With concern for environmental issues growing among college students, the Furman faculty has approved an Environmental Studies concentration.

The "capstone" course of the concentration, IDS 55: Environment and Society, will be offered during the spring term of 2001 and will be team-taught by professors from the biology and political science departments. In addition to IDS 55, students enrolled in the concentration must complete EES 21 (Environmental Science) and an approved humanities course, social science course and natural sciences course.

Wade Worthen (biology), Brannon Andersen (earth & environmental sciences), and Frank Powell (health and exercise science) led the faculty team that designed the curriculum for the concentration.

"By itself, this concentration is not adequate preparation for graduate study in Environmental Science or Environmental Studies," says Worthen. "Rather, it is meant to complement a student’s major and broaden their perspective so that they understand the complexities of environmental problems and solutions."

The university also offers concentrations in Latin American Studies, Women’s Studies and Classical Studies.

"Many courses in our curriculum address environmental issues from different disciplinary perspectives. However, students fail to appreciate the connection between these courses because they are offered by so many different departments," says Worthen. "The Environmental Studies concentration will help students to understand the complex relationships that exist between social, political, religious and economic systems and the environment."

The successful adoption of the concentration represents one of four initiatives developed by the Furman University Center for Habitat Earth (http://www.furman.edu/~worthen/habitatearth/habfr.htm), a group of students and faculty members devoted to making the Furman community more aware of environmental issues.

Another initiative focuses on environmental research. "The earth and environmental sciences department, biology department, and chemistry department have created the most successful interdisciplinary research program in Furman’s history," says Worthen. "With grant support from the National Science Foundation, the Environmental Protection Agency, state agencies and local citizen’s groups, we are describing the effects of different land-use patterns on water chemistry and water quality in Upstate rivers. And most importantly, we are providing our students with an incredible interdisciplinary research experience." The project has been so successful that the Rockefeller Foundation invited Furman to submit a grant to involve the social sciences in this research.

The Center for Habitat Earth is also working to develop an "Environmental House," an environmentally friendly living space in which students will measure their energy use. As a pilot project, a university cottage on the north side of Furman lake will be retrofitted with resource-saving components such as insulation, energy-efficient lighting and low-flow water fixtures.

Students living in the facility will commit to recycling and energy conservation. In the future, Worthen envisions a new, larger structure populated by students who will be enrolled in the Environmental Studies concentration. These students will apply lessons from class to their daily lives, and will contribute a portion of the cost savings to the environmental charity of their choice.

Finally, the Center for Habitat Earth is developing a proposal to create a "theme" term at Furman that would focus on environmental issues. Noted speakers, authors and environmentalists would take part in symposia, lecture series and round-table discussions throughout the term.

"Humanity depends on healthy ecosystems to produce our food, clean our air and clean our water," says Worthen. "Maintaining the integrity of these environmental systems will be the primary concern of the 21st century. It is time to prepare Furman students to lead these discussions."