Environmental Science

A: Environmental Science explores the biological, physical, and sociological principles related to the environment in which organisms live on Earth: the biosphere. Course topics include natural systems on Earth, biogeochemical cycles, the nature of matter and energy, the flow of matter and energy through living systems, populations, communities, ecosystems, ecological pyramids, renewable and nonrenewable natural resources, land use, biodiversity, pollution, conservation, sustainability, and human impacts on the environment.

B: By the end of this course, you will be able to do the following: Evaluate how the environment reacts to both human exploitation and sustainability measures; classify various forms of environmental damage, connecting each to the economic forces responsible, including urbanization and energy use; differentiate environmental issues by scale, from the impact of individuals to the effects of sweeping international policies.