The Sustainable Earth is a foundation course in Curricular Area 5: the Natural Sciences in the university's General Education program. Completion of this foundation course will serve as a prerequisite for a second level course in Area 5. General Education courses within the foundation level of Curricular Area 5 are designed to introduce students to the basic concepts used in the Natural Sciences. In this course, we will examine the issue of sustainability: what it means, how it is measured, and how it can be used to address environmental challenges we face today. In doing so, we will build upon the most current scientific understanding of how our natural world works. Key goals of this course are to:

• examine the structure and function of Earth’s major ecosystems,

• evaluate the role of humans activity in those ecosystems, and

• assess the challenges of reducing our environmental footprint.

After successful completion of this course, students may take the second level general education course ENVS-250G Living in the Environment or ENVS-220 Environmental Resources & Energy.