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All of us live in and depend on the environment to lead healthy and prosperous lives. Governments from the local to the global level, non-government organizations (NGOs), and citizens in every country in the world are increasingly concerned about environmental quality and the sustainability of our societies. Even many prominent business leaders now embrace "green" principles and practices as the standard way of doing business in today’s world.

Environmental education has a tremendously important role to play in guiding us towards a more sustainable future. As an Environmental Studies (ES) student you take courses from a wide range of disciplines in the University which enables you to understand the complex and interdisciplinary environmental challenges facing the world. You will cover such topics as environmental policy and economics, natural resources management, and environmental ethics.

The Program
You will complete a Bachelor of Arts with honours, a major, or minor. The program brings together the various strands of environmental thinking that exist within different disciplines such as geography, economics,
philosophy, and anthropology. As a student, you synthesize ideas from these areas in a manner that enables a comprehensive environmental literacy. From this, you are able to cultivate the kind of integrative, analytical thinking that will enable you to contribute effectively to environmental decision-making and leadership in whatever personal or professional setting you ultimately find yourself. ES provides opportunities for students interested in environmental issues to engage with the outside world. The program also features frequent guest speakers who range from sword fishers to deep ecologists.

You and Your Career
Graduates of ES have a variety of career opportunities open to them. Among these include work with provincial, federal, and international government agencies, non-government environmental and community-based organizations, and environmental consulting companies. As well, many businesses now incorporate environmental management and planning in their operations and will hire pragmatic-thinking graduates with environmental backgrounds.

ES graduates wishing to pursue further education at the graduate and professional-school level will find their education especially well recognized by schools of planning, geography, environmental studies, forestry, business and public administration, and law. Also, as the program is part of the Department of Geography and Environment, ES courses are teachable credits for an Education degree.

ES Research
The research done in the Geography and Environment Department is internationally recognized in the field of global environmental change. Current work on the interactions between people, trees, and forests in the Caribbean is funded by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council. Other research, part of one of the largest global research networks formed during the International Polar Year, examines the effects of climate change in the Canadian Arctic. Another project monitors the effects of climate change in Atlantic Canada.

Research you can do
Students carry out their own research as summer projects or as part of directed studies courses. Students have chosen to research a diverse array of topics, including: Interactions between civil society and multinational corporations in the Peruvian mining sector with a specific focus on local opposition to Canadian mining companies; the habitat of an endangered species, the pine marten, in Newfoundland’s only remaining old-growth forest; and Climate change and farming in the Maritimes. Students have received university summer fellowships and grants from the Royal Canadian Geographical Society to fund their research.

Environmental Activism
At Mount Allison students with environmental interests are able to advance their passions simultaneously inside and outside of the class room.

Mount Allison has been a centre for environmental activism for over a decade. From the Friends of the Christmas Mountain, a group working to protect New Brunswick's last stand of Old Growth Forest, to the Climate Change Caravan, which involved biking across Canada to inspire individuals and communities to take action on climate change, to the “GREEN HOUSE” – The Cuthbertson House Sustainable Residence that brings together students dedicated to reducing the environmental impact on campus, Mount Allison students have been on the forefront. Each new generation of student activists builds on the momentum of those that came before.

Department Website

Academic Calendar: Environmental Studies