Sustainability Studies Minor

The program provides an understanding of sustainability, a unifying approach to human and environmental problems. Sustainable businesses, communities, and other organizations seek to design systems in ways that optimize material and energy use to decrease environmental and health problems and to bolster economic vitality and social equity. A growing number of scholars are framing problems and solutions in the language of sustainability, which balances growth and development with justice and environmental stewardship in order to meet today’s needs without undermining the ability of future generations to do the same.

Students who major in the B.A. or B.S. environmental degree programs are not allowed to minor in sustainability studies.

Requirements

In addition to the program requirements listed below, students must:

  • take at least nine hours of their minor "core" requirements at UNC–Chapel Hill
  • earn a minimum cumulative GPA of 2.000 in the minor core requirements. Some programs may require higher standards for minor or specific courses.

For more information, please consult the degree requirements section of the catalog.

Core Requirements
ENEC/PLAN 330Principles of Sustainability 13
or ENEC 201 IDEAs in Action General Education logo Introduction to Environment and Society
or ENEC 431 Sustainable Cities: Exploring Ways of Making Cities More Sustainable
Four elective courses chosen from the following options:12
Sustainable Business and Social Enterprise H
Environmental Advocacy
Environmental Advocacy
IDEAs in Action General Education logo Introduction to Environment and Society H, F
IDEAs in Action General Education logo Introduction to the Environmental Sciences
North Carolina Estuaries: Environmental Processes and Problems
Conservation of Biodiversity in Theory and Practice
Data Analysis and Visualization of Social and Environmental Interactions
Energy and Material Flows in the Environment and Society
IDEAs in Action General Education logo Water in Our World: Introduction to Hydrologic Science and Environmental Problems
IDEAs in Action General Education logo Water Resource Management and Human Rights H
IDEAs in Action General Education logo Environmental Law and Policy
Coastal Law and Policy
Agriculture and the Environment H
Global Environment: Policy Analysis and Solutions
Confronting Climate Change in the Anthropocene
Mountain Preservation
Principles of Energy Conversion
Community Design and Green Architecture
Textiles: Environmental Impacts, Issues, and Innovations
Environmental Life Cycle Assessment
Coastal and Estuarine Ecology
Ecosystem Management
IDEAs in Action General Education logo Corporate Environmental Stewardship
Environmental Risk Assessment
Human Impacts on Estuarine Ecosystems
IDEAs in Action General Education logo Business and Finance Fundamentals for Change Makers
Sustainable Coastal Management
Landscape Analysis
Special Topics in Environmental Science and Studies H
Policy Analysis of Global Climate Change
Environmental Change and Human Health
Energy, Transportation, and Land Use
Sustainable Energy Systems
Environmental Storytelling
Ecological Analyses and Application
Watershed Planning
Environmental Communication and the Public Sphere
Capstone: Analysis and Solution of Environmental Problems
Environmental Health
Natural Resources
Human Ecology of Health and Disease
IDEAs in Action General Education logo Introduction to Geographic Information
Energy: Physical Principles and the Quest for Alternatives to Dwindling Oil and Gas
and Energy: Physical Principles and the Quest for Alternatives to Dwindling Oil and Gas
IDEAs in Action General Education logo Cities of the Past, Present, and Future: Introduction to Planning
IDEAs in Action General Education logo Solving Urban Problems
Urban Transportation Planning
Total Hours15
H

Honors version available. An honors course fulfills the same requirements as the nonhonors version of that course. Enrollment and GPA restrictions may apply.

F

FY-Launch class sections may be available. A FY-Launch section fulfills the same requirements as a standard section of that course, but also fulfills the FY-SEMINAR/FY-LAUNCH First-Year Foundations requirement. Students can search for FY-Launch sections in ConnectCarolina using the FY-LAUNCH attribute.

1

If two of these courses are taken, the second course may satisfy the elective requirement.

The minor requires a minimum of 15 credit hours.

See the program page here for special opportunities.

Environment, Ecology, and Energy Program

Visit Program Website

3202 Murray Hall, CB# 3275

(919) 962-1270

Chair

Drew Coleman

dcoleman@unc.edu

Director of Undergraduate Studies

Amy E. Cooke

amycooke@unc.edu

Student Services Manager

Heratia Brelland

heratiab@unc.edu