Overall Rating Gold - expired
Overall Score 68.06
Liaison Meredith Moore
Submission Date March 17, 2015
Executive Letter Download

STARS v2.0

University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign
AC-3: Undergraduate Program

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 3.00 / 3.00 Stephanie Lage
Assistant Director
Ctr for Sustainable Environment
"---" indicates that no data was submitted for this field

Does the institution offer at least one sustainability-focused major, degree program, or the equivalent for undergraduate students?:
Yes

The name of the sustainability-focused, undergraduate degree program (1st program):
Earth, Society, and Environmental Sustainability major

A brief description of the undergraduate degree program (1st program):

This is a flexible B.S. degree that allows students to structure an academic program with room for significant coursework pertaining to environment and sustainability issues. The major offers two concentrations: (1) Science of the Earth System, which is geared toward students with a physical or biological science focus, and (2) Society and the Environment, which is geared toward students with a social science and humanities focus. Each concentration allows students to select courses not only from ESE offerings but from many departments across campus, and thus provides an interdisciplinary perspective in both scientific and human aspects of environment and sustainability problems.


The website URL for the undergraduate degree program (1st program):
The name of the sustainability-focused, undergraduate degree program (2nd program):
Natural Resources and Environmental Sciences

A brief description of the undergraduate degree program (2nd program):

Students investigate economic, psychological, and sociological implications of different approaches to managing natural resources and environmental challenges. The Human Dimension concentration emphasizes the study of human-environment interactions at the individual, household, community, regional, and global levels.


The website URL for the undergraduate degree program (2nd program):
The name of the sustainability-focused, undergraduate degree program (3rd program):
Urban and Regional Planning

A brief description of the undergraduate degree program (3rd program):

The Sustainable Design and Development concentration is designed to provide a thorough understanding of sustainable development that recognizes its underlying ecological, economic, and social forces. Courses cover techniques and skills for developing land and cities more intelligently, using minimum of nonrenewable energy, producing a minimum of pollution and wastes, and costing a minimum of energy dollars, while increasing the comfort, health, and safety of residents and workers.


The website URL for the undergraduate degree program (3rd program):
The name and website URLs of all other sustainability-focused, undergraduate degree program(s):

Agricultural and Consumer Economics concentration in Environmental Economics and Policy.
Civil and Environmental Engineering primary program in Sustainable and Resilient Infrastructure Systems.
Crop Sciences concentration in Agroecology.


Does the institution offer one or more sustainability-focused minors, concentrations or certificates for undergraduate students?:
Yes

The name of the sustainability-focused undergraduate minor, concentration or certificate (1st program):
Global Studies minor in Environment, Sustainability, and Social Responsibility (ESSR).

A brief description of the undergraduate minor, concentration or certificate (1st program):

Presents topics on local-global environmental conditions, opportunities and challenges in sustaining healthy environments, as well as social responsibility for sustainability. Students take courses to familiarize themselves with environmental issues and concerns, the politics of conservation and social response to environmental concerns.


The website URL for the undergraduate minor, concentration or certificate (1st program):
The name of the sustainability-focused undergraduate minor, concentration or certificate (2nd program):
Landscape Architecture minor in Landscape Studies.

A brief description of the undergraduate minor, concentration or certificate (2nd program):

Students gain considerable knowledge of the ecological, social, cultural and historical factors that have shaped landscapes of the Western and non-Western world. Students interested in integrative studies of the natural, cultural and built environment, and those concerned with landscape as context for art and design, will develop a comprehensive theoretical framework for work in their major field of study.


The website URL for the undergraduate minor, concentration or certificate (2nd program):
The name of the sustainability-focused undergraduate minor, concentration or certificate (3rd program):
School of Earth, Society and Environment Environmental Fellows Program.

A brief description of the undergraduate minor, concentration or certificate (3rd program):

This is a minor intended to provide students with an opportunity to gain recognition for coursework in environment and sustainability studies while they pursue another discipline as their major. To enter this minor, students must apply and have a GPA of 3.0 or better. The minor is an 18 credit hour honors program that requires participation in a seminar and completion of a capstone course.


The website URL for the undergraduate minor, concentration or certificate (3rd program):
The name, brief description and URL of all other undergraduate-level sustainability-focused minors, concentrations and certificates:
---

Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
---

The information presented here is self-reported. While AASHE staff review portions of all STARS reports and institutions are welcome to seek additional forms of review, the data in STARS reports are not verified by AASHE. If you believe any of this information is erroneous or inconsistent with credit criteria, please review the process for inquiring about the information reported by an institution or simply email your inquiry to stars@aashe.org.