CLASS REQUIREMENTS
The Michigan Sustainability Community requires two courses for the year. All students take ENVIRON 245: Campus as a Sustainability Lab (3 credits) for the Fall Semester. Students outside of the MSC can register for the course, though priority is given to MSC students. Students also take ENVIRON 155 MSC Seminar (2 credits) in the Winter Semester.
These courses meld student research and hands-on action. Topics are focused on environmental sustainability concepts related to the world, personal lives, and the University of Michigan campus. Students will develop basic sustainability literacy and evaluate their own practices and decisions related to sustainability to understand and address sustainability issues with action. Students will work individually and as teams to tackle problems emerging on campus. Students will create team reports and action guides for continued sustainability work.
COURSE GOALS
- Develop a working definition of “Sustainable Campus”• Consider the pivotal role of sustainability in a larger context
- Develop skills to effectively work in a team• Develop basic sustainability literacy• Evaluate your personal spaces, footprint, and environmental history• Examine aspects of materials and waste streams in human society
- Engage with campus sustainability stakeholders• Examine the role of agriculture and food production in human society
- Develop a personal concept of environmental sustainability• Understand UM policies regarding sustainability
By working to achieve these goals, we might be better able to address some of the BIGquestions:• What does it mean to be human (Umich student) in 2024? - Why do sustainability issues matter?
- How did we get to this place?
- Can I / should I make a difference? What can I do?
- What does it mean to be an engaged citizen?• What is the role of a creative person in a sustainability context?
- What does the future hold for me, my campus, society, the planet?
COURSE COMPETENCIES
- Upon course completion students will be able to
- Articulate a working definition of Sustainability
- Describe key sustainability concepts and issues related to materials and waste, food,and climate change
- Become familiar with general UM policies and practices regarding sustainability
Create action-oriented reports and plans for ongoing work
Past Projects:
Students explore two projects to pursue during the course that tackle sustainability on campus. Project one comes from a list of projects designed by Professor Joe Trumpey. Project two allows more flexibility as students select a project they propose. Past projects have included:
- Alternative Lawn Mowing
- Biodiversity on Campus
- Cut Flower Farming
- Energy Use and Elevators
- Mushroom Cultivation
- Pollinator Gardens
- Proposal to Raise Chickens
- Reuse of Construction Materials on Campus
- Shampoo Bars
- Sustainability Podcasts
- Sustainable Dining
- Terrariums
- Tree Planting
- Vermicomposting
