The program provides a basic understanding of inland and coastal freshwater environments, of such processes by human activity, and of the nature of aquatic biodiversity and its application to human welfare. The program provides a basic understanding of the marine environment, a scientific basis for managing living marine resources, and an understanding of global, national and local physical and biological coastal environments and processes. It promotes the acquisition and dissemination of knowledge about marine and coastal organisms, processes and environments, and global marine and coastal environmental concerns and issues. This MA offers a range of courses on ethical, aesthetic and science issues concerned with the environment, some emphasising theoretical questions and some dealing with the philosophical aspects of matters of current environmental concern. In the Master of Arts Program, students design a curriculum to meet their specific areas of interest.
Students complete their degrees in their home communities with limited residency in Arizona.
The Program fosters the capacity to understand the natural world in order to promote sustainability of the planet as a habitat for life.