Learn about my coursework in Environmental and Sustainability Studies.
Course Description:
An introduction to human effects on interactions among organisms and the environment.
Major Takeaways:
Through readings, labwork, and lectures, I learned about the more technical aspects of environmental science. The course focused on ecology, systems, and the impacts of climate change on our natural and built environments.
Course Description:
Causes and effects of human incursion into natural systems. Examination of social, political, ethical, and economic issues and theory in light of ecological and evolutionary principles, with a goal of developing sustainable programs.
Major Takeaways:
This introductory course inspired me to pursue the program minor; I was able to investigate the wide variety of human-environment relationships in an academic and analytical environment.
Read:
Impact Analysis: Denim Lifecycle
Course Description:
This course will survey the evolution of African environmental and ecological systems over the past 200 years. Subjects will include aspects of the physical environment visible through changes in climate and hydrology, as well as key issues of human/environmental interaction, such as agriculture, deforestation, conservation, famine, malaria, and the role of colonialism and economic development in environmental change. The course will also examine the ways in which outsiders have created myths about the African environment and how Africans have managed their natural resources over time. The course will examine the causes and social effects of famine, vector-borne disease and the impact of political ecology of globalization on African environmental management. Course assignments will cover most geographical regions of Africa, but with special attention to East Africa.
Major Takeaways:
African Environmental History combined elements of Africana Studies, Environmental Studies, and History to achieve a powerful interdisciplinary objective; understanding “Africa” as a complex and nuanced product of African agency against colonial implications and lasting, dangerous misconceptions of the continent as a whole. This course remains one of my favorite classes at Agnes Scott.
Read:
Imagining African Environments: Zoos, Circuses, Menageries, and the Colonial Impulse
Course Description:
This course is designed to introduce and provide an overview of key areas in environmental health. Using the perspectives of the population and community health, the course will cover factors associated with the development of environmental health problems. Students will gain an understanding of the interaction of individuals and communities with the environment, the potential impact on health of environmental agents, and specific applications of concepts of environmental health. The course will consist of a series of lectures and will cover principles derived from core environmental health disciplines. Topics will include physical, chemical, and biological hazards to health; how pollutants are produced and disperse in the environment; the scientific basis for environmental regulation and policy decisions; social movements for environmental health and justice; and emerging global environmental health challenges.
Major Takeaways:
I gained a baseline for studying public health and continued to build upon my understanding of environmental racism, ecological health risks, and leaders in the field of environmental public health.
Read:
“Assessing Vulnerability to Urban Heat”
Environmental Autobiography
