What is sustainability?
What does it mean to make personal, lifestyle, and consumer choices that are sustainable?
I teach several undergraduate environmental conservation classes, and these questions are at the heart of many class discussions. Each semester, from very early on, I hear my students’ collective desire to figure out what they can do (the positive and negative consequences of their choices) and to share what they’re learning and thinking about with friends, family, and peers. My classes draw students from diverse backgrounds and interests: some are already studying natural resources and biology, but many are not — we are also made up of majors in economics, business administration, psychology, anthropology, languages, history, nutrition, and philosophy, to name a few). Our diversity strengthens our ability to consider these issues from multiple perspectives, and I am constantly inspired by interactions with my students.
This site is being developed as a platform to continue our research and reflections beyond the classroom (with articles and blog posts) and to invite a broader community into the conversation (via a discussion forum).
Welcome. Stay tuned…
Written by Jennifer Purrenhage {Editor} | Photo: Jennifer Purrenhage