San Jose State University
AC-5: Immersive Experience

In Spring 2016, study abroad program titled, Sustainable Business in Canada. The program started in 2016 and likely to run every year. The SJSU students were given provided a guided tour of the green features of San Jose Environmental Innovation Center (EIC) facility and a brief introduction of how they support environmental innovation in the San Jose area through Prospect Silicon Valley, the first nonprofit, Silicon Valley-based technology commercialization catalyst for smarter, cleaner cities globally. Sustainability was an important focus in this program. Professor Thomas Shirley was heading the program. In June 2016, SJSU's offered The Caribbean Experience: Food, Culture, and the Environment program for students. Students got chance to explore the island's food system, its local food culture, local and global influences, indigenous foods, local markets, ingredients, traditional dishes, and of course beverages of which the most famous is rum and the Pina Colada. Student got an opportunity to study the environment through visits to the rainforest (El Yunque National Rainforest), Bioluminescent Bay, dry forest, as well as Arecibo Observatory.

Previous report information: Until the 2010-2011 academic year, SJSU’s Department of Biological Sciences offered a study abroad program in the Amazon rain forest. SJSU undergraduate students enrolled in Field Studies in Biology and graduate students enroll in Seminar in Advanced Biology: Organismal Biology. In this program students would live in the capital of the Amazonian State, Manaus, and go on daily field trips. Sustainability was an important focus with this program, as students studied global climate change and social-economic issues involved in preserving the rain forest ecosystem. While this program is not being offered in the coming academic year, another study abroad program with a sustainability focus also qualifies for this credit: Professor Kathryn Davis in the Department of Geography runs a three-week immersive study abroad program in Guatemala with a focus on sustainability.