Sustainability Studies

major

A Sustainability Studies major prepares students for global citizenship with a firm grounding in the natural sciences, the social sciences, and the humanities. Students in the major explore how to maintain ecological and environmental health, create economic welfare, and pursue social justice in a changing world. Sustainability studies students gain understanding of the ways in which these three goals are interdependent and explore how they best can be pursued over the long term on local, national, and global levels.

About this Program

To graduate with this major, students must complete all university, college, and major requirements.

Department Information

Sustainability Studies prepares students for global citizenship while providing a broad foundation of sustainability knowledge and professional skill sets. Students gain experience and put their learning to work in the capstone internship course, Sustainability in Action.
Website

CONTACT

Email | 352.273.2936

P.O. Box 117410
105 ANDERSON HALL
GAINESVILLE FL 32611-7325
Map

 Curriculum

Sustainability studies investigates the means to maintain environmental health, create economic welfare, and pursue social justice in a changing world. Students gain an understanding of the ways in which these three goals are interdependent and explore how they can best be pursued in the long term at local, national, and global levels.

requirements for the major

Students are required to complete 30-34 credits of sustainability studies coursework; 15 of these 30 credits must be at the 3000/4000 level. All courses must be completed with minimum grades of C and a minimum of 15 credits of sustainability studies courses must be completed at UF.

For more information about Sustainability Studies and listings of newly available courses, please visit the program website.

Required Major Coursework 

Core Courses
IDS 2154Facets of Sustainability3
IDS 4942Sustainability in Action3
Foundation Courses
Must take one course from Group A and one course from Group B. The remaining course can be from either Group A or Group B. 9
Group A Culture and Society
History of Sustainability
Anthropology of Sustainability
Classical Antiquity and Sustainability
Urban Nature and Society
Literature of Sustainability & Resilience
Sustainability and Religion
Environmental Ethics
Group B: Natural and Earth Systems
Global Sustainable Energy: Past, Present and Future
International Sustainable Development
Global Change Ecology and Sustainability
Economics of Sustainability
Introduction to Environmental Science
Geographical Sciences and Sustainability
Living with Rising Seas
The Future of Energy
Is the Planet Dying?
Climate Change Science and Solutions
Politics of Sustainability
Psychology of Sustainability
The Future of Tropical Rain Forests
Biodiversity Conservation: Global Perspectives
Select One Quantitative and Spatial Tools Course:3-4
Introduction to GIS I
Methods of Inquiry for Sustainability and the Built Environment
Principles of Macroeconomics
Principles of Microeconomics
Introduction to Quantitative Analysis for Geographers
Geovisualization and Map Design
Foundations of Geographic Information Systems
Digital Image Processing
Introduction to Statistics 1
Survey of Planning Information Systems
Select One Qualitative and Communication Tools Course:3
Individual Work
Writing the Natural World
Communicating Science in the Geosciences
Environmental Journalism
Public Interest Communications
Global Social Change Communication
Data Feminisms
Theories and Applications Courses
Select three Theories and Applications courses from the lists. Courses can be taken all from the same category or from multiple categories. 9
Quest 3/UF Experiential Learning Academic Requirement (Q3/ELAR) 10-3
Total Credits30-34
1

To fulfill the Quest 3/UF Experiential Learning Academic Requirement (Q3/ELAR), students should enroll in an experience for 0-3 credit hours through existing courses that are designated to fulfill the Quest 3 requirement. Your Q3/ELA requirement must be sustainability related. The Q3/ELAR requirement may be fulfilled through internship, undergraduate research, study abroad, field school, or an approved community-engaged project.

Theories & Applications (9 credits)

Students deepen their expertise by taking three upper-division courses that apply sustainability concepts to specific themes or problem areas. Other courses, including courses towards a related minor or certificate, may be counted at the discretion of the program advisor. Please speak with them to discuss how those courses could be applied towards your degree requirements.

Students may take any three courses from the lists below. The categories below are intended to help students identify courses of interest but do not indicate required distributions. Students are encouraged but not required to create a program of study or specialization from within one of these clusters or by mixing courses from various clusters.

Living Systems and Resilient Landscapes
GEO 3372Conservation of Resources3
GEO 3352The Human Footprint on Landscape3
SWS 4303CSoil Microbial Ecology3
PCB 4043CGeneral Ecology4
GEO 4300Environmental Biogeography3
GLY 3074Oceans and Global Climate Change3
GEO 4034Weather, Climate, and Society3
GEO 4060People and Parks3
ZOO 4403CMarine Biology4
GEO 4285Water, Risk, and Extreme Events3
SWS 4245Water Resource Sustainability3
EES 4102Wastewater Microbiology2
GEO 3334Managing for a Changing Climate3
WIS 4554Conservation Biology3
WIS 4551Diverse Perspectives in Conservation3
ENV 4601Environmental Resources Management3
WIS 4523Human Dimensions of Natural Resource Conservation3
Built Futures and Design
BCN 4105Sustainable Housing: Putting the 3 E's into Residential Practice3
DCP 3210Sustainable Solutions for the Built Environment3
DCP 4213Developing Sustainable Projects3
ALS 3030CUrban Agriculture3
GEO 4700Transportation and Urban Accessibility3
AEB 4126Agricultural and Natural Resource Ethics3
URP 4000Preview of Urban and Regional Planning3
Law, Governance, and Economy
ECP 3302Environmental Economics and Resource Policy4
AEB 3450Introduction to Natural Resource and Environmental Economics3
AEB 4123Agricultural and Natural Resource Law3
AEB 4283International Development Policy3
AEC 3322Moral Leadership in Agriculture and Natural Resources3
EVR 3004Eco-Civic Engagement3
PUP 4224Florida Environmental Politics3
CPO 4793Environmental Politics in the Global South3
Culture, Ethics & Human Meaning
AMH 3630American Environmental History3
ANT 4930Special Topics in Anthropology3-5
ENG 3503CINEMA OF ENVIRONMENTAL CRISIS4
REL 3082Global Ethics3
REL 4188Environmental Values and Practice3
SYD 4620People, Places, and Belonging3
WST 3610Gender, Race and Science3
WST 3663Gender and Food Politics3
WST 4630Gender, Culture, and Place3
WST 3720Gender, Race, and Future of AI3
WST 4349Ecofeminism3

 

Critical Tracking records each student’s progress in courses that are required for entry to each major. Please note the critical-tracking requirements below on a per-semester basis.

For degree requirements outside of the major, refer to CLAS Degree Requirements: Structure of a CLAS Degree.

Equivalent critical-tracking courses as determined by the State of Florida Common Course Prerequisites may be used for transfer students.

Six courses required by the end of the fifth semester, selected from:

  • IDS 2154
  • 3 Foundation courses; one each from Group A (humanities, culture, arts and design) and Group B (natural and social sciences), plus one class from either Group A or Group B.
  • One course from the Theories and Applications group 
  • One class from either the Quantitative and Spatial Tools or Qualitative and Communication Tools group   

Semester 1

  • Complete IDS 2154 
  • 2.0 GPA required for all critical-tracking courses
  • 2.0 UF GPA required

Semester 2

  • Complete one Foundations course, from Group A (humanities, culture, arts and design) or Group B (natural and social sciences)
  • 2.0 GPA required for all critical-tracking courses
  • 2.5 UF GPA required

Semester 3

  • Complete 1 foundations course, from Group A (humanities, culture, arts and design) or Group B (natural and social sciences)
  • 2.0 GPA required for all critical-tracking courses
  • 2.75 UF GPA required

Semester 4

  • Complete 1 foundations course, from Group A (humanities, culture, arts and design) or Group B (natural and social sciences)
  • 2.0 GPA required for all critical-tracking courses
  • 3.0 UF GPA required

Semester 5

  • Complete 1 course from either the Quantitative and Spatial Tools or Qualitative and Communication Tools group
  • Complete 1 course from the Theories and Applications category
  • 2.0 GPA required for all critical-tracking courses
  • 3.0 UF GPA required

Semester 6

  • Complete 1 a course from either the Quantitative and Spatial Tools or Qualitative and Communication Tools group
  • Complete 1 course from the Theories and Applications category

Semester 7

  • Complete 1 course from the Theories and Applications category
  • Complete experiential learning course

Semester 8

Students are expected to complete the Writing, Civic Literacy, summer enrollment, and Quest requirements while in the process of taking the courses below. Students are also expected to complete the general education international (GE-N) requirements concurrently with another general education requirement (typically, GE-C, H, or S) as part of the CLAS Basic Distribution requirements. One of the two general education mathematics courses must be a pure math course.

College of Liberal Arts and Sciences allows students additional flexibility in its Distribution Requirements. Students may count a maximum of 6 credits TOTAL from the CLAS Distribution course lists towards Humanities, Social and Behavioral Sciences, or Biological and Physical Sciences, with no more than 3 credits of Humanities, 3 credits of Social and Behavioral Sciences, or 6 credits of Biological or Physical Sciences.

The full list of major-specific requirements for this major can be found on the Overview tab. College of Liberal Arts and Sciences degree requirements can be found on the College’s degree requirements page.

Courses counting towards the major may not count towards the 3000-level or above electives outside of the major.

To remain on track, students must complete the appropriate critical-tracking courses, which appear in bold. These courses must be completed by the terms as listed above in the Critical Tracking criteria.

This semester plan represents an example progression through the major. Actual courses and course order may be different depending on the student's academic record and scheduling availability of courses. Prerequisites still apply.

Plan of Study Grid
Semester OneCredits
IDS 2154 Facets of Sustainability (Critical Tracking) 3
State Core Gen Ed Composition; Writing Requirement 3
State Core Gen Ed Mathematics 3
CLAS Foreign Language Proficiency Requirement 1 4-5
Elective 3
 Credits16-17
Semester Two
Quest 1 3
Group A Foundations course (Critical Tracking) 3
Gen Ed Social and Behavioral Sciences 3
CLAS Foreign Language Proficiency Requirement 1 3-5
 Credits12-14
Semester Three
STA 2023 Introduction to Statistics 1 (Critical Tracking; recommended; Gen Ed Mathematics; Quantitative and Spatial Tools course) 3
Group B Foundations course (Critical Tracking) 3
State Core Gen Ed Biological or Physical Sciences 3
State Core Gen Ed Social and Behavioral Sciences 3
Elective (or CLAS Foreign Language Proficiency Requirement if 4-3-3 language option) 1 3
 Credits15
Semester Four
Quest 2 3
Group A or B Foundations course (Critical Tracking) 3
State Core Gen Ed Humanities 3
Gen Ed Biological or Physical Sciences (area not taken in semester 3) 3
Gen Ed Social and Behavioral Sciences 3
Natural Science Laboratory 2 1
 Credits16
Semester Five
Theories and Applications course (Critical Tracking) 6
Qualitative and Communication Tools Course (Critical Tracking)
Gen Ed Composition; Writing Requirement 3
Gen Ed Physical Sciences 3
Elective (3000 level or above, not in major) 3
 Credits15
Semester Six
Theories and Applications course (Critical Tracking) 3
Gen Ed Humanities 3
Electives (or Quantitative and Spatial Tools course if STA 2023 not taken) 3
Elective (3000 level or above; not in major) 3
Electives 4
 Credits16
Semester Seven
Theories and Applications course (Critical Tracking) 3
Quest 3 (Experiential Learning) 3 3
Gen Ed Biological Sciences 3
Electives (3000 level or above, not in major) 6
 Credits15
Semester Eight
IDS 4942 Sustainability in Action (capstone course; Critical Tracking) 3
Gen Ed Humanities 3
Electives (3000 level or above, not in major) 6
Electives 3
 Credits15
 Total Credits120-123
1

CLAS Foreign Language Proficiency Requirement

2

Degree Requirements

3

To fulfill the Quest 3/UF Experiential Learning Academic Requirement (Q3/ELAR), students should enroll in an experience for 0-3 credit hours through existing courses that are designated to fulfill the Quest 3 requirement. Your Q3/ELA requirement must be sustainability related. The Q3/ELAR requirement may be fulfilled through internship, undergraduate research, study abroad, field school, or an approved community-engaged project. If taken for 0-2 credits, students may need additional elective credits to reach 120 total credits. 


APPROVED CLUSTER COURSES

Cluster A | Ethics, Culture and Human Behavior

AEB 4126Agricultural and Natural Resource Ethics (Gen Ed Humanities or Social and Behavioral Sciences)3
AMH 3630American Environmental History3
ANT 3420Consumer Culture3
ANT 4006Human Rights and Culture3
ANT 4403Environment and Cultural Behavior (Gen Ed Social and Behavioral Sciences)3
FNR 3020Professional Practice in Natural Resources1
JOU 4314Environmental Journalism3
PHC 4309Climate Change, the Environment, and the Future of Public Health3
PHC 4320Environmental Concepts in Public Health3
FNR 3602Society and Natural Resources3
FNR 4070CEnvironmental Education Program Development3
GEO 3427Plants, Health and Spirituality3
PHI 3633Bioethics3
PHM 3032Ethics and Ecology (Gen Ed Humanities)3
PUR 4442Public Interest Communications3
PUR 4443Global Social Change Communication3
REL 2104Environmental Ethics (Gen Ed Humanities)3
REL 3492Religion Ethics and Nature (Gen Ed Humanities)3
REL 4188Environmental Values and Practice3
SYD 3395Sociology of Globalization3
SYD 4020Population (Gen Ed Social and Behavioral Sciences and International)3
SYG 2010Social Problems (Gen Ed Social and Behavioral Sciences)3
SYO 4530Social Inequality (Gen Ed Social and Behavioral Sciences)3
WIS 4523Human Dimensions of Natural Resource Conservation3
WST 3415Transnational Feminism3
WST 3663Gender and Food Politics3
WST 4349Ecofeminism3

Cluster B | Economics, Law and Policy

AEB 2451Economics of Resource Use (Gen Ed Social and Behavioral Sciences)3
AEB 3450Introduction to Natural Resource and Environmental Economics3
AEB 4123Agricultural and Natural Resource Law3
AEB 4282International Humanitarian Assistance (Gen Ed Social and Behavioral Sciences and International)3
AEB 4283International Development Policy (Gen Ed Social and Behavioral Sciences)3
CPO 4793Environmental Politics in the Global South3
DCP 4215Leadership in Sustainability3
ECP 3302Environmental Economics and Resource Policy (Gen Ed Social and Behavioral Sciences)4
ENV 4601Environmental Resources Management3
EUH 3683The History of Consumption3
FNR 4080Sustainable Ecotourism Development3
FNR 4660Natural Resource Policy and Economics3
FYC 4408Organizational Leadership for Nonprofits3
FYC 4409Working with Nonprofit Organizations in Community Settings3
FYC 4410Fund Raising for Community Nonprofit Organizations3
FYC 4427Non-Governmental Organizations3
GEO 2500Global and Regional Economies (Gen Ed Social and Behavioral Sciences)3
GEO 3372Conservation of Resources3
INR 4350International Environmental Relations3
POT 3503Environmental Ethics and Politics3
PUP 4224Florida Environmental Politics3

Cluster C | Production Systems and the Built Environment

ABE 4655CBio-Based Products from Renewable Resources3
ARC 1000Architecture + Humanity (Gen Ed Humanities)3
ARC 3880Sustainable Architecture3
ARC 4882Vernacular Architecture and Sustainability3
AGG 3501Environment, Food and Society (Gen Ed Biological Sciences)3
AGR 4212Alternative Cropping Systems3
ALS 3133Agricultural and Environmental Quality (Gen Ed Physical Sciences)3
ALS 3153Agricultural Ecology3
AOM 2520Global Sustainable Energy: Past, Present and Future3
BCN 1582International Sustainable Development (Gen Ed Social and Behavioral Sciences and International)3
BCN 3730Construction, Safety, Health and the Environment3
BCN 4105Sustainable Housing: Putting the 3 E's into Residential Practice3
DCP 3200Methods of Inquiry for Sustainability and the Built Environment3
DCP 3210Sustainable Solutions for the Built Environment3
DCP 3220Social and Cultural Sustainability and the Built Environment3
DCP 4941Practicum in Sustainability and the Built Environment6
EES 3008Energy and Environment (Gen Ed Physical Sciences)3
EES 4050Environmental Planning and Design3
ENV 4932Special Problems in Environmental Engineering Sciences1-4
FAS 2024Sustainable Fisheries (Gen Ed Biological Sciences)3
FNR 3003CSilviculture4
FNR 4080Sustainable Ecotourism Development3
FNR 4304CUrban Forestry3
GEO 2006Natural Hazards Geography3
GIS 4324GIS Analysis of Hazard Vulnerability3
GLY 2038Sustainability and the Changing Earth3
HOS 3281COrganic and Sustainable Crop Production3
HOS 4283CAdvanced Organic and Sustainable Crop Production3
LAA 1330Site Analysis3
SWS 3022Introduction to Soils in the Environment (Gen Ed Physical Sciences)3
SWS 4116Environmental Nutrient Management (Gen Ed Physical Sciences)3
SWS 4207Sustainable Agricultural and Urban Land Management3
SWS 4231CSoil, Water and Land Use (Gen Ed Physical Sciences)3
SWS 4233Soil and Water Conservation3
SWS 4245Water Resource Sustainability3
SWS 4550Soils, Water and Public Health3
URP 4000Preview of Urban and Regional Planning (Gen Ed Humanities)3

Cluster D | Ecology and Environmental Stewardship

BOT 2800CPlants in Human Affairs (Gen Ed Biological Sciences)3
BSC 2005Biological Sciences (Gen Ed Biological Sciences)3
BSC 2011Integrated Principles of Biology 2 (Gen Ed Biological Sciences)3
BSC 3307CClimate Change Biology4
ENV 4101Elements of Atmospheric Pollution (Gen Ed Physical Sciences)3
EVR 2001Introduction to Environmental Science3
EVR 3323Introduction to Ecosystem Restoration4
FAS 4270Marine Ecological Processes3
FNR 2071Forests for the Future3
FNR 3004Forests, Conservation, and People (Gen Ed Biological Sciences)3
FNR 3500CForest Ecology (Gen Ed Biological Sciences)3
GEO 2200Dynamic Planet Earth (Gen Ed Physical Sciences)3
GEO 2242Extreme Weather3
GEO 3250Climatology (Gen Ed Physical Sciences)3
GEO 3280Principles of Geographic Hydrology (Gen Ed Physical Sciences)4
GEO 3334Managing for a Changing Climate3
GEO 3341Extreme Floods (Gen Ed Physical Sciences and International)3
GEO 3352The Human Footprint on Landscape3
GEO 4300Environmental Biogeography3
GLY 2010CPhysical Geology (Gen Ed Physical Sciences)4
GLY 2030CEnvironmental and Engineering Geology (Gen Ed Physical Sciences)3
GLY 3074Oceans and Global Climate Change (Gen Ed Physical Sciences)3
GLY 3083CFundamentals of Marine Sciences (Gen Ed Physical Sciences)3
GLY 3882CHydrogeology and Human Affairs3
PCB 3601CPlant Ecology3
PCB 4043CGeneral Ecology4
SWS 2007The World of Water (Gen Ed Physical Sciences)3
SWS 2008Land and Life (Gen Ed Biological Sciences)3
SWS 4223Environmental Biogeochemistry3
SWS 4244Wetlands3
WIS 2040Wildlife Issues in a Changing World (Gen Ed Biological Sciences)3
WIS 2552Biodiversity Conservation: Global Perspectives (Gen Ed Biological Sciences and International)3
WIS 3401Wildlife Ecology and Management3
WIS 3402Wildlife of Florida3
WIS 3404Natural Resource Ecology3
WIS 3410The Ecology of Climate Change3
WIS 4501Introduction to Wildlife Population Ecology3
WIS 3434Tropical Wildlife3
WIS 4554Conservation Biology3
WIS 4934Topics in Wildlife Ecology and Conservation1-4
ZOO 4405Sea Turtle Biology and Conservation3

The Bachelor of Arts in Sustainability Studies requires students to demonstrate an understanding of the relationship between the goals of sustainability and the activities of the built environment disciplines, including architecture, building construction, historic preservation, interior design, landscape architecture, and urban and regional planning.

Before Graduating Students Must

  • Complete a capstone or independent research project, present the results to a committee of the program’s faculty, and receive acceptable assessment.
  • Complete requirements for the baccalaureate degree, as determined by faculty.

Students in the Major Will Learn to

Student Learning Outcomes | SLOs

Content

  1. Define and explain sustainability scholarship, including natural scientific, social scientific, and humanistic approaches.
  2. Define and explain the relationship of sustainability to ethics, culture and human behavior; economics, law and policy; production systems, and the built environment; ecology and environmental stewardship.

Critical Thinking

  1. Critically assess sustainability principles and practices.

Communication

  1. Effectively write and/or orally communicate a range of approaches, frameworks, principles, and practices of sustainability.

Curriculum Map

I = Introduced; R = Reinforced; A = Assessed

Courses SLO 1 SLO 2 SLO 3 SLO 4
IDS 2154 I, R I, R I, R I, R
IDS 4942 A A A A
Core Courses
AMH 2631, ANT 2402, BSC 2862, CLA 2521, GLY 2038, POS 2032, REL 2071 R R R

Assessment Types

  • Exams
  • Writing assignments
  • Projects
  • Presentations
  • Internships