Oberlin College
AC-3: Undergraduate Program

The Environmental Studies (ES) Program provides an interdisciplinary approach to the study of human interactions with the environment. The goal of the major is to equip students with the knowledge, intellectual tools and learning experiences necessary to understand the causes and consequences of our environmental challenges. The Program seeks to develop in students the creative problem solving skills necessary to design and develop a more sustainable relationship between humans and the rest of the natural world. Core courses in the program build a foundation in natural and social sciences and the humanities; these provide the lateral rigor necessary to understand and analyze issues from multiple disciplinary perspectives. Students then select from a broad range of intermediate and advanced courses to develop a focused course of study or “curricular pathway”. Many ES majors augment their experience at Oberlin by participating in study away programs and summer internships. The ES major at Oberlin prepares students for graduate work and careers in a broad range of professional and academic fields. The Adam Joseph Lewis Center, which houses Oberlin’s ES Program, is an internationally recognized facility that is designed to showcase environmentally responsible architecture, and to serve as an integrated component of the curriculum. Those interested in the major are encouraged to begin the social science component of the major with Environment and Society (ENVS 101) during their freshman year and to complete Nature, Culture and Interpretation (ENVS 201 or 202) and core introductory science requirements during their first two years. Because careful course selection is necessary to achieve appropriate depth and breadth, students are urged to consult as early as possible with members of the Environmental Studies Program Committee. Focal areas: Agriculture and Food Studies; Art and the Environment; Climate Change Studies; Energy and Society; Environmental Biology; Environmental Chemistry; Environmental Design; Environmental Economics; Environmental Geology; Environmental History; Environmental Justice; Environmental Literature and Media; Environmental Politics and Policy; Environmental Psychology; Environmental Thought; Public Health; Regional Environmental Studies & Sustainable Development; Sustainable Communities, Enterprise, & Education; Systems Ecology; Urban Analysis and Design; Water and Society.

A student interested in a focused, but less extensive, study of the environment may pursue a minor in Environmental Studies. A minor must include ENVS 101 (Environment and Society) and in addition a minimum of five full courses that count towards the ES major requirements. These must include two or more courses at the non-introductory level; at least two in the natural sciences, and at least two in social sciences or humanities. At least one of the science classes must incorporate a lab. At least three of these courses must be taken at Oberlin.

Many majors and minors intersect with sustainability or are explicitly sustainability-related, but at the time being the only major and minor program that is explicitly sustainability-focused in the Environmental Studies Program.