Sustainability is multidisciplinary in nature and is already a major theme of many courses across UMD's colleges and departments. Making the changes necessary for UMD to operate more sustainably requires the unique contributions and creativity from students and faculty in all areas of study. Education is essential to UMD sustainability efforts, as outlined in the Energy Action Plan.
Liberal education is a key component of UMD's mission to prepare students to thrive as lifelong learners and globally engaged citizens. To that end, UMD requires that students take a set of courses outside of their concentration in order to ensure that their undergraduate education encompasses a broad range of historical and contemporary knowledge.
Beginning in Fall 2012, sustainability will be included in the liberal education curriculum at UMD. Courses in this category focus on ways in which the science of the natural environment interacts with economic, social, and political forces in a local, national and/or global context. Below is a list of courses that relate to sustainability. Courses shaded in green in the below list fulfill the sustainability category of the liberal arts curriculum.
If there is a course at UMD with a focus on sustainability that is missing from this list, please let us know, by e-mail us at sustain@d.umn.edu.
Participants in the certificate will gain an understanding of sustainability and how it relates to the current U.S. food system model. The certificate will give learners a strong foundation of learning and skills for working in their regional food system from production, to advocacy, to service, to education. The certificate will provide opportunities for online learners to acquire the knowledge, skills, and understanding that are needed to create change in their communities and build a sustainable food system model for the future – one that is ecologically, economically and socially viable.
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