Gettysburg College
IN-2: Innovation 2

Gettysburg College is able to spearhead sustainability and environmental education through its Environmental Studies Program. As a department, the faculty members that are most dedicated to sustainability practices at Gettysburg College and in the world are able to interact with one another on a daily basis. This daily interaction sparks more conversation and ideas regarding sustainability, than if the faculty were spread over multiple academic departments. The Environmental Studies Department is thus able construct a rigorous and stable curriculum regarding all aspects of the environment.

The Environmental Studies Department is one of the Gettysburg College’s truly interdisciplinary departments, requiring core courses in the natural sciences, social sciences, and humanities. While many environmental programs focus on one aspect of sustainability, the Gettysburg College Environmental Studies Department displays the multiple aspects necessary to understand and pursue sustainability. This approach allows and encourages students majoring and minoring in Environmental Studies to understand the many facets included in working towards just sustainability. With these interdisciplinary tools, students are more able to succeed and understand realistic and approaches to sustainable practices on and off of campus.

The Environmental Studies Department fosters an innovative environment for its students, both independently and alongside professors. While faculty research has been previously discussed in this report, student research is a fundamental portion of this department. Student research is as pursued and valued as faculty research and ranges in topics from a global scale, to a local scale, to solely about Gettysburg College. This research is often presented at conferences and officially published, as well as listed on the Environmental Studies Department’s website. (http://www.gettysburg.edu/academics/es/research/)