Bachelor of Arts in Applied Environmental Studies - Food Systems, Nutrition, and the Environment

The Applied Environmental Studies major provides theoretical grounding of environmental principles while also providing robust training in quantitative methods, spatial analysis and communication skills required for success in the field. Students will be required to complete fifteen classes: five core courses, five skill-based courses, four courses in an area of specialization, and a project-based capstone or equivalent course. Students must also complete a pre-approved environmental internship (min. 100hrs, ENV 99).This track focuses on the importance of sustainable food production systems and critical issues of access to high quality food. The study of food systems, nutrition and the environment has enjoyed a meteoric rise in popularity, as communities and institutions have recognized the importance of sustainable food production systems and high quality food as an integral part of any healthy and just society. This is an inherently interdisciplinary area, requiring students to draw on multiple types of knowledge and methods. To illustrate: the production and distribution of food is affected by cultural norms, individual behavior, social structure, biotechnologies, present and past environments, geopolitical power, and global economic relations. Social movements and cultural preferences, often inflected by race, class, and gender, drive the demand and value of certain foods (such as wild-caught fish, farm-raised animals, or traditional grains), which in turn influence how and where food production takes place.Students in this track can choose to take a wide variety of courses, or instead concentrate on issues such as nutrition, global agricultural systems, plant physiology, food justice, rural life and culture, food policy, and environmental ethics. It serves as an ideal preparation for future studies and careers in nutrition and nutritional policy, sustainable food production, and global food systems, grounding students in perspectives that cut across the physical, social, and human sciences with attention to inequality and cultural difference.