Courses of Study 2013-2014 
    
    Mar 29, 2024  
Courses of Study 2013-2014 [ARCHIVED CATALOG]

Natural Resources


In the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences .

 

Course Offerings  in Natural Resources

Course Offerings  in Science of Natural and Environmental Systems

The Department of Natural Resources is the only department in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences with faculty and courses in the disciplines of applied ecology, environmental sociology, and environmental ethics.  It offers students an integrated, interdisciplinary approach to the fundamental knowledge and analytical tools required to conserve, restore, and manage the Earth’s biodiversity and ecosystem services in sustainable ways.  A large number of hands-on field courses provide direct experience working in forests, wetlands, streams and lakes of the region, and in policy-making arenas in the Nation’s Capital. Courses address pressing environmental issues such as global climate change, landscape transformation, environmental governance, management of endangered and invasive species, human alteration of biogeochemical cycles, “green” markets and other environmental strategies, bio-cultural and biological diversity, and international conservation.
   
The Department is the administrative and advising home for the new multi-department and cross-college curriculum in “Environmental Science and Sustainability” (ESS), which is offered under the structure of the Science of Natural and Environmental Systems (SNES) major.  The Department also offers many of the courses required within the ESS curriculum. The major in Environmental Science and Sustainability (ESS) combines and augments two prior majors: Natural Resources (NTRES) and the Science of Natural and Environmental Systems (SNES).  See Environmental Science and Sustainability/SNES below for a description of the curriculum.

Department Faculty


M. E. Krasny, chair (111 Fernow Hall, (607) 255-2822); B. L. Bedford, B. Blossey, S. R. Broussard-Allred, B. F. Chabot, E. Cooch, P. Curtis, D. J. Decker, J. L. Dickinson, M. J. Eaton, T. J. Fahey, A. K. Fuller, M. P. Hare, K. S. Kassam, B. A. Knuth, C. E. Kraft, J. P. Lassoie, T. B. Lauber, S. Morreale, L. G. Rudstam, R. L. Schneider, P. J. Smallidge, R. C. Stedman, P. J. Sullivan, J. A. Tantillo, S. A. Wolf, J. B. Yavitt

Environmental Science and Sustainability (ESS)


Note: Students will receive a degree in the Science of Natural and Environmental Systems (SNES), the actual degree approved by the SUNY administration.

The College of Agriculture and Life Sciences’ major in Environmental Science and Sustainability (ESS) combines and augments two prior majors: Natural Resources (NTRES) and the Science of Natural and Environmental Systems (SNES). ESS emphasizes the interdisciplinary nature of all environmental challenges facing society today and prepares students for a wide range of careers and life-long learning. The major seeks exceptional students capable of engaging multiple disciplines in order to confront and explore sustainable solutions to environmental challenges.

The ESS Core Curriculum is rigorous. In the first two years, students are expected to develop fundamental knowledge of biological, chemical, and physical sciences, mathematics, environmental social sciences and humanities, and develop critical reasoning skills. Students simultaneously explore a range of environmental topics including biodiversity conservation, global change, water resources management, land degradation, and agricultural resource management.

Understanding fundamental dimensions of environmental challenges will allow students to select a concentration within the ESS major. In the latter two years of the curriculum, students develop depth in one of four faculty-designed concentrations or, in collaboration with their advisor, design an individualized concentration related to their interests. The four faculty-designed concentrations are:

•    Environmental Biology and Applied Ecology
•    Environmental Policy and Governance
•    Environmental Economics
•    Biogeochemical Sciences

Examples of topic areas in which students might develop their own concentration include biodiversity conservation and natural history, environmental agriculture, environmental communication, environmental education, environmental health, environmental information science, sustainability science, and wildlife or fisheries biology.

The major prepares students for a wide variety of careers, including environmental work with state and federal government agencies, non-governmental conservation organizations, environmental consulting firms, and private industry.  It also prepares students for entry into a number of different professional and graduate degree programs, including environmental law, fisheries and wildlife management, global change biology, environmental policy and management, international conservation, environmental and nature education, and applied ecology.

Curriculum Requirements


Introductory Courses:


  • Two introductory courses designed specifically for the ESS major: NTRES 1101 /SNES 1101  and NTRES 2201 
  • Two introductory biology courses – Ecology and Environment (BIOEE 1610 ) and Evolutionary Biology and Diversity (BIOEE 1780 )
  • One introductory field-based course – Introductory Field Biology (NTRES 2100 )

Mathematics:


  • Two courses in college-level math; one must be calculus
  • One statistics course

Biological, Chemical, and Physical or Earth Sciences:


  • Two courses in chemistry
  • One course in physics or physical sciences
  • Two additional approved courses in environmental natural sciences

Social Sciences:


  • One environmental ethics course – either Ethics and the Environment (NTRES 3320 ), or Ethics and the Environment (STS 2061 /BSOC 2061  /PHIL 2460 )
  • Two additional approved courses in the social sciences and humanities – at least one in the social sciences and the other in the social sciences or humanities

Environmental Science and Sustainability:


  • One ESS colloquium (SNES 2000 )
  • A new junior-level course in sustainability science (currently under development)
  • One capstone experience or course – several options are available, including a research honors thesis, an integrative upper-level 3- or 4-credit course, and an internship that is interdisciplinary in its subject or approach to environmental science and sustainability. Student initiative here is crucial.
  • Five upper-level courses in the student’s selected concentration. Course requirements for each of the concentrations are available in the ESS advising office in Fernow Hall, or by e-mailing Marian Hovencamp (mth6@cornell.edu) or Suzanne Wapner (sw38@cornell.edu).

Note:


Many of the Environmental Science and Sustainability (ESS) requirements also meet the distribution requirements for CALS.

The total set of ESS requirements allows for approximately 40 elective credits, flexibility to pursue greater depth in specific areas of environmental science and sustainability, opportunity to expand knowledge outside the major by selecting courses offered throughout Cornell’s seven colleges, and options to take advantage of the study-abroad experience or research honors program.

Academic Advisors for ESS


B. Bedford, B. Blossey, S. Broussard Allred, B. Chabot, J. Conrad, E. Cooch, P. Curtis, D. Decker, J. Dickinson, A. DiTommaso, L. Drinkwater, J. Elliott, G. Evans, T. Fahey, A. Flecker, C. Geisler, C. Goodale, A. Hajek, M. Hare, K. Kassam, B. Knuth, C. Kraft, M. Krasny, J. Lassoie, B. Lauber, J. Lehmann, E. Madsen, N. Mahowald, S. Morreale, E. Nelson, G. Poe, J. Regenstein, S. Riha, L. Rudstam, C. Scherer, R. Schneider, W. Schulze, P. Smallidge, R. Stedman, P. Sullivan, J. Tantillo, J. Thies,  P. Trowbridge, M. Walter, M. Todd Walter, S. Wolf, D. Wolfe, J. Yavitt

Research and Work Opportunities for Undergraduates:


In addition to its many course offerings, the department provides numerous opportunities for field-oriented studies, independent research, internships, and jobs. These include several field-based courses and access for independent research at the Arnot Teaching and Research Forest near Ithaca, the Little Moose Field Station in the Adirondacks, the Cornell Biological Field Station on Oneida Lake near Syracuse, and the Hubbard Brook Experimental Forest in New Hampshire, as well as numerous natural areas near campus. Part-time jobs in the research and extension programs of many faculty members offer students opportunities for career-related work experience. Many department faculty members also work closely with students who wish to pursue a research honors degree.