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**Review** Undergraduate Catalog 2025-2026

Environmental and Sustainability Studies B.A.

Program Overview

College of Humanities and Social Sciences

Location: Candelaria Hall 2200

Email: HSS@unco.edu

Website: www.unco.edu/hss/geography-gis-sustainability

Advising Information:

Students must consult with their assigned major advisor each semester prior to registering.

To find your advisor, log into ursa.unco.edu; go to 'Student' tab and click 'View Student Information' link. If no advisor is listed, contact the major program for advisor information.

The program consists of three parts:

  1. Liberal Arts Curriculum (LAC) Credits
  2. Required Major Credits
  3. University-Wide Credits

Program Description:

The Environmental and Sustainability Studies program is built on the “three pillars” of sustainability: environment, economics, and equity. Environmental sustainability is the ability of the environment to support a defined level of environmental quality and natural resource extraction rates indefinitely. Economic sustainability is the ability of an economy to support a defined level of economic production indefinitely. Equity or social sustainability refers to the ability of a social system to provide equitable access for all groups to well-being and harmony indefinitely. Students in the program are interested in developing environmental solutions that incorporate environmental, economic, and equity concerns so that policies and practices are sustainable for the long-term.

Admission Requirements:

Academic Good Standing

Program Requirements:

Students may take 3 of the credits outside the program with advisor approval.

Degree Requirements — 120 Credits

1. Liberal Arts Curriculum— 31 credits

To complete the degree in 120 credits as outlined, the program recommends the below LAC courses which also count toward the 63 required major credits.

Any additional coursework completed outside of the recommended list of LAC courses may extend the length of the program of study.

Written Communication — 6 credits

SCI 291 is recommended to fulfill Intermediate Writing Course requirement and will fulfill both LAC and major requirements.

See Written Communication courses

Mathematics — 3 credits

STAT 150 is recommended to fulfill Mathematics requirement and will fulfill both LAC and major requirements.

See Mathematics courses

Arts & Humanities, History, Social & Behavioral Sciences, U.S. Multicultural Studies [MS], and International Studies [IS] — 15 credits

To complete the LAC in the minimum number of credits, be sure to choose at least one course with an IS designation and one course with an MS designation.

Select any courses to fulfill this requirement from the currently approved LAC course list.

See Arts & Humanities, History, and Social & Behavioral Sciences courses

Natural & Physical Sciences — 7 credits

BIO 111 and ENST 100 are recommended to fulfill Natural & Physical Sciences requirement and will fulfill both LAC and major requirements.

See Natural & Physical Sciences courses

See Liberal Arts Curriculum

2. Required Major — 63 credits

Core Credits — 26 credits

ENST 205Environment, Politics and Law

3

ENST 209International Sustainable Development

3

ENST 265Conservation of Natural Resources

3

ENST 270Professional Development

3

or

GEOG 270Professional Development

3

ENST 315Nature & Society

3

or

GEOG 315Nature and Society

3

ENST 335Environmental and Resource Economics

3

or

ECON 335Environmental and Resource Economics

3

ENST 490Capstone Proposal

2

or

GEOG 490Capstone Proposal

2

ENST 491Senior Capstone

2

or

GEOG 491Senior Capstone

2

Choose 1 of the following courses:

ESCI 200Introduction to Environmental Earth ScienceLAS1LASL

4

GEOL 100General GeologyLAS1LASL

4

MET 205General MeteorologyLAS1LASL

4

ESCI 150Our Violent EarthLAS1

3

Choose from the following courses — 12 credits

Choose 12 credits from the following courses among the Social Dimensions, Natural Resource Sciences, and Economic & Policy Dimensions. A minimum of 9 credits must be chosen with prefix ENST or GEOG above the 199.

Social Dimensions:
BAMG 355Fundamentals of Entrepreneurship

3

ENST 215Human Behavior and Environment

3

ENST 249Food, People, and Place

3

or

GEOG 249Food, People, and Place

3

ENST 272Environmental Conflict Resolution

3

ENST 283The Psychology of Sustainability

3

ENST 326Emerging Africa: Local Resources and Livelihoods in a Global Context

3

or

GEOG 326Emerging Africa: Local Resources and Livelihoods in a Global Context

3

ENST 331Anthropology and Contemporary Human Problems

3

or

ANT 331Anthropology and Contemporary Human Problems

3

ENST 360Environmental Justice

3

or

SOC 360Environmental Justice

3

ENST 375Literature and the Environment

3

or

ENG 375Literature and the Environment

3

ENST 385Art and the Environment

3

ENST 395Special Topics Environmental Studies/Sustainability

1-3

ENST 460Sociology of Disasters

3

ENST 495Advanced Topics in Environmental Studies/Sustainability

1-3

GEOG 200Human GeographyLAB2

3

PHIL 311Environmental Ethics

3

Natural Resource Sciences:
BIO 360Ecology

4

BIO 462Conservation Biology

3

ESCI 225Energy and the EnvironmentLAS1

3

ENST 261Water Quality Management

3

ENST 321NEPA - Environmental Planning and Compliance

3

ENST 345Environmental Geography: Earth at Risk

3

or

GEOG 345Environmental Geography: Earth at Risk

3

ENST 380Sustainable Geographies

3

or

GEOG 380Sustainable Geographies

3

ENST 440Biogeography

3

or

GEOG 440Biogeography

3

ENST 444Global Climate Change

3

or

GEOG 444Global Climate Change

3

GEOG 325Advanced Physical Geography: Topics

3

GEOG 445Landscape Ecology

3

GEOL 464Glacial and Quaternary Geology

3

MET 205General MeteorologyLAS1LASL

4

MET 451Climatology

3

GEOL 464 has prerequisites: (GEOL 100 or GEOL 201)

Economic & Policy Dimensions:
ENST 320American Environmental Worldviews

3

ENST 356Water Resource Economics

3

or

ECON 356Water Resource Economics

3

ENST 378Energy Policy and Economics

3

or

ECON 378Energy Policy and Economics

3

ENST 382Sustainability and Capitalism

3

ENST 495Advanced Topics in Environmental Studies/Sustainability

1-3

GEOG 310Urban and Regional Planning

3

GEOG 312Economic Geography of the Industrialized World

3

Applied Studies & Methods — 12 credits

Take all of the following courses:

GEOG 210Introduction to GIS and GPS

3

ENST 373Qualitative Research Methods

3

Take at least 6 credits from the following courses:

BIO 329Field Botany

3

BIO 411Field Techniques in Biology

2

ENST 364Sustainability Leadership and Community Engagement

3

ENST 411Adaptive Management for Natural Resources

3

ENST 422Directed Studies

1- 3

ENST 492Internship in Environmental Studies

1-4

ESCI 330Earth Science Statistical Analysis

3

ESCI 472Industrial Safety

3

ESCI 491Geoscience Field Issues

1- 6

GEOG 302Cartography

3

GEOG 307Geographic Information Science

3

GEOG 327Fundamentals of Geospatial Programming

3

GEOG 375Quantitative Techniques in Geography

3

GEOG 391Western Colorado Rivers

3

GEOG 392Field Course in Geography

1- 6

GEOG 412Web Mapping

3

GEOG 449Remote Sensing of the Environment

3

GEOL 390Colorado Geology

3

ENST 492: Only 3 credits may count toward this category

Required Supporting Credits — 13 credits

BIO 111, ENST 100, SCI 291, and STAT 150 are required in the major and these credits are recommended to be taken as part of the LAC. Any additional coursework completed outside of the recommended list of LAC courses may extend the length of the program of study.

BIO 111Biology: Organisms to EcosystemsLAS1LASL

4

ENST 100Introduction to Environmental StudiesLAS1

3

SCI 291Scientific WritingLAW2

3

STAT 150Introduction to Statistical AnalysisLAX1

3

3. University Wide Credits — 26 credits*

Complete additional credits to achieve the minimum credits needed for this degree at UNC; for this degree, that will typically be 26 credits.

*Note: Students who apply the recommended courses to both the liberal arts curriculum and the major requirements will have an increased number of university wide electives to apply to this degree. See your advisor for details.

Program Notes

A student may consider pursuing a minor in another area pertinent to their career perspectives or may consider a second major, in conjunction with advisor input, to increase expertise in a selection of career choices.

Four Year Plan

This four year plan is a recommended schedule to complete this bachelor's degree in 4 years. Courses are subject to availability. Students must consult with their major advisor to receive information on any additional graduation requirements and course sequence guidance.

Year 1 – 31 credits

Fall Semester

BIO 111Biology: Organisms to EcosystemsLAS1LASL

4

ENG 122College CompositionLAW1

3

ENST 100Introduction to Environmental StudiesLAS1

3

Major Elective

3

UNIV 101Foundations for Learning and DevelopmentLAB3

3

or

University-Wide Elective

3

Total Credit Hours:16

Spring Semester

SCI 291Scientific WritingLAW2

3

Major Elective

3

LAC HistoryLAH1

3

University-Wide Elective

3

University-Wide Elective

3

Total Credit Hours:15

Consider: Intro level LAC class for potential minor programs

Students often minor in fields such as GIS, political science, earth science, and communication. This allows for the application of sustainability context within a specific skill set or discipline.

Year 2 – 30 credits

Fall Semester

ENST 205Environment, Politics and Law

3

ENST 265Conservation of Natural Resources

3

GEOG 210Introduction to GIS and GPS

3

LAC Arts and HumanitiesLAA1LAA2LAA3LAA4

3

University-Wide Elective

3

Total Credit Hours:15

Consider: ENST Applied Studies & Methods Category Requirement

Directed studies, internships, or applied courses meet this requirement. There are frequent opportunities during summers that would be appropriate between sophomore/junior or junior/senior years.

Spring Semester

ENST 209International Sustainable Development

3

ENST 270Professional Development

3

STAT 150Introduction to Statistical AnalysisLAX1

3

LAC Social and Behavioral SciencesLAB1LAB2LAB3

3

University-Wide Elective

3

Total Credit Hours:15

Consider: LAC Double Counting

Students should select courses from Social and Behavioral Sciences, History, and/or Arts and Humanities categories that also fulfill U.S. Multicultural Studies [LAMS] (one course) and International Studies [LAIS] (one course) in order to complete the LAC in 31 credits.

Year 3 – 31 credits

Fall Semester

ESCI 200Introduction to Environmental Earth ScienceLAS1LASL

4

or

GEOL 100General GeologyLAS1LASL

4

or

MET 205General MeteorologyLAS1LASL

4

ENST 335Environmental and Resource Economics

3

LAC Arts and HumanitiesLAA1LAA2LAA3LAA4

3

ENST 364Sustainability Leadership and Community Engagement

3

ENST 373Qualitative Research Methods

3

Total Credit Hours:16

Spring Semester

ENST 315Nature & Society

3

Major Elective

3

Applied Studies & Methods Course

3

LAC Arts and Humanities, History, or Social and Behavioral SciencesLAA1LAA2LAA3LAA4LAB1LAB2LAB3LAH1

3

University-Wide Elective

3

Total Credit Hours:15

Year 4 – 28 credits

Fall Semester

ENST 490Capstone Proposal

2

Applied Studies & Methods Course

3

University-Wide Elective

3

University-Wide Elective

3

University-Wide Elective

3

Total Credit Hours:14

Spring Semester

ENST 491Senior Capstone

2

Applied Studies & Methods Course

3

University-Wide Elective

3

University-Wide Elective

3

University-Wide Elective

3

Total Credit Hours:14

Advising Notes –

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