Lower-Division

ENVS 15 Natural History of the UCSC Campus

Introduces students to the range of natural species and communities occurring on the UCSC campus. All class time is spent outside, and each week a different area of campus is visited. Course 24 is recommended.

Credits

2

Quarter offered

Fall, Summer

ENVS 17 Curation of Natural History Collections

Introduction and training in the skills needed to create, manage, and exhibit natural history collections, including plants, insects, fungi, birds, mammals, reptiles, and amphibians.

Credits

2

Instructor

Christopher Lay, Alex Krohn

Quarter offered

Winter

ENVS 18 Natural History Illustration

Students gain proficiency in illustration media, and acquire training in the essential skills needed to create natural-history inspired illustrations. Students create illustrations and paintings by studying organisms in the Norris Center for Natural History collections, as well as those living on and around campus. Some experience in basic drawing and/or natural-history sketching is recommended. Students are billed a materials fee.

Credits

5

Instructor

Emily Underwood

General Education Code

PR-C

Quarter offered

Winter

ENVS 19 Topics in Natural History

Students learn the fundamentals of organismal biology and ecology through observations in the field, museum specimens, and field journaling. Class focuses on a particular taxonomic group or natural community, such as reptiles, fungi, insects, coastal prairie, or chaparral. Enrollment by application. Please email envsadvi@ucsc.edu for applications. Students are billed a materials fee.

Credits

3

Quarter offered

Winter

ENVS 23 The Physical and Chemical Environment

Provides an overview of the physical and chemical environment of planet Earth. Fundamental chemistry and physics is introduced in the process of learning about Earth in a holistic way. The influence of human societies on the global environment is one focus of discussion. Earth's many spheres are explored first: the lithosphere; the atmosphere; the hydrosphere, and the ecosphere. Then global cycles of carbon, nitrogen, and several other elements are studied in the context of basic sciences and societal issues.

Credits

5

Instructor

Elliott Campbell

Quarter offered

Spring, Summer

ENVS 24 General Ecology

Covers principles of ecology including limits to species abundances, evolutionary ecology, population dynamics, community interactions and patterns, and ecosystem patterns and dynamics.

Credits

5

Instructor

Zhu

Requirements

Prerequisite(s): AM 3 or AM 6, or MATH 3 or higher; or mathematics placement examination (MPE) score of 300 or higher; or AP Calculus AB exam score of 3 or higher; ENVS 23 recommended as prerequisite to this course.

General Education Code

SI

Quarter offered

Fall, Summer

ENVS 25 Environmental Policy and Economics

Introduces the policy and economic dimensions of some pressing environmental challenges. Case studies may include, biodiversity conservation, waste, water, climate change, and other topics to examine the drivers and policy responses to environmental problems and the trade-offs in different policy solutions. Students are billed a materials fee.

Credits

5

Instructor

Sikinq Jinnah

General Education Code

PE-E

Quarter offered

Winter, Summer

ENVS 65 Introduction to Fresh Water: Processes and Policy

Introduction to freshwater resources from multiple scientific and policy perspectives. After a review of basic concepts, water issues affecting cities, farms, open space, and multiple-use landscapes are studied. Students cannot receive credit for this course if they have previously received credit for ENVS 165.

Credits

5

Instructor

Brent Haddad

General Education Code

PE-E

Quarter offered

Spring

ENVS 80B The Ecological Forecast for Global Warming

A broad overview of the impacts of human activities on the global climate system. Topics include how climate affects the distribution of ecosystems, the influence of global climate change on biodiversity, ecosystem function, and consequences for the human enterprise.

Credits

5

Instructor

Michael Loik

General Education Code

PE-E

ENVS 80C Climate Change Science and Policy

An interdisciplinary overview of the science and policy of global climate change. Topics include Earth system science, climate change impacts on the environment, climate change policy, and the future of climate change politics from the local to the global.

Credits

5

General Education Code

PE-E

Quarter offered

Fall

ENVS 80F Introduction to Agroecology and Sustainable Food Systems

Our current food system is unsustainable for the environment and unjust for the farmers, farmworkers, and consumers who depend on it. Course provides an interdisciplinary, experiential, and systems-focused introduction to agroecology and other approaches to advancing a more just and ecologically sustainable food system. Students will come to understand agroecology as a science for understanding agricultural ecosystems, as a farming practice, and as a social movement to change the way we produce and distribute/access food. Course examines many topics—including biological fertility and pest management, seeds, livestock raising, and aquaculture—from the perspective of both the natural and social sciences, leaving students with a perspective that transcends any particular academic discipline. Students gain hands-on experience with farming research, production, and food distribution happening across the UCSC campus farm and food system. Students are billed a materials fee.

Credits

5

Instructor

Madeleine Fairbairn

General Education Code

PE-E

Quarter offered

Fall

ENVS 83 Environmental Studies Internship

A supervised off-campus learning experience related to environmental problem solving. Focuses on initial experiences in applied work and specific skill development. Students may be placed individually or with a team in government agencies, private organizations, citizen action groups.

Credits

5

Repeatable for credit

Yes

General Education Code

PR-S

Quarter offered

Fall, Winter, Spring

ENVS 99 Tutorial

Directed reading, supervised research, and organized projects relating to environmental problems. May be repeated for credit with consent of the chairperson of Environmental Studies Department. Students submit petition to sponsoring agency.

Credits

5

Repeatable for credit

Yes

Quarter offered

Fall, Winter, Spring

ENVS 99F Tutorial

Provides for department-sponsored directed reading, supervised research, or organized project for lower-division students under the direct supervision of a faculty sponsor. May not be counted toward major requirements. Students submit petition to sponsoring agency.

Credits

2

Repeatable for credit

Yes

Quarter offered

Fall, Winter, Spring