Environmental Economics Major

Advisers O’Hara, Turner

The environmental economics major program focuses on the relationships between the economic system and the natural environment, including the use of the natural environment as an economic asset and the impact on the natural environment of the economic system. In addition to courses stressing economic analysis, the major program includes a study of the relevant sciences, humanities and other social sciences.

This major is part of the Environmental Studies (ENST) Program and is designed for students who are interested in analyzing environmental issues using the framework of economics. Students take a set of courses in the ENST program as well as economics courses that have an environmental emphasis but also provide breadth in economics. The ENST courses focus on interdisciplinary approaches to ethical, natural scientific, and social scientific aspects of environmental issues.

For more information about the program, honors/high honors, transfer credit, etc., visit the Environmental Studies program page.

Major Requirements

The major program consists of the following requirements:

Environmental Studies Courses (four)

All of the Following

ENST 202 /PHIL 202 - Environmental Ethics
ENST 390 - Community-based Study of Environmental Issues
One full-credit course or two half-credit courses from the list of
Interdisciplinary Courses Focused on the Environment

One of the Following

Economics Courses (six)

All of the Following

ECON 151 - Introduction to Economics
ECON 251 - Intermediate Microeconomics (with a minimum grade of C)
ECON 252 - Intermediate Macroeconomics (with a minimum grade of C)
ECON 375 - Applied Econometrics (with a minimum grade of C)
ECON 483 - Seminar in Resource and Environmental Economics (or, with permission of the major adviser and program director, another economics seminar with a research project focused on an environmental or resource issue)

One of the Following

Students interested in pursuing graduate study or a career in the general area of environmental economics are encouraged to take both of these courses.

Other Required Courses (three)

One course from the
Earth Systems and Processes
list, or with permission of the program director an additional course that satisfies the
Interdisciplinary Courses Focused on the Environment
requirement.
One course from the
Social Science Investigations of Environmental Issues
list, or with permission of the program director an additional course that satisfies the
Interdisciplinary Courses Focused on the Environment
requirement.
One course from the
Arts and Humanities Courses Related to the Environment
list, or with permission of the program director an additional course that satisfies the
Interdisciplinary Courses Focused on the Environment
requirement.

Major Declaration

In order to declare an environmental economics major, students must have first earned a grade of C or better in either ECON 251 or ECON 252 . Students who declare a major while enrolled in one of these courses may file “provisional” major declarations. Students with a grade lower than C in ECON 251 , ECON 252 , or ECON 375 may not declare an environmental economics until a grade of C or higher is earned.