ENST 260 - Issues in Environmental Studies

Semester Offered: Fall
1 unit(s)

The purpose of this course is to examine in depth an issue, problem, or set of issues and problems in environmental studies, to explore the various ways in which environmental issues are embedded in multiple contexts and may be understood from multiple perspectives. The course topic changes from year to year.

Topic for 2014/15a: Risk. This course examines environmental risk from several perspectives ranging from the underlying science of exposure and toxicology, to psychological perceptions of personal risk, up to risk as a driver of environmental regulation. Students engage with practical, scientific, regulatory, and theoretic difficulties involved in understanding risk. Topics are illustrated through case studies that involve students in the collection and analysis of samples, the interpretation of data, and the process of making environmental recommendations. Mr. Belli and Mr. Kelly.

Prerequisite: permission of the instructor.

Two 75-minute periods.