Our Green Streets Blog

This guest post from Lenore Holditch reports on a few of the leading colleges that provide degree programs on green issues. GRM

Colleges have played a huge role in the environmental revolution from its beginnings. For decades, universities across the nation and world have sought to educate students in environmental science and environmental law. Learning about the history of environmentalism, the impact consumerism has on our land, and ways to reduce our imprint on our world, college students are geared to become better citizens of the world after their four-year educational endeavor.

These three universities offer inspiring and innovative degree programs in environmental science, environmental law, and agricultural sustainability that encourage students to get active in living green and become innovators for a new generation.

1. Wellesley College: Ranking near the top of the list among green colleges in 2011, Wellesley receives some of its highest marks for its efforts in environmental sustainability. Wellesley’s Environmental Studies degree is an interdisciplinary program at the university that trains students to address pressing issues in environmentalism and environmental science. Wellesley’s environmental studies program focuses on the biodiversity crisis, involving the collapse of oceanic fisheries, toxic waste disposal, global climate change, green building design, and the inequities and causes of environmental degradation. The program emphasizes hands on involvement from its students in internships, directed studies, and field trips. Wellesley works to develop students that are knowledgeable and capable of real action when they complete their academic pursuits.

2. Montana State University: Dedicating an entire college to the study of sustainable food systems and sustainable agricultural research, Montana State University’s College of Agriculture is unique in the world of academia. Students enrolled at the College of Agriculture are also students in the College of Education, Health, and Human Development. With an interdisciplinary curriculum, Mo State develops students who are prepared to learn about the environment and sustainable agriculture as well as teach future students about sustainability and pressing environmental issues. With a two-plus acre vegetable farm on campus, students in the College of Agriculture put their knowledge to work each and every day on the farm, practicing sustainable agriculture. This innovative sustainability program leads to careers in bioenergy production, food safety, and agricultural biosecurity.

3. Arizona State University: As one of the leading institutions in environmental activism for many years now, ASU offers several programs dedicated to environmental conservation and education for future leaders in the world of sustainability and environmentalism. The environmental technology management program is one of the strongest of its kind offered in the United States. Offering a curriculum that is prepares individuals to face and conquer environmental and emergency management challenges. This program teaches students the scientific and technical aspects of controlling environmental pollution as well as the economic, political, and legal problems facing managers in today’s business climate. In addition to the program in environmental education, ASU also developed the Global Institute of Sustainability, focusing on the affects of urbanization on our ecosystem. This institute allows students, professors, and community leaders to joint in the mission to create solutions for the world’s most pressing environmental emergencies today.

This guest contribution was submitted by Lenore Holditch, who specializes in writing about top online colleges. Questions and comments can be sent to: holditch.lenore@gmail.com .

PHOYO: My Majors

Guest correspondent, Kate Willson, reports on some of this country’s top sustainable colleges for 2011. She writes regularly about colleges and sent this note accompanying her report: “I am not associated with any of these schools. I honestly chose these schools because I felt that the schools that made A’s were quite repetitive (they made the same initiatives and reforms.) To add some variety, I also wanted to highlight what other of the schools were doing.”

The GreenReportCard.org website and the College Sustainability Report Card are both initiatives of the Sustainable Endowments Institute. The Institute is a nonprofit organization engaged in research and education to advance sustainability in campus operations and endowment practices.

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