land degradation and 70% of freshwater use. This course will take a systems approach to look at the challenges facing today’s global food and agricultural sectors and how those challenges can be met, from the perspective of 6 major developed, emerging and developing agricultural countries. There are no prerequisites for this course, as leaders from every discipline will be needed to address these multifaceted challenges.
Instructor Gfroerer An introduction to engineering design through a focus on energy and the environment. Students work in teams to create computer-controlled models of solar-powered buildings. Class meets for 2 hours 3 times/week in a combined discussion/laboratory setting with 3 hours of open laboratory activity per week. Counts as an environmental natural sciences content course for the environmental studies interdisciplinary major and minor. Satisfies a requirement in the Experimental Physics minor. Satisfies the Natural Science requirement. Prerequisites & Notes Who Should Take This Class? Does not count for credit in the Physics major. This class welcomes all Davidson students, especially first- and second-year students that have not yet chosen a major, non-science major students, and students interested in Engineering and/or Environmental Studies. There are no math or science prerequisites, and no prior experience in physics is expected. Of course, we will need to use math - at the level of high school algebra and trigonometry - in this course. The creative and open-ended nature of the labs and final design project will give all students the opportunity to work at an appropriate and rewarding level consistent with relevant STEM preparation. Students of all cultures, backgrounds, and abilities are welcome, valued, and appreciated in this class.
Instructor Nyairo This course takes a deep dive into Earth’s atmosphere and hydrosphere and how they change over space and time. Topics of study will include atmospheric composition, atmospheric dynamics and their expression in everyday events, linkages between the atmosphere and hydrosphere, and how they interact with the biosphere. These processes, despite their immediacy and effect on personal level, are not readily understood. Physical laws and principles that play out in meteorology and climatology will be introduced. The course may include outdoor activities geared towards understanding atmospheric phenomena. Learners will be able to distinguish weather from climate, and carry on informed conversations with an understanding of the “why” of occurrences.
Instructor Nyairo The climate of the Earth is changing. It has always changed. It will continue to change. How do we assess the impact of humanity on climate? We need to understand how our Earth system works, if we expect to predict our climatic future. This course looks at anthropogenic climate change and explores potential impacts, mitigation and adaptation. Topics covered include: the Greenhouse Earth, climate feedbacks, the impact of human activity on climate, the impact of climate on human activity, and future scenarios. Class discussions, demonstrations, and exercises will be used to provide opportunities for students to apply their knowledge and practice analytical techniques. Satisfies depth and breadth course requirement in the Natural Science track of the Environmental Studies major or interdisciplinary minor.
Instructor Staff Mni Wiconi - water is life. This course focuses on how water movement, water hazards and water resources affect human societies, ecosystems, and our changing planet. Students will learn about broad topics in water science, including oceans, rivers, ice, hydrology, and aquatic ecology. Case studies will look at recent destructive floods, river restoration projects, and agricultural water use. Interactive labs and field trips will include projects on groundwater contamination, delta development, and river hydrology. Satisfies Environmental Studies major and minor requirement- Natural Science, Humatities, and Social Science Tracks. Satisfies Natural Science Ways of Knowing requirement.
Instructor Johnson This course works to help students understand the physical diversity of North Carolina and the southeast by looking at the earth processes that create various terrains. Specifically, we break down the region into physiographic provinces: the coastal plain, the Piedmont, and the Blue Ridge. Then we examine how different surface processes worked to create each of those regions. In the coastal plain, we examine how beach processes shape the landscape, transport sand, and move barrier islands. In the Piedmont, we examine how a relatively inactive landscape comes to be dominated by weathering and soil processes. In the Blue Ridge, we look at the ways that gravity impacts landscapes by driving landslides and rivers. Along the way, we examine the ways that landscapes impact human populations. Satisfies Environmental Studies major and minor requirement
Instructors Staff Students will apply biological, chemical and epidemiological content to environmental health case studies and community-based learning projects. This is an introductory course designed to expose students to different scientific disciplines within the context of environmental health. Satisfies an interdisciplinary minor requirement in Public Health. Satisfies depth or breadth course requirement in Natural Science Track of the Environmental Studies major or interdisciplinary minor . Satisfies the Liberal Studies requirement. Prerequisites & Notes ENV 232 may not be taken for credit after ENV 233.
Instructors Staff Students will apply biological, chemical and epidemiological content to environmental health case studies and laboratory projects. This is an introductory course designed to expose students to different scientific disciplines within the context of environmental health. ENV 233 may not be taken for credit after ENV 232. Satisfies an interdisciplinary minor requirement in Public Health. Satisfies the Natural Science requirement. Satisfies depth or breadth course requirement in Natural Science Track of the Environmental Studies major or interdisciplinary minor.
Instructor Nyairo Covering 71% of the surface, yet mostly unexplored, the Earth’s oceans are a source of food, hurricanes, used as a wastebasket by human kind, and a great unknown in our climate future. This introductory course covers the formation of ocean basins; the composition and origin of seawater; currents, tides, and waves; the ocean-atmosphere connection; coastal processes; the deep-sea environment; productivity and resources; marine pollution; and the influence of oceans on climate. The class will focus on how oceanic systems work with class discussions, demonstrations, and exercises providing opportunities for students to apply their knowledge and practice analytical techniques. Satisfies depth and breadth course requirement in the Natural Science track of the Environmental Studies major or interdisciplinary minor.
Instructor Chapman, Nyairo Geographic information is not bound to any particular way of knowing and can be used to visualize and analyze spatial information of any type. This course will teach methods for using geographic information that will be applicable across the liberal arts. This course serves as an introduction to the ArcGIS software and will explore its abilities in a combination of inclass exploration, explanation, and exercises that teach the functionality of the software using interdisciplinary examples with a primary, but not exclusive focus, on environmental issues. For instance, we can visualize issues of environmental justice by mapping demographic data. Conservation issues can be better understood through mapping environmental data. Land use history can be explored through a blending of narrative, historical maps, and modern satellite imagery. In the later part of the course, we will spend time exploring and learning about some of the more interesting geostatistical tools available with the ArcGIS software. All skill levels with computers are welcome. Some comfort with PC-based software will be helpful at the start. Counts as an Applied Environmental Science course in the Natural Science track of the Environmental Studies interdisciplinary major. Counts as a methodology or elective course in the Environmental Studies major. Satisfies the Mathematical and Quantitative Thought requirement.
Instructor Staff This course is designed to allow students to have a fundamental understanding of environmental pollution in air, land, and water. Furthermore, the course gives insights about the fate, toxicity, and biomagnification of emerging contaminants in the natural food web in terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems. Satisfies Environmental Studies (Natural Studies) major and minor requirement. Prerequisites & Notes Students who take this class cannot also take ENV 238.
Instructor Cisneros The course will study the issues and science driving the international environmental and climate change policy agenda and the governance architecture that has developed around these, including the Sustainable Development Goals and the Paris Agreement. Students will develop a nuanced understanding of the social, political, and economic drivers of these issues, and the diverse contexts in which relevant policy is formulated. The course will sample the rich and novel repertoire of policy instruments available to tackle environmental issues globally, and will dig deep into the complex and fluid dynamic between the public and the private as it relates to sustainability. Provides social science track depth component credit in the Environmental Studies major and interdisciplinary minor. Satisfies Political Science major requirement.
Instructor Staff Political ecology is an interdisciplinary field that explores the social, political, economic, and ecological processes underlying resource conflicts. By adopting political ecology as an explanatory framework, we will unpack how knowledge and power, operating under specific political-economic systems, interact to shape resource access, use, control, and management. We will draw on specific case studies of resource conflicts, such as: wildlife management and conservation, conflict minerals and resource curses, immigration and climate change, population pressure and resource scarcity, oil infrastructures and indigenous livelihoods, poverty and environmental degradation, and green energy transitions to ground our readings and discussions. Case studies are primarily drawn from the Global South. Throughout, we will pay attention to how interacting social positions shape the ability of individuals and communities to control and manage resources, answering the following, enduring questions of the field: What are the implications of understanding ecology as explicitly political? How do common assumptions about the nature of nature shape how we interact with and make decisions about the environment? And how do power and difference shape how and who can access, use, and control resources, and to what effect? Satisfies Social and Scientific Thought requirement. Satisfies Justice, Equality and Community requirement.
Instructor Staff A rotating topics course in environmental social science.
Instructor Narantungalag The goal of this course is for students to learn how to analyze South Asian environmental issues from a social science perspective, including the impacts of those issues, the factors that cause the issues, and the consequences of their potential resolutions. Students will integrate a variety of social sciences into their analyses so as to gain a broader perspective of the rich social nature of South Asian environmental issues than a single discipline would offer. South Asian voices will dominate the materials we use in class. Fulfills the Social-Scientific Thought requirement. Counts as an Environmental Studies social science course. Counts as a South Asian Studies course focusing on a theme, topic, and perspective. Satisfies Environmental Studies major and minor requirement. Satisfies South Asian Studies minor requirement. Satisfies Social-Scientific Thought requirement. Satisfies Cultural Diversity requirement.
Instructor Joshi The world’s water resources are widely considered to be in crisis. Water and society shape one another in a process of constant flux. The ways we value and manage water has implications for the environment, for our society, and for the flow of water itself. This course will examine major issues in comparative and international water policy, including water markets, privatization, dams and river basin management, environmental flows, social equity, and water governance. As such we will investigate the social processes of water management that transform water into an ecological resource, a hazard, a commercial product, or a vector for pollution. On the most part, we will focus our investigation on recent debates in the national and international arena, however, we will have a small section on applying these debates to our backyard case - the Catawba River watershed. Some of the key questions that will guide our inquiry in this course are: Who controls water, why, and how? Who are the winners and losers of water management decisions? How do the ways we think about water influence decisions about its management? How might we make more just and equitable decisions about how to live with (and without) water?
Instructor Staff This course will critically engage students in the study of the relationships between environment, health, and society. This course is designed around contemporary environmental issues, such as climate change, pollution and exposure, environmental monitoring, population growth, hazards and disasters, waste, resource extraction, food systems, and other, special topics. Throughout, we will pay special attention to how intersecting social positions shape the distribution of environmental health inequities in particular places, especially in the context of globalization and development assistance. Themes include, but are not limited to: bodies and embodiment, syndemics, the politics of knowledge, metrics and standardization, categories and boundaries, infrastructures, and the Anthropocene. We will also begin to explore how (humanistic) social scientists are increasingly working with environmental health practitioners and researchers to develop critical perspectives for understanding and resolving environmental health problems using theoretical frameworks from decolonial, indigenous, and feminist studies. What is the benefit of engaging with these theoretical perspectives when conducting research on environmental health topics? How do these different disciplinary perspectives resolve longstanding epistemological tensions and contradictions? What are the possibilities and limits of interdisciplinary practice? This course will draw from science, technology, and society studies, environmental history, medical anthropology, and political ecology to explore these issues, themes, and questions. This is a reading, writing, and discussion intensive course. If you are not willing to deeply engage with theoretical readings, complete biweekly written reflections, and actively participate during class and in discussion forums, this may not be the course for you. All readings for this course will be made available to you via the course’s Moodle page. You will not be required to purchase any reading materials for this course. Satisfies Environmental Studies major and minor requirement. Satisfies Justice, Equality, and Community requirement. Satisfies Social-Scientific Thought requirement. Prerequisites & Notes
Instructor Ruhlen Exploration of relationships between human reproduction and the natural, material, and sociocultural environments in which people live, with attention to both evolutionary science and reproductive justice. Diet, toxins, breastfeeding, male and female infertility, decreasing age of menarche, reproductive cancers, fetal and child development, epigenetics. Satisfies a major and minor requirement in Environmental Studies. Satisfies Public Health minor requirement Satisfies the Social-Scientific Thought requirement. Satisfies Justice, Equality, and Community requirement.
Instructor Garcia Peacock This course covers environmental interactions large and small, tracing the changing ways that Americans have shaped and thought about the places where they live and work. Course focuses on US environmental history from the colonial period to the present, including national parks, preservation, conservation, and wilderness; the relationship between the US and the rest of the world; and debates over what nature is, who it is for, and how it should be used. Satisfies depth and breadth course requirement in the Humanities track of the Environmental Studies major or interdisciplinary minor. Satisfies a major requirement in History. Satisfies the Historical Thought requirement.
Instructor Garcia Peacock In this course students will explore environmental themes in American visual culture. Taking the art related to the environmental justice movement as a point of departure, students will be exposed to a broad range of visual material that offers insight into how humans have advocated for a wide range of political opinions through their painting, sculpture, memorials, historical markers, roadside and yard installations, printmaking, murals, and the natural environment. Students will gain a strong sense of how this visual material not only has been used as important tools in inspiring political action but also how these materials also serve as important “texts” in documenting and preserving less well-known environmental perspectives. Satisfies the Humanities track of the Environmental Studies major and interdisciplinary minor. Satisfies the Justice, Equality, and Community requirement.
Instructor Staff In this course we will explore how the environment is shaped by the elements (carbon, nitrogen, phosphorus and other rock-derived elements) and, in turn, how elements are shaped by life. We will consider these nutrient cycles across freshwater, terrestrial and marine ecosystems. A major theme for this course is the effect of human activity on global biogeochemical cycles and environmental change. The foundations for the course are lectures, readings from the scientific literature, discussions, and independent research projects. Satisfies Environmental Studies major and minor requirement Prerequisites & Notes
Instructor Staff The world is becoming more and more urban, with over 80% of the US population and half of the world’s population living in cities. This trend (and the environmental problems it creates) will only increase throughout the 21st century, yet ecologists and sociologists are just beginning to understand humans as organisms that influence their environment. Cities are hubs of activity that influence the physical structure, climate, element and energy cycling, and plant and animal communities within the urban footprint. However, these urban environments are influential well beyond their perceived borders. Urban ecologists are expanding their focus from ecology in cities, where they studied urban plants and wildlife, to the ecology of cities, where they consider human-biological interactions with increasing their attention to the complex interplay among people, society, and environment. This course examines current developments in urban ecology and looks at the role it can play in planning and managing urban environments. We will use our campus as a “living laboratory” and apply these concepts to field observation, case studies, and research on urban sustainability. Satisfies a major and minor requirement in Environmental Studies. Satisfies a major requirement in Biology. Satisfies Justice, Equality, and Community requirement.
Instructor Ulus The Professional Development in Environmental Studies course aims to develop and enhance new skills for career planning and job applications for industry, non-profit organizations, academia, and governmental agencies. This course will cover various topics, including career plans, networking, internship and job search, existing opportunities, and grad school applications. Satisfies Environmental Studies, Natural Science track, major requirement.
Instructor Staff Creating a sustainable world food system requires that we address both food security and sustainable food production in tandem, a clear case of intersecting challenges or “wicked” problems. Wicked problems are those issues that have so many relationships of causality and correlation that researchers and policy-makers sometimes do not know where to begin to address them. In this course, we will begin to investigate some of the ways we can understand and address the challenges of producing and provisioning food using the lens of sustainability. Satisfies depth and breadth course requirement in the Social Science track of the Environmental Studies major or interdisciplinary minor.
Instructor Garcia Peacock In this course, students will examine a broad range of Latinx environmental experiences across time and place in the United States. Taking the environment as a key category of analysis, students will explore the ways that the natural and built environments shape, and are shaped by, Latinx culture. Looking to important rural, urban, suburban, and wilderness sites across the United States, students will construct a nuanced “picture” of how Latinx environments have changes over time. With our methodology placed squarely in historical and visual analysis, we will frequently engage interdisciplinary approaches to enhance our understanding of key issues including: labor, migration, public health, community and neighborhood building, transportation networks, natural resource development, education, and tourism. Students will be exposed to a wide range of human expressions of place, such as art, literature, and activism, to gain a better understanding of how Latinxs have represented their environmental experiences. Satisfies the Humanities track of the Environmental Studies major and minor. Satisfies a requirement in the Latin American Studies major. Fulfills the Justice, Equality, and Community requirement.
Staff Under the direction of an ENV Core faculty member, the student learns environmental studies material through a structure that primarily resembles a typical course or through independent research at an introductory level.
Topic varies Prior offering Instructor A. Tutwiler Issues and Institutions Shaping Global Food and Agricultural Systems The environmental activist and farmer, Wendell Berry said that ‘Eating is an agricultural act”. Michael Pollen, environmental activist and food writer has gone one step further to add “Eating is also a political act”. This seminar will focus on controversial issues shaping the personal and political debates about food and agricultural systems (conventional versus regenerative agriculture; gene editing versus conventional breeding; land sharing versus land sparing; local versus global food systems; large versus small farms; meat versus vegan diets; etc.) The course will help students understand the complexities behind these ‘either/or’ debates illuminated by speakers from major global organizations (the United Nations, farmers’ organizations, business associations, science and research entities, international finance institutions, etc.) and to understand the role of the many different organizations that shape global food systems governance. There are no prerequisites for this course, as leaders from every discipline will be needed to address these multifaceted challenges.
Instructor Green In this course, you will gain hands-on experience conducting social science research in the discipline of food and agriculture studies. Our research site is The Farm at Davidson College. Our goal is to design and implement a group study that measures the Farm holistically along the three dimensions of sustainability: environmental, economic and social sustainability. As a student in this class, you will be held to high expectations. Not only will you be responsible for reading assigned materials, you will be expected to conduct yourself as a professional scholar responsible for developing research questions, collecting, analyzing, storing and presenting data in an ethical, confidential and transparent manner. Our course will culminate in a presentation of our findings to the Davidson College community. Students in this course are expected to already have a working knowledge of the Farm at Davidson College. Please contact the instructor if you would like to enroll in the course and need extra material to familiarize yourself with the Farm. Satisfies a requirement in the social science track in the Environmental Studies major. Satisfies the social science breath course in the Environmental Studies Interdisciplinary minor.
Instructors Blauch, Hauser Topics in chemical equilibrium, electrochemistry, spectroscopy, chromatography, and nuclear chemistry, with applications in biological, environmental, forensic, archaeological, and consumer chemistry. Laboratory experiments include qualitative and quantitative analyses using volumetric, electrochemical, chromatographic, and spectroscopic methods. Satisfies the Natural Science requirement. Satisfies depth or breadth course requirement in Natural Science Track of the Environmental Studies major or interdisciplinary minor. Counts as an Applied Environmental Science course in the Natural Science track of the Environmental Studies interdisciplinary major.
Instructor Staff We will examine race, gender, and nature through the interdisciplinary frameworks of science studies, critical geography, and allied fields (GSS, anthropology, sociology, history). By paying attention to the processes of knowledge production, circulation, and application, we will trace how the colonial sciences-many of which form the foundations for the disciplines and majors of higher education today-understood, produced, and utilized categories of race, gender, and nature to enable extractive violence and colonial rule, setting the conditions for what has been taken for granted as “legitimate” bodies, practices, and knowledges. We will then trace the afterlives of these processes and practices to ask questions about how these legacies have shaped how we know (epistemology) and what we assume to know (ontology) about the relationships between race, gender, and nature today. Exciting new literature has been produced on these topics, and we will emphasize much of this new literature that is increasingly produced by scholars who have historically and systematically been excluded from institutions of higher education Satisfies Environmental Studies -Social Science track major and minor requirement.
Instructors Johnson, O’Geen While national and international policy can drive environmental decision making, many environmental policy decisions are still made at the local level. These day to day decisions about streams, land conservation, and water management receive little attention from the press and are subject to very little public input. Instead, most decisions are made through a complex political ecology involving technocrats, consulting firms, engineers, and public relations officials. As part of this course, students will engage with local decision makers, non-profits, and reporters to better understand how decisions are made. Students will be required to attend (some) public meetings and meet with non-profits to understand their role as stakeholders. Satisfies depth and breadth course requirement in the Social Science track of the Environmental Studies major or interdisciplinary minor.
Instructor Johnson Understanding geologic landscapes and surficial processes requires a multidisciplinary understanding of soils. This course will examine soils with a focus on soil-forming processes and morphology. In the classroom, students will learn the terminology and concepts of soil genesis, soil taxonomy, and soil morphology. These concepts will then be applied in the field so that students can learn to identify and interpret horizonation and morphological characteristics. Satisfies depth or breadth course requirement in the Natural Science Track of the Environmental Studies major or interdisciplinary minor. Counts as an Applied Environmental Science course in the Natural Science track of the Environmental Studies interdisciplinary major. Prerequisites & Notes Permission of the instructor is necessary in order to enroll in the course. Additionally, students are expected to have taken ENV 120, ENV 201, or ENV 230, though exceptions may be made.
Instructor Johnson A detailed survey of processes in surface geology including weathering, soils, landslides, stream systems, glaciers, and climate as well as differences between these processes in various environments. The class will split time between learning and discussion of geomorphic principles and practicing them in the field. The class will be roughly based around the collection of new field data for an overarching class project. Satisfies depth or breadth course requirement in the Natural Science Track of the Environmental Studies major or interdisciplinary minor. Counts as an Applied Environmental Science course in the Natural Science track of the Environmental Studies interdisciplinary major. Prerequisites & Notes ENV 120 or ENV 201 or instructor permission.
Instructor Staff Earthquakes, volcanoes, landslides, and other geological forces shape the physical environment on Earth’s surface. This class focuses on our changing planet and how geological processes interact with land-use to shape the natural and built environment. Learn how to survive or avoid tsunamis, wildfires, and other natural disasters and how societies can prepare for and minimize the effects of natural disasters.
Instructor Ulus Mercury (Hg) is a global pollutant due to its capability to be transferred in the atmosphere for long distances, its transformation to methylmercury (MeHg), the most toxic form, and bioaccumulation and biomagnification in the terrestrial and aquatic food webs. Throughout the last few decades, significant progress has been made in understanding the fate and transport of mercury in diverse ecosystems. This course will focus on recent research and review papers on mercury pollution and its drivers in water, sediment, and foodweb. The course will also help students to understand treatment technologies for mercury pollution in soil and water. Prerequisites & Notes ENV 201, ENV 238, ENV 339, or permission of the instructor.
Instructor Kojola The interdisciplinary field of political ecology examines relationships between social and ecological systems to interrogate how politics and economics are shaped by nature and how nature is shaped by politics and economics. This course interrogates how political-economic processes drive environmental change and how conceptions of nonhuman nature are created through power and culture. The course introduces students to key theories in political ecology that explore ideas about capitalism, colonialism, and racism and investigates case studies of environmental issues and struggles over land and natural resources in the global South and North. This is a seminar designed for upper level students, but first-year students can contact instructor for permission. Fulfills social science track depth component in the environmental studies major and interdisciplinary minor. Satisfies the Social-Scientific Thought requirement. Satisfies the Justice, Equality, and Community requirement.
Instructor Staff This course serves as an introduction to the geographic study of place. Broadly, critical human geographers study the spatial dimensions of power. Therefore, rather than treating space and place as simply material things where social, political, and economic processes take place, geographers examine how, for example, seemingly neutral and apolitical things like urban planning and design, architecture, and infrastructures are both socially produced and can work with other sociological factors, such as class, race, gender, sexuality, ability, and age to influence our sense of self, belonging, and community, our livelihoods and opportunities, and our abilities to access, manage, or control resources. Throughout this course, we will examine the dynamics of power that are embedded within how we understand and represent space (e.g., with maps) and how we might better represent space in ways that are attune to the lived experiences of marginalized or marked communities. This course will focus primarily on urban and suburban space, with an emphasis on measures to enclose and privatize public space, increase surveillance and security, exclude others, or improve, erase, or reconfigure “wasted,” “underutilized,” “uninhabited,” “blighted” or other forms of problematic space. Topics we will explore will include, but are not limited to: redlining, food deserts, public housing and housing insecurity, parks, highways, transportation, health care, pollution and hazardous waste facilities, power plants and energy justice, privatization, and gated communities. We will also explore other spaces, such as: rural spaces, vertical space and the underground, and outer space to expand our theoretical foci and application. This is a reading, writing, and discussion intensive seminar. You will be responsible for critically and deeply engaging with the reading and the thoughts and questions of your fellow classmates. Please come to class fully prepared. This course fulfills breadth and depth requirements for the ENV major and minor. Satisfies Justice, Equality, and Community requirement. Satifies Social-Scientific Thought requirement. Prerequisites & Notes Students are not required to purchase any of the course materials; all readings will be made available on the course’s Moodle page. There are no prerequisites for this class other than an open mind and a willingness to challenge and be challenged.
Instructor Staff This seminar explores how communities across the globe resist environmental injustice and challenge systems of resource extraction, dispossession, and exclusion. Centering the voices of Indigenous peoples, communities of color, and grassroots activists, the course examines environmental resistance as both a struggle for survival and a movement for justice. Students will investigate diverse case studies-from land defense in the Amazon and anti-extraction struggles in Africa, and climate justice in the Caribbean, to Indigenous water protectors in North America and urban environmental justice movements in Asia-while considering the global interconnections among these efforts. Readings and discussions will engage theories of political ecology, decolonization, and sustainability to unpack how power, race, and geography shape environmental conflicts. Through critical analysis, collaborative dialogue, and applied projects, students will gain an understanding of the strategies, narratives, and solidarities that define environmental resistance worldwide.
Instructor Staff Waste is often understood as a technical problem, one that requires the application of good science and innovative technologies to address effectively. Throughout this course, we will query that assumption through an examination of how waste is categorized, how it shapes societies, how it is mis/managed, how it is a part of our everyday lives, and how it fits into our value systems. We will expand our understandings of waste by examining theories of waste and waste infrastructures, acknowledging how both are “drenched” in politics, enrolling and enacting political agendas, participating in the transformation of nature into resources/waste, and justifying forms of control or negligence over those peoples, places, and objects categorized as “waste.” Finally, we will pay attention to cases of environmental injustice in the U.S. and the Global South and query how a focus on waste indicates blind spots and new directions for a growing environmental justice movement, as we explore emerging technologies for better waste management. Satisfies Social and Scientific Thought requirement. Satisfies Justice, Equality and Community requirement.
Instructors Staff How do we define a “disaster” and how do we know when it is occurring? This team taught course answers these enduring questions from two perspectives: geoscience and critical disaster studies. Geologists examine how geological forces shape the physical environment on earth’s surface and the resulting changes in climate, natural resources, and natural hazards. Social scientists working in the field of critical disaster studies treat “disasters”–and their attendant vocabularies of risk, vulnerability, and resilience-as a social construct that shape how people see and understand environmental change and appropriate responses. By doing so, social scientists examine how the analytical category and language of “disaster” shapes critical decision making about resource distributions, equity, and justice. Satisfies Environmental Studies major and minor requirement.
Instructor Chapman It is essential for natural scientists to be able to communicate complex topics in clear, vivid, and engaging ways to diverse audiences, especially to the public. This course is designed to synthesize and apply knowledge from the environmental natural sciences to prepare students for scientific leadership in an increasingly globalized, technological, and environmentally strained world. This course will strengthen written, verbal, and visual communication skills by studying and applying best practices of science communication. We will explore persuasion, decision-making, and the formation of attitudes and beliefs. These skills and knowledge will be integrated with various case studies from the environmental natural sciences to investigate how science communication can motivate or constrain efforts to achieve environmental literacy and sustainability. This course will involve reading, writing, and creating various modes of communication including articles, oral presentations, infographics, and blog posts. Satisfies Environmental Studies major and minor requirement. Satisfies Public Health major requirement. Satisfies Communication Studies major and minor requirement.
Group Investigations in the Environmental Humanities provide students with specialized training in various research methodologies relevant to the environmental humanities. Satisfies the depth or breadth requirement in the Humanities track of the Environmental Studies major. Counts as an additional course in the environmental humanities in the Environmental Studies interdisciplinary minor. TOPIC - Environmental Justice Art Instructor - Garcia Peacock
Instructor Staff Under the direction of an ENV Core faculty member, the student engages in independent research at an advanced level.
Instructor Garcia Peacock This senior seminar encourages students from all three tracks within the major to collaborate in order to better understand an issue. The issue examined will vary through time and is up to the instructor. Satisfies Environmental Studies major requirement. Prerequisites & Notes Juniors who have completed 201, 202, and 203 are welcome to take the course provided there is space. Priority is given to seniors who will need the course to graduate.
Under the direction of an ENV Core faculty member, the student engages in independent research at a very advanced level.
Instructors B. Johnson, J. Garcia Peacock In collaboration with the course instructor, students will formally propose and carry out an individual or collaborative interdisciplinary capstone project based on fieldwork, original studies, and/or substantive library research in the area of the student’s depth component track - Natural Sciences, Social Sciences, Humanities, or self-designed. Projects will demonstrate an integration of the methods and theory appropriate to the student’s depth component by investigating a question or problem that is significant, situated, and original in its application within the context of Environmental Studies. Satisfies major requirement in Environmental Studies. Prerequisites & Notes ENV 101, ENV 102, ENV 103. Offered in the Fall.
Instructor Johnson The goal of this seminar course is to integrate the depth and breadth components of the Environmental Studies major. Students will examine a special topic through an interdisciplinary lens, accounting for a variety of perspectives. Prerequisites & Notes ENV 498. For seniors only.
Source: Davidson College's catalog, linked per course · table learning_unit · CourseShelf publish 61
