University of Richmond
AC-2: Learning Outcomes

Environmental Studies - The Environmental Studies Program offers students the opportunity to study how humans should relate to the natural world, a subject that has become increasingly relevant as more people begin paying attention to the Earth’s limited resources and our own impact on those resources. Environmental studies integrates the study of interactions among physical, chemical and biological components of the environment. Students take many courses in the natural sciences, but not at the expense of courses in the social sciences and humanities. The field has grown substantially since the 1960s, as public awareness of environmental problems grew. The public began to rely on informed scientists to recommend practical public policies and environmental standards. Today, environmental scientists study issues like climate change, conservation, biodiversity, pollution, natural resource usage, waste management and sustainable development. Environmental studies is an applications-oriented field, and courses in the program prepare you to approach environmental problems from a wide variety of perspectives and disciplines. The courses all tend to be intensely interdisciplinary; students are being prepared to use the methods and theories from many branches in the natural sciences, social sciences, and humanities to interpret and solve environmental problems. Since there are rarely any easy answers to environmental problems, students in environmental studies courses also learn to think critically and analyze environmental issues from the perspective of a variety of competing stakeholders. Professors emphasize clear and jargon-free communication so that the results of student research can be presented in a manner accessible across the disciplines. The Environmental Studies Program requires that all majors participate in some kind of experiential, or active, learning opportunity before graduating. To help students quantify their experiences and guarantee that they’re ready for graduate study or careers in environmental studies, the program requires at least two elective hours of experiential learning, either through taking ENVR 388 or ENVR 320. The most standard ways to earn credit include participating in an environmental internship or doing supervised, independent research on an environmental topic.

Geography and the Environment - Geography cultivates informed and engaged global citizens through an emphasis on integrative problem solving, spatial analysis, and communication skills. Our department bridges the natural sciences, social sciences, and the humanities to provide a better understanding of the earth's cultural and biological diversity. The discipline of geography seeks to understand the transformation of the earth in relationship to both human and environmental processes and serves as a bridge between the natural and social sciences. Spatial theories (scale, location, place, and connectivity) allow geographers to critically analyze change in the cultural, physical and economic landscape. Students find geography’s interdisciplinary nature combines well with other programs and fields of study such as international studies, environmental studies, biology and economics. All Geography majors must fulfill an experiential learning component to supplement their classroom instruction at the University of Richmond. Examples include an approved semester of study abroad, an internship or volunteer position equaling approximately 100 hours of service, a summer field course (e.g., master naturalist), or another educational and hands-on initiative agreed upon by the student
and faculty supervisor. Ideally, this experiential learning involves significant outdoor or cross-cultural experience and is not a laboratory, classroom, or office-based activity.

Human relationship to natural world; Inter-relationships; Awareness of environmental issues; Environmental problem solving; Critical thinking; Analytical thinking; Communication skills; Active citizenry.

Geography and the Environment: http://geography.richmond.edu/
Environmental Studies: http://environmental.richmond.edu/

777 total degrees conferred; 755 students
23 majors in Environmental Studies
2 majors in Geography
6 minors total in both