School Notes
Subject Code for Environmental Science: ENSC
World Wide Web Address: http://www.queensu.ca/ensc/
Director: Ryan Danby
School Administrator: Colin Khan
School Office: BioSciences Complex, Room 3134
School Telephone: 613-533-6602
School E-Mail Address: envst@queensu.ca
Chair of Undergraduate Studies:
Chair of Undergraduate Studies: Kristen Lowitt (Fall), Stephen Brown (Winter)
Undergraduate Assistant: Tammy Wintle
Chair of Graduate Studies: Allison Goebel
Graduate Assistant: Colin Khan
Overview
In the School of Environmental Studies, you will acquire an appreciation of the scope and complexity of environmental systems, the ability to deal with the socio-economic dimensions of an issue, and the fundamental knowledge to adapt to changes in the future. Students will study environmental systems from both the perspective of the natural and physical sciences, while recognizing the human and cultural dimensions of the issues.
Advice to Students
Counsellors
Department | Counsellor |
---|---|
Environmental Studies | R. Stephen Brown (stephen.brown@chem.queensu.ca) - Biosciences Complex, Room 3130 |
Biology | R. Stephen Brown (stephen.brown@chem.queensu.ca) - Biosciences Complex, Room 3130 |
Chemistry | R. Stephen Brown (stephen.brown@chem.queensu.ca) - Biosciences Complex, Room 3130 |
Geography and Planning | Ryan Danby (ryan.danby@queensu.ca) - Biosciences Complex, Room 3244 |
Geological Sciences and Geological Engineering | David McLagan (david.mclagan@queensu.ca) - Biosciences Complex, Room 3230 |
Biomedical and Molecular Sciences (Life Sciences) | Louise Winn (winnl@queensu.ca) - Biosciences Complex, Room 3127 |
Environmental Studies Plans
The School of Environmental Studies offers Plans in both the Arts and Sciences. The following outlines describe each Plan:
Major (Arts) Plan in Environmental Studies
This Plan will prepare arts students to engage in and address environmental issues that are pressing and complex, require scientific expertise, socio-political understanding, the linking of global and local processes, and individual and institutional responsibility.
General (Arts)/Minor (Arts) Plan in Environmental Studies
This Plan provides an introduction and overview of environmental studies.
Joint Honours (Arts) Plan in Environmental Studies
This Plan provides disciplinary strength in the humanities and social science plus interdisciplinary environmental courses on the science side. Students will acquire a basic science background, an understanding of the complexity of environmental issues and their solutions.
Major (Science) Plan in Environmental Science
This Plan provides a multidisciplinary view of environmental science with an emphasis on sustainability, and ecosystem and human health. The Plan includes core courses in science, integrative courses in science and social science, and environmental courses in the humanities.
Specialization (Science) Plans
These Plans provides a multidisciplinary view of environmental science as well as in-depth study in one of six science subjects: Earth System Science, Biology, Chemistry, Geology, Life Sciences, or Toxicology. A strong link is made to environmental studies, stressing human response to environmental issues and to questions of environmental policy and management.
Faculty
For more information, please visit: https://www.queensu.ca/ensc/people-0
- Kristan J. Aronson
- R. Stephen Brown
- Dongmei Chen
- Diana Cordoba
- Brian Cumming
- Ryan Danby
- Marc Epprecht
- Vicki Friesen
- Allison Goebel
- Geof Hall
- Myra Hird
- Peter Hodson
- Heather Jamieson
- Stephen Lougheed
- Kristen Lowitt
- Warren Mabee
- David A. McDonald
- David McLagan
- Steven Moore
- Diane Orihel
- Christian Seiler
- Sergio Sismondo
- Mick Smith
- John P. Smol
- Marcus Taylor
- Kyla Tienhaara
- Nicholas Vlachopoulos
- Molly Wallace
- Yuxiang Wang
- Graham Whitelaw
- Louise Winn
- Barbara Zeeb
- Frank Zeman
Specializations
- Earth System Science – Specialization (Science) – Bachelor of Science (Honours)
- Environmental Biology – Specialization (Science) – Bachelor of Science (Honours)
- Environmental Chemistry – Specialization (Science) – Bachelor of Science (Honours)
- Environmental Geology – Specialization (Science) – Bachelor of Science (Honours)
- Environmental Life Sciences – Specialization (Science) – Bachelor of Science (Honours)
- Environmental Toxicology – Specialization (Science) – Bachelor of Science (Honours)
Majors
Joint Honours
General/Minor
Courses
An interdisciplinary approach to complex environmental issues, and diverse perspectives on environmental management and sustainability. The course considers the social and scientific aspects of environmental problems and the production of environmental knowledge alongside global linkages, human health implications and barriers to sustainability.
A history of the relations between humans and nature through time, with special emphasis on how science has influenced how we perceive our place in nature, and how we define and understand environmental issues.
(24L;12T;84P)
Introduction to global issues and problems in environmental toxicology. Possible topics include waste disposal, pesticides, chemical warfare, pulp and paper mills and genetically modified foods. This course will be of interest to students with either a science or a humanities background.
The principles of sustainability provide a focus for discussing global and regional environmental issues in the broadest possible perspective. Frameworks for sustainability and how they are used in understanding various environmental problems will be explored, including in terms of messaging, claims, feasibility and expected outcomes.
This course includes a combination of lectures, assignments and case studies that are designed to introduce students to the ecological critique of the standard neo-classical economic analysis of environmental degradation and depletion. Students will also be asked to consider the more holistic approach to calculating the costs and benefits of economic activity proposed by ecological economists.
The course explores components of environmental assessment including public consultation, scoping, alternatives, protocols, significance, trade-offs, mitigation and monitoring. Biophysical, cumulative, social, strategic and sustainability assessment through case studies highlight strengths and weaknesses of the environmental assessment process.
This course critically examines the complex interaction of material and social processes that define our relationship with the environment. Topics focus on how environmental issues emerge as concerns, are defined by different stakeholders, and their solutions framed through political, economic, cultural, and techno-scientific discourses.
Marine issues such as fisheries and aquaculture, climate change, oil and gas development, shipping, coastal development and marine protected areas will be explored in the context of factors that create environmental problems and the steps that are being taken to solve them. Assignments are modeled on real-world examples to develop skills for creating positive change to promote sustainable practices. This course will be highly complementary to other courses in Oceanography or Limnology (GEOL 200, BIOL 335, GPHY 303).
This course introduces political science and public policy within the context of environmental politics, policy, and administration. The purposes of policy, the makers of policy, and the tools at their disposal will be analyzed within the institutional context of environmental policy-making.
This course investigates the ecological, social and economic dimensions of environmental policy using a comparative approach. This course will normally be offered at an international locations (e.g. BISC) thereby allowing and comparisons/contrasts between Canadian and other context-specific approaches on the role of law, governance, politics, administration and economics towards promotion of 'enlightened' environmental policy.
NOTE Only offered in the Queen's-Blyth International Studies program or at the Bader International Studies Centre, Herstmonceux.
This course is about the production and consumption of food on global and local scales. It provides an interdisciplinary look at the relationships shaping food systems. It examines how food systems have become globalized and industrialized and the implications for the environment and social justice. Solutions and alternatives are explored.
NOTE Field Trip: estimated cost $30.
A lecture/seminar course focusing on the notion of wildlife; laws governing wildlife protection and use; the effects of overexploitation, habitat destruction, and introduced species, and management plans and strategies.
Examines the socially uneven effects across race, class, gender and nation of environmental problems such as toxic waste disposal, air pollution, climate change, deforestation and environmental disasters and the responses to them from local to global movements, protests and politics.
Applications of sustainability are used to address environmental problems and develop solutions in areas from resource management to regional planning. Emphasis will be on multidisciplinary approaches in research and communications. Methods and indicators for sustainability assessment will be critically examined using case studies and considering expected outcomes.
The concept of sustainability provides a focus for discussing global and regional environmental issues in the broadest possible perspective. This course will examine the meaning of sustainability and ways in which it is assessed at various levels including individual lifestyles, ecological, agricultural and industrial systems, urban areas, regions within countries, nations, and the world as a whole. Case studies will be used to illustrate the general principles.
Application of approaches and practices of sustainability will be developed with an emphasis on individual or group projects. This course will involve sustainability efforts at a local, regional or national scale.
NOTE Only offered in the Queen's-Blyth International Studies program or at the Bader International Studies Centre, Herstmonceux.
Increasing demands on water resources and widespread pollution of surface and groundwater has led many experts to predict a looming water crisis. This course will develop a global perspective on issues that include water distribution, management, pollution, conservation, conflict and policy. This course will be of interest to students in science, applied science or the humanities.
NOTE Field Trip: estimated cost $30.
This course considers feminist approaches to environmental issues in western and non-western contexts, with attention to both theories and activism.
An exploration of the interactions among chemical exposure, toxicity to individual organisms, and effects on ecosystem structure and function. Mechanisms of toxicity will be linked to effects at different levels of organization up to the level of the ecosystem, using case studies to explore the complexities of exposure and response.
NOTE Field Trip (Local Harbour or Marina): estimated cost $30.
Interdisciplinary study of the scientific, socio-political, and economic aspects of selected local, national, or global issues related to environmental sustainability. Teamwork is emphasized.
NOTE Field Trip: estimated cost $30.
Two weeks of intensive study in Environmental Analysis. Fundamentals of sample collection and preparation, including statistics and extraction methods, plus instrumental techniques including chromatography, atomic spectroscopy, spectrophotometry, and automated analysis techniques. Laboratory experiments in each of these areas. Enrolment limited.
NOTE Field trip: estimated cost $15.
This course will provide intensive coverage of a topic that is current and/or of special interest in Environmental Science. The course will be multidisciplinary, but with a science focus. Offered periodically by visiting professors or members of faculty. The topic for each year will be announced in advance of course selection and will be made available on the ENSC web page. Students are advised to consult with their academic counsellor and/or the course instructor prior to registration.
NOTE Field Trip: estimated cost $30.
This course will provide intensive coverage of a topic that is current and/or of special interest in Environmental Studies. The course will cover mainly social science-based material, but will be multidisciplinary. Offered periodically by visiting professors or members of faculty. The topic for each year will be announced in advance of course selection and will be made available on the ENSC web page. Students are advised to consult with their academic counsellor and/or the course instructor prior to registration.
NOTE Field Trip: estimated cost $30.
This course will provide intensive coverage of a topic that is current and/or of special interest in Environmental Studies. The course will cover mainly social science-based material, but will be multidisciplinary. Offered periodically by visiting professors or members of faculty. Topic for each year will be announced in advance of course selection and will be made available on the ENSC webpage. Students are advised to consult with their academic counsellor and/or the course instructor prior to registration.
NOTE Field Trip: estimated cost $30.
Independent study of an environmental topic by individuals or inter-disciplinary groups.
NOTE This course is intended for a self-motivated student with an established record of undergraduate performance, i.e. cumulative GPA of approximately 3.0. It is the responsibility of the student to secure a supervisor prior to registering in the course.
This is an interdisciplinary research project related to environmental sustainability, with supervision and training in appropriate research methods by faculty members of the School of Environmental Studies. The course includes supervised research including a research proposal, a seminar, a poster presentation and a final thesis and oral defence.