Religion and the Environment
The ways we interact with the natural world reflect the deep-seated values of the society to which we belong and the experiences of nature we have as individuals. Religion, and the spiritual experiences of individuals that inform religious thought, provide profound insights into how we perceive the world around us and guidance as to how to interact with it. The minor in religion and environment encourages students to integrate religious insights and spiritual experience with the natural and social sciences to better understand how religion and the natural world affect one another. Accordingly, the minor includes coursework in natural and social environmental science along with coursework in religion. Because the minor encourages students to reflect on their own spiritual experience and beliefs as they relate to the environment, it culminates in a capstone experiential course involving environmentally-related service or action along with reflection on the meaning of that engagement.
The minor is offered by interdisciplinary faculty in conjunction with the environmental studies program and the Center for Religion and Environment and is administered by the Center's director.
Requirements for the Minor in Religion and Environment
The minor requires successful completion of the following:
| Code | Title | Semester Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Course Requirements | ||
| ENST 101 | Introduction to Environmental Studies | 4 |
| ENST 431 | Practicum in Religion and the Environment | 2 |
| PHIL 230 | Environmental Ethics | 4 |
| Select two of the following: | 6-8 | |
| Climate Ethics | ||
| Ethics and the Anthropocene | ||
| Religion and Animals | ||
| Religious Environmentalism | ||
| Religion and Ecology | ||
| Greening Buddhism | ||
| God and Nature | ||
| Creation, Evolution, and God (three semester hours) | ||
| Readings in Teilhard de Chardin | ||
| Select one of the following: | 4 | |
| Archaeological Resource Management and Policy | ||
| Biology and People | ||
| Field Investigations in Biology (Field-Based) | ||
| General Chemistry (Lab) | ||
| Environmental Economics | ||
| Foundations of Food and Agriculture | ||
| Ecosystems of the Ocean | ||
| Sustainability and Global Environmental Change Seminar (ENST 211 and ENST 212 together satisfy this requirement) | ||
| Sustainability and Global Environmental Change Field Studies (ENST 211 and ENST 212 together satisfy this requirement) | ||
| Freshwater Conservation | ||
| Environmental Policy and Law | ||
| Environmental Land-Use Policy | ||
| Introduction to Forestry (Lab) | ||
| Water Resource Policy and Law | ||
| Physical Geology (Lab) | ||
| Earth Systems and Climate Change | ||
| Foundations of Global Warming | ||
| Environmental Politics and Policy | ||
| Total Semester Hours | 20-22 | |