Even if you’re majoring in something completely unrelated to environmental science, there are still ways to make learning about sustainability a part of your time at the University of Rochester. The College of Arts and Sciences offers several sustainability focused clusters that you can take to fulfill your degree requirements.
- Global Climate Change: This cluster draws upon a more scientific approach to how our environment is changing, and fulfills a Natural Science cluster requirement.
- Sustainability and the Environmental Humanities: This cluster offers a mix of history, art, philosophy, and environmental humanities courses to look at sustainability from a humanities perspective. It fulfills a Humanities cluster.
- Science and Sustainability: Another more science-focused area, this Natural Science cluster discusses the natural world as well as social impacts of sustainability.
- Society and Sustainability: This cluster, which fulfills the Social Sciences, approaches sustainability from a political and historical perspective.
- Health, Environment, and Sustainability: This cluster focuses on the connections between public health and sustainability, and fulfills a Social Science Cluster.
Outside of these clusters, there are many earth science, environmental and food policy, and public health classes that are available for students to take that encompass some aspect of sustainability. Don’t be afraid to reach out to department faculty from sustainability studies to learn more!
Written by Carmen Marshall ‘25
Photo by Unseen Studio on Unsplash