Emphasis is also placed on practical opportunities to prevent or resolve environmental problems, using the instruments of science, technology, policy, economics, education, applied ethics, design, and management. The program strongly supports international experience and encourages students to participate in one of over 60 semester abroad programs, many with an environmental focus. This is a new set of requirements, effective with the 2001-2003 catalog. For the previous requirements, refer to the end of the page. We celebrate the small size of our university and its peaceful setting.
Students get to know, and be known by, their professors.
Our interdisciplinary approach and our location at the interface of pristine western wilderness and suburban sprawl encourage a philosophy of environmental problem solving that is synthetic, in the best sense of that term. The physical setting of our campus fosters a strong sense of place. The combination of mountain peaks, in several directions, and towering palm trees creates a campus backdrop that is both strikingly beautiful and ecologically unique. We think of our Southern California location as a natural laboratory. The surrounding region offers examples of severe environmental degradation as well as some of the most innovative and technologically advanced solutions in the world.