Picture taken from a field trip from Professor Dave Skelly's Aquatic Ecology course. |
ENVIRONMENTAL STUDIES ELECTIVE COURSES
Suggested Fall 2008 Electives:
- Field Ecology
- Structure, Function and Development of Vascular Plants
- Ecosystems Patterns and Processes
- Laboratory for Ecosystems Patterns and Processes
- Observing Earth from Space
- Landscape Ecology
- Agriculture, Farmers, Food: Foundational Matters NEW
- Minerals and Human Health
- Asian Environments and Frontiers NEW
- Energy in American History NEW
- Civilizations and Collapse
Suggested Spring 2009 Electives:
- Earth's Changing Climate
- Sustainability:Theory to Practice in Institutions
- Local Flora
- International Environmental Policy and Governance
- Organic Pollutants in the Environment
- Aquatic Chemistry
- Privatizing Governance NEW
- Environmental Hydrology
Faculty have designed several new courses with this major in mind. These intermediate courses are approved for the EVST major area of concentration:
Field Ecology
John Cooley
EVST 221a/E&EB 230a/F&ES 221a
A field-based introduction to ecological research. Experimental and descriptive approaches, comparative analysis, and modeling are explored through field and small-group projects.
Concurrently with or after E&EB 220a or with permission of instructor.
Structure, Function, and Development of
Vascular Plants
Graeme Berlyn
EVST 260a/F&ES 260a
Morphogenesis and adaptation of trees from seed formation and germination to maturity. Physiological and developmental processes associated with structural changes in response to environment are discussed from both a phylogenetic and an adaptive point of view. After MCDB 120a.
Ecosystems Patterns and
Processes
Oswald Schmitz
EVST 275a/F&ES 275a
Introduction to the ecosystem concept. Topics include the structure and functioning of ecological systems, the response of systems to changing environmental conditions, and preservation and management issues. Discussion of both terrestrial and marine/aquatic systems.
Undergraduate enrollment limited to 15.
Laboratory for Ecosystems Patterns and
Processes (1/2 credit lab)
Staff
EVST 276La/F&ES 276La
Field trips to interpret the ecosystem-level functions of a wide variety of natural landscapes. Must be taken concurrently with EVST 275a/F&ES 275a.
Observing Earth from Space
Ronald Smith
EVST 362a/ARCG 362a/G&G 362a
A practical introduction to satellite image analysis of Earth’s surface. Topics include the spectrum of electromagnetic radiation, satellite-borne radiometers, data transmission and storage, computer image analysis, the merging of satellite imagery with GIS and applications to weather and climate, oceanography, surficial geology, ecology and epidemiology, forestry, agriculture, archaeology, and watershed management.
Preference to undergraduates in G&G, Anthropology, and Environmental Studies. Prerequisites: college-level physics or chemistry, two courses in geology and natural science of the environment or equivalents, and computer literacy.
Landscape Ecology
David Skelly
EVST 365a/E&EB 365a/F&ES 365a
An introduction to the study of large-scale ecological patterns and processes. Topics include species viability, ecosystem management, and the design of nature reserves. Focus on when and how to integrate a spatial perspective into consideration of major ecological questions. After E&EB 220a.
Agriculture, Farmers, Food: Foundational Matters
James Scott
EVST 389a/ANTH 389a/PLSC 405a
The seminar is designed to be a brief but foundational introduction to the study of agriculture, food, and farming - an intellectual "boot camp" for those who want the background knowledge for work along more specialized lines.
Minerals and Human Health
H. Catherine Skinner
EVST 404a/G&G 304a
Study of the interrelationships between Earth materials and processes and personal and public health. The transposition from the environment of the chemical elements essential for life.
After one year of college-level chemistry.
Asian Environments and Frontiers
Peter Perdue
EVST 420a/HIST 313Ja
An examination of the impacts of Asian farmers, merchants, and states on the natural world. The primary focus is imperial China, but we will also discuss aspects of Japan, Southeast Asia, Inner Asia in the early modern and modern periods. Themes include frontier conquest, land clearance, water conservancy, urban footprints, and relations between agrarian and non-agrarian peoples. We conclude with discussion of environmental movements in Asia today.
Energy in American History
Paul Sabin
EVST 443a/HIST 180Ja
Civilizations and Collapse
Harvey Weiss
EVST 473a/ANTH 473a/ARCG 473a/NELC 188a
Collapse documented in the archeological and early historical records of the Old and New Worlds, including Mesopotamia, Mesoamerica, the Andes, and Europe. Analysis of politicoeconomic vulnerabilities, resiliencies, and adaptations in face of abrupt climate change; anthropogenic environmental degradation; resource depletion; “barbarian” incursions; and class conflict.
Earth's Changing Climate
Steven Sherwood
EVST 125b/G&G 120b
Investigation of the science of contemporary climate change or "global warming". Historical and contemporary methods used by scientists to draw conclusions concerning Earth's complex climate system and human influences on it.
Sustainability: Theory to Practice in Institutions
Julie Newman
EVST 170b
Sustainable development as it relates to institutional change, decision-making processes, and systems thinking. The origins, theory, and grounding principles of sustainable development. The application of those principles, using Yale University as the case example.
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Local
Flora
Staff
EVST 220b/F&ES 220b
A winter field course in the collection and identification of plants. Discussion and interpretation of the communities and ecosystems in which they occur.
International Environmental Policy and Governance
Graeme Auld
EVST 245b/F&ES 245b/PLSC 146b
The emergence of global-scale environmental challenges, environmental diplomacy, and global environmental governance. Particular attention to the linked issues of climate change, deforestation, biodiversity loss, and desertification, and to the interplay of science and politics in framing policy responses to these issues.
Organic Pollutants in the Environment
Shimon Anisfeld
EVST 307a/F&ES 307a
An overview of the pollution problems posed by synthetic organic chemicals (pesticides, PCBs, PAHs) and petroleum products. Topics include processes governing the environmental fate of organic pollutants (evaporation, bioconcentration, biodegradation); how those processes apply to specific groups of chemicals; technologies for prevention and remediation of organic pollution; and issues related to specific classes of chemicals (oil spill response, pesticide choices). Intended both for students with no background in organic chemistry and for those who have taken an organic chemistry course.
Aquatic Chemistry
Helmut Ernstberger
EVST 344b/ENAS 640b/F&ES 60109b/F&ES707b
A detailed examination of the principles governing chemical reactions in water. Emphasis is on developing the ability to predict the aqueous chemistry of natural and perturbed systems based on a knowledge of their biogeochemical setting. Calculation of quantitative solutions to chemical equilibria. Focus is on inorganic chemistry, and topics include elementary thermodynamics, acid-base equilibria, alkalinity, speciation, solubility, mineral stability, redox chemistry, and surface complexation reactions. Illustrative examples are taken from the aquatic chemistry of estuaries, lakes, rivers, wetlands, soils, aquifers, and the atmosphere. A standard software package used to predict chemical equilibria may also be presented.
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Privatizing Governance
Graeme Auld
EVST 376b/PLSC 376b
This seminar examines the political, economic, and social significance of emerging private and hybrid governance systems. The aim is to explore questions including why these systems emerge, what explains the different forms they take, how effective are they, and, most broadly, how do they interface with state authority? It will examine examples of these developments in different sectors including apparel, coffee, forestry and fisheries.
Environmental Hydrology
James Saiers
EVST 440b/F&ES 440b
An overview of the principles that govern the distribution and flows of water and waterborne constituents between the land, atmosphere, and oceans.