Environmental Science

Across the four emphases, Environmental Sciences takes a systems approach and focuses on solutions to the challenges we face. The program shares a common core of coursework in the environmental sciences, including environmental ethics and environmental policy. The Water-Food-Energy nexus provides a central organizing concept for the program and provides students with the broad background to be flexible and resilient in their future career directions. It includes mathematics coursework to ensure that students are adept with the quantitative analyses and modeling that are important skills in the discipline.

The Ecosystems emphasis includes a strong foundation in biology, chemistry, physics and math, plus the flexibility to focus in the student’s specific area of interest, including hands-on, field-based courses in soils, geomorphology, hydrology and biology.

The Geosciences emphasis includes more GIS (geographic information systems) coursework, so students develop a skill that is valuable across many disciplines and career areas, in addition to geomorphology and hydrogeology.

The Sustainability emphasis includes further coursework in economics and political science, equipping graduates to apply their knowledge in natural resources and environmental sciences to the success and profitability of enterprises in the public, private and nonprofit sectors of the business world.

The Regenerative Ag emphasis is an innovative program for students interested in new and unconventional approaches to agriculture and food systems, in the US and around the world. Beyond sustainability, the focus is on shifting towards building the resilience and improving the quality of water supplies, soils and landscapes, while producing necessary resources.

Regenerative Agriculture refers to principles and practices of land management and farming that increase biodiversity, enrich soils and improve watersheds. An emphasis in Regenerative Agriculture within Environmental Sciences takes advantage of current and increasing interest in locally sourced foods, heirloom and unconventional crops, multicropping systems, low-input farming methods, permaculture, free-range and pastured animals. Entrepreneurial businesses focused in these areas are springing up everywhere, and address concerns with food safety, nutritional value and security of food supply.

Fayette and the neighboring area host a variety of farms and value-added agricultural businesses, from farmers markets, Community Supported Agricultural (CSA) producers, and dairies that process their own milk products to heirloom-seed companies, breweries, and aquaculture facilities.