Environmental Issues and Solutions Around the World. 3 credits

Catalog description

Society’s relationship with the environment is: (1) fundamental to its success; (2) complex, involving economics, finance, law, culture, religion, politics, education, science, technology, and engineering; (3) widespread, often with impacts not just locally but regionally, nationally or globally; and (4) constantly changing with potentially enormous short-term and long-term benefits and costs that may be in conflict. This relationship can drive a society to thrive or decline. Humans today have unprecedented ability to affect the environment both locally and globally, and to be affected by it. Technology and engineering are key drivers in society’s efforts to manage our environment. This course will examine the history of various societies’ interactions—including our own—with the environment; explore our ability to affect the environment—in small and enormous ways—through modern science, technology and engineering; and foster debate on today’s critical environmental issues. Offered by Civil, Environ & Infrastr Engr . Limited to two attempts.