University of Washington, Seattle
AC-3: Undergraduate Program

In Environmental Studies, students imagine, analyze and invent innovative solutions to help bring about a more equitably sustainable world. They join a vibrant community drawn from the natural sciences, social sciences and humanities, united by a shared interest: addressing urgent environmental issues.

As students pursue learning opportunities from the Puget Sound bioregion to locations around the globe, they bridge knowledge across intersecting fields with hands-on experience. Through their work, they help build our understanding of who we are as humans and how we inhabit the world…and how to change that world for the better.

Students in the Environmental Studies program learn from and listen to different scientific, cultural and political perspectives. They collaborate on pressing issues such as climate change, water, energy, food, policy and education. Through this work, they gain the skills and knowledge to inspire and lead change for an equitably sustainable future.

Students studying Environmental Science and Resource Management (ESRM) learn about natural and human-dominated landscapes and how to apply this knowledge to real-world problems. With a focus on sustainability, students work with professors and regional experts on environmental issues. Fieldwork gives students enhanced opportunities for experiential learning and service in a rich contextual landscape.

Geography is about the relationship between people and the environment. It provides important insights into the spatial transformations associated with globalization, environmental change, migration, health, development, and many other contemporary processes. The Department of Geography has a strong commitment to social justice and public scholarship, and provides a rich undergraduate experience for those who are passionate about exploring our world and understanding the social and spatial processes that shape it.

Geography seeks to understand the complex processes that result in the patterns, trends, and impacts of urbanization, migration, trade, and development. Geographers use ethnographies, statistical analysis, databases, scholarly research, and observation to construct models, maps, and other tools for understanding, and to address pressing social and environmental issues.

Environment, Economy and Sustainability Track:

The courses in this track study the reciprocal and often contradictory forces of economic activity, environmental policy, and sustainability. Using such key geographic concepts as scale, place and location, these courses analyze relations between such complex processes as: land use, labor markets, corporate location, international trade, energy policy & consumption, environmental regulatory policy, resource use and food systems.

Food Systems, Nutrition, and Health Major
The Bachelor of Arts with a major in Food Systems, Nutrition, and Health explores the complex intersections and relationships among food, culture, economics, the environment, justice, labor, policy, and population health. Many of the world’s widespread health challenges are consequences of broken food systems. You’ll study these systems and their impacts on nutrition and health outcomes.
https://nutr.uw.edu/undergraduate/foodsystems/

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The full list of UW's undergraduate majors can be found here: http://www.washington.edu/uaa/advising/degree-overview/majors/list-of-undergraduate-majors/

Students who minor in Environmental Studies join our vibrant community to develop innovative solutions to help bring about a more equitable and sustainable world.

Like our majors, they can pursue learning opportunities from the Puget Sound bioregion to locations around the globe, bridging knowledge from different fields with hands-on experience. Through their work, they help build our understanding of who we are as humans and how we inhabit the world.

News and opinions about earth’s climate and global climate change can be found everywhere in today’s media, but without a foundational knowledge of climate science, it can be hard to separate fact from fiction. The Climate Science Minor aims to give students a strong interdisciplinary foundation in climate science with opportunities to explore policy, energy, and human dimensions of climate change.

The minor in Ecological Restoration (ECORES) seeks to prepare students to address the complex relationships of human communities and ecological sustainability. The minor is a tri-campus initiative between UW Bothell, UW Seattle and UW Tacoma.

Environmental Cultures and Values
The Environmental Cultures and Values minor explores historical and contemporary understandings of the environment through literature, cinema, the arts, philosophy, history, anthropology, political science and cultural geography. Taking a broad view of the meaning of "environment" (humans, the non-human world, built and natural environments, and all interactions among them), this interdisciplinary program prepares students for further study of environmental cultures and related professional paths ( environmental NGO's, arts organizations, government, natural history writing).
https://www.polisci.washington.edu/news/2018/11/30/environmental-cultures-and-values-minor

Nutrition
The Nutrition minor is offered to University of Washington undergraduate students from all majors and provides students with a foundation of knowledge in nutritional sciences, food studies, food systems, and population health. Students examine food and nutrition practices and policies that affect sustainable diets and long-term health. The minor offers a multidisciplinary perspective of the food environment, including the interplay of food and nutrition, human behavior, business, culture, and the environment.
https://nutr.uw.edu/undergraduate/nutrition-minor/

Certificate in Environmental & Natural Resource Economics
https://econ.washington.edu/certificates