This course is designed to acquaint graduate students concerned with management of natural resources; development of legislation, evolution of policy, legal processes, impacts on human resources. The emphasis will be placed on living resources. This course will introduce you to theoretical and practical considerations of natural resource management. Topics covered will include societal and legislative sanctioning of natural resource management, socio-economic drivers and pressures on natural resources, processes by which ecosystem health and extractive and non-extractive usage of natural resources are assessed, impacts to ecosystem services, and resource management and policy actions for ecosystems. Together, we will explore the tensions and trade-offs involved in natural resource decision-making.

This class will challenge students to consider and evaluate current environmental problems while developing tools for working in the policy world. Students will explore approaches from both environmental economics and policy, including regulatory, market- based, and voluntary tools. Students will apply their knowledge of cost-benefit analysis to controversial issues and discover and debate key challenges. The current issues will draw students to consider issues of governance, such as the reach of executive authority and the relationship between federal and state government. In exploring these matters of policy design and environmental management, the course will analyze issues in climate change, air quality, water policy, energy supply, and resource management.

An in-depth tutorial exposure to specific areas at the interface of the natural and social sciences. Credit and title will be arranged to examine the subject matter in the area of current interest to one group of students. Specialized topics not currently listed in catalog course offerings.

It is now widely recognized that many modern environmental problems cannot be solved without effectively considering the complex dynamics of people. A major advance in our approach to studying and addressing the challenging issues facing current and future societies has been a renewed emphasis on the coupled and interdependent relationships among people and the environment. Often described as socio-environmental systems (SES), this rapidly developing field of interdisciplinary science demands simultaneously working to understand how complex drivers of human behavior (e.g, social norms, attitudes) impact the environment (e.g., patterns of biodiversity, ecosystem function), as well as how changes in environmental conditions influence people (e.g., livelihoods, well-being). In this course, we will study and gain hands-on experience with key frameworks, theories, and approaches for conducting SES research. A major emphasis of the course will involve participatory modeling as a tool for both scientific inquiry and stakeholder engagement. Students will complete a participatory modeling project, including all steps of the scientific process, gaining experience with research design, data collection, analysis, interpretation, and communication.

An in-depth tutorial exposure to specific areas at the interface of the natural and social sciences. Credit and title will be arranged to examine the subject matter in the area of current interest to one group of students. Specialized topics not currently listed in catalog course offerings.

In this course, students will work closely with their dissertation advisors and cohort peers in developing their dissertation prospectus and presentation. The initial weeks of the course will involve discussing individual dissertation topics and highly influential papers on the theory, methods, and practices of socio-environmental research. Throughout the semester, students will develop specific research objectives, questions, hypotheses, and gain experience presenting and defending among their peers.