Sustainability minor to launch next semester

Protecting the environment starts with education, and officials hope the debut of the new sustainability studies minor next semester will draw a slew of more green-friendly initiatives across the campus.

To provide students with an opportunity to learn about green practices and how to address hot-button issues, such as decreasing energy consumption and water runoff, the University Senate approved the implementation of a new sustainability minor Dec. 2.

Students can begin taking courses — which will use classes that are already offered — to complete the 15-credit minor as early as the spring semester.

Sustainability studies minor co-director Robert Sprinkle said the aim of the minor is to help students and faculty become more aware of the various roles sustainability plays in society.

"The intention is to review many different ways in which the sustainability concept can be applied," Sprinkle said. "The expectation is more people will become aware and attuned to sustainability principles."

Officials began working on the minor during the summer after Provost Ann Wylie launched a committee comprised of faculty members from various colleges across the campus, Sprinkle said.

Committee chairman and Associate Provost Mahlon Straszheim said students will be able to pick from nearly 50 university courses — ranging from philosophy to engineering — to fulfill the minor's requirements, and students may be able to pick from more classes in the future, Straszheim said.

"The committee looked over the curriculum and identified classes that addressed sustainability topics across all disciplines in the university," said Straszheim, adding that a faculty committee will update the list of courses every year.

The first course students can take as part of the minor, AGNR/PUAF 300: Introduction to Sustainability, is an introductory course designed to familiarize students with the concept of sustainability as well as encourage them to examine global issues in the field.

"It's a general examination of the concept so people can see where there are more or fewer problems that can be addressed," Sprinkle said. "It involves clever and conscientious approaches to problems that present to future generations a world that's less damaged and depleted than it might otherwise be."

Sprinkle said students already seem to be anxious to get started — the introductory class has 110 of 125 seats already filled.

"We know there's pre-existing interest among students, otherwise there would not have been as much excitement," Sprinkle said.

Sophomore anthropology major Andrea Doukakis said she already signed up for the class, noting the minor will help launch her future career and boost awareness of a topic that students have already shown interest in.

"Without the minor, I really wouldn't have a career path," said Doukakis, adding she's trying to be the first person to officially declare the minor. "I feel people from all types of fields and majors will take on this minor as well."

Office of Sustainability Director Scott Lupin said launching the minor was a stepping stone in integrating more sustainability courses into the university curriculum and would help pique the interests of both students and faculty.

"I think now that we have a recognized platform, there will be faculty who will want to create or change their courses to fit the minor," Lupin said. "It'll be a positive wave across campus and will put the university in a positive light."

Straszheim said students learning more about sustainability through the minor — even if they only take some of the classes — could help solidify sustainable practices into the campus' culture for years to come.

"The more people who study sustainability, the more they talk about it," Straszheim said. "I think word is going to spread quickly among students."

Implementing the minor is a reflection of the many efforts the university is taking to promote more eco-friendly practices and crafting ways to solve some of the world's most pressing environmental problems, Sprinkle said.

"There's been a lot of interest taken in the university's efforts along these lines," Sprinkle said. "We certainly think [this minor] will be to the credit of the university, and I have no reason to think the university won't want to spread the word about it."

saravia@umdbk.com