Environmental Sociology

Environmental sociology provides many perspectives on interactions between the social and material aspects of life. This course will explore a variety of these perspectives as we examine issues including: pollution, climate change, resource use, and access to environmental amenities. Throughout the course, students will have the opportunity to apply concepts from environmental sociology to contemporary events. Some questions that we will consider over the course of the semester include:
What factors contribute to disparities in access to environmental benefits and exposure to environmental costs? How can we assess tradeoffs between economic and environmental priorities? How does conceptualizing the environment as “other” impact processes and outcomes? How do cultural values, norms, and practices contribute to environmental degradation and also make it more challenging to improve environmental problems? How do various social science methods help us to measure, conceptualize, and intervene in environmental challenges?