Environment Interfaculty Program (B.A. & Sc.) (54 credits)
Offered by: Bieler School of Environment
Degree: Bachelor of Arts and Science
Program credit weight: 54
Program Description
The growth of technology, globalization of economies, and rapid increases in population and per capita consumption have all had dramatic environmental impacts. The Interfaculty Program Environment for the Bachelor of Arts and Science is designed to provide students with a broad "Liberal Arts/Science" training. In combination with careful mentoring, this program offers a great degree of flexibility, allowing students to develop the skills and knowledge base required to face the myriad of environmental problems that currently need to be addressed.
Program Requirements
- Students are required to take a maximum of 21 credits at the 200 level and a minimum of 12 credits at the 400 level or higher in this program. This includes required courses.
- Students must complete at least 21 credits in the Faculty of Arts and at least 21 in the Faculty of Science as part of their interfaculty program and their minor or minor concentration. ENVR courses are considered courses in both Arts and Science, and so the credits are split between the two faculties for the purpose of this regulation.
Location Note: When planning your schedule and registering for courses, you should verify where each course is offered because courses for this program are taught on both McGill's Downtown campus and at the Macdonald campus in Sainte-Anne-de-Bellevue.
Degree Requirements — B.A. & Sc. students
This program is offered as part of a Bachelor of Arts & Science (B.A. & Sc.) degree.
To graduate, students must satisfy both their program requirements and their degree requirements.
- The program requirements (i.e., the specific courses that make up this program) are listed under the Course Tab (above).
- The degree requirements—including the mandatory Foundation program, appropriate degree structure, and any additional components—are outlined on the Degree Requirements page.
Students are responsible for ensuring that this program fits within the overall structure of their degree and that all degree requirements are met. Consult the Degree Planning Guide on the SOUSA website for additional guidance.
Note: For information about Fall 2025 and Winter 2026 course offerings, please check back on May 8, 2025. Until then, the "Terms offered" field will appear blank for most courses while the class schedule is being finalized.
Required Courses (18 credits)
Location Note: Core required courses are taught at both McGill's Downtown campus and at the Macdonald campus in Sainte-Anne-de-Bellevue. You should register in Section 001 of an ENVR course that you plan to take on the Downtown campus, and in Section 051 of an ENVR course that you plan to take on the Macdonald campus.
| Course | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| ENVR 200 | The Global Environment. | 3 |
The Global Environment. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. A systems approach to study the different components of the environment involved in global climate change: the atmosphere, biosphere, hydrosphere, and lithosphere. The interactions among these components. Their role in global climate change. The human dimension to global change. | ||
| ENVR 201 | Society, Environment and Sustainability. | 3 |
Society, Environment and Sustainability. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. This course deals with how scientific-technological, socio-economic, political-institutional and behavioural factors mediate society-environment interactions. Issues discussed include population and resources; consumption, impacts and institutions; integrating environmental values in societal decision-making; and the challenges associated with, and strategies for, promoting sustainability. Case studies in various sectors and contexts are used. | ||
| ENVR 202 | The Evolving Earth. | 3 |
The Evolving Earth. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Formation of the Earth and the evolution of life. How geological and biological change are the consequence of history, chance, and necessity acting over different scales of space and time. General principles governing the formation of modern landscapes and biotas. Effects of human activities on natural systems. | ||
| ENVR 203 | Knowledge, Ethics and Environment. | 3 |
Knowledge, Ethics and Environment. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Introduction to cultural perspectives on the environment: the influence of culture and cognition on perceptions of the natural world; conflicts in orders of knowledge (models, taxonomies, paradigms, theories, cosmologies), ethics (moral values, frameworks, dilemmas), and law (formal and customary, rights and obligations) regarding political dimensions of critical environments, resource use, and technologies. | ||
| ENVR 301 | Environmental Research Design. | 3 |
Environmental Research Design. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Techniques used in design and completion of environmental research projects. Problem definition, data sources and use of appropriate strategies and methodologies. Principles underlying research design are emphasized, including critical thinking, recognizing causal relationships, ideologies and bias in research, and when and where to seek expertise. | ||
| ENVR 400 | Environmental Thought. | 3 |
Environmental Thought. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Students work in interdisciplinary seminar groups on challenging philosophical, ethical, scientific and practical issues. They will explore cutting-edge ideas and grapple with the reconciliation of environmental imperatives and social, political and economic pragmatics. Activities include meeting practitioners, attending guest lectures, following directed readings, and organizing, leading and participating in seminars. | ||
Complementary Courses (36 credits)
Senior Research Project
Only 3 credits will be applied to the program; extra credits will count as electives.
| Course | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| AEBI 427 | Barbados Interdisciplinary Project. | 6 |
Barbados Interdisciplinary Project. Terms offered: Summer 2025 The planning of projects and research activities related to tropical food, nutrition, or energy at the local, regional, or national scale in Barbados. Projects and activities designed in consultation with university instructors, government, NGO, or private partners, and prepared by teams of 2-3 students working cooperatively with these mentors. | ||
| ENVR 401 | Environmental Research. | 3 |
Environmental Research. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Students work in an interdisciplinary team on a real-world research project involving problem definition, methodology development, social, ethical and environmental impact assessment, execution of the study, and dissemination of results to the research community and to the people affected. Teams begin defining their projects during the preceding summer. | ||
| ENVR 451 | Research in Panama. | 6 |
Research in Panama. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Research projects will be developed by instructors in consultation with Panamanian universities, government agencies and non-governmental organizations. Project groups will consist of four to six students working with a Panamanian institution. Topics will be relevant to Panama: e.g., protection of the Canal watershed, economical alternatives to deforestation, etc. | ||
| FSCI 444 | Barbados Research Project. | 6 |
Barbados Research Project. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. A research project that is supervised by McGill academic staff and is conducted in collaboration with local partners. The project topic must relate to the field of sustainability relating to the Caribbean or Barbados specifically. | ||
| GEOG 451 | Research in Society and Development in Africa. | 3 |
Research in Society and Development in Africa. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Three intersecting components: 1) core development themes including culture change, environmental conservation, water, health, development (urban and rural), governance and conflict resolution, 2) research techniques for topics related to core themes, including ethics, risk, field methods and data analysis, 3) field documentation, scientific recording and communication. | ||
Statistics
One of:
| Course | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| AEMA 310 | Statistical Methods 1. | 3 |
Statistical Methods 1. Terms offered: Fall 2025, Winter 2026 Measures of central tendency and dispersion; binomial and Poisson distributions; normal, chi-square, Student's t and Fisher-Snedecor F distributions; estimation and hypothesis testing; simple linear regression and correlation; analysis of variance for simple experimental designs. | ||
| GEOG 202 | Statistics and Spatial Analysis. | 3 |
Statistics and Spatial Analysis. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Exploratory data analysis, univariate descriptive and inferential statistics, non-parametric statistics, correlation and simple regression. Problems associated with analysing spatial data such as the 'modifiable areal unit problem' and spatial autocorrelation. Statistics measuring spatial pattern in point, line and polygon data. | ||
| MATH 203 | Principles of Statistics 1. | 3 |
Principles of Statistics 1. Terms offered: Summer 2025 Examples of statistical data and the use of graphical means to summarize the data. Basic distributions arising in the natural and behavioural sciences. The logical meaning of a test of significance and a confidence interval. Tests of significance and confidence intervals in the one and two sample setting (means, variances and proportions). | ||
| PSYC 204 | Introduction to Psychological Statistics. | 3 |
Introduction to Psychological Statistics. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. The statistical analysis of research data; frequency distributions; graphic representation; measures of central tendency and variability; elementary sampling theory and tests of significance. | ||
Areas
30 credits from at least three of the following Areas. At least 6 credits must be at the 400 level or higher, selected either from these lists or in consultation with the Program Adviser.
Area 1: Population, Community, and Ecosystem Ecology
| Course | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| BIOL 308 | Ecological Dynamics. | 3 |
Ecological Dynamics. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Principles of population, community, and ecosystem dynamics: population growth and regulation, species interactions, dynamics of competitive interactions and of predator/prey systems; evolutionary dynamics. | ||
| BIOL 432 | Limnology. | 3 |
Limnology. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. A study of the physical, chemical and biological properties of lakes and other inland waters, with emphasis on their functioning as systems. | ||
| BIOL 441 | Biological Oceanography. | 3 |
Biological Oceanography. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. An introduction to how the ocean functions biologically: biology and ecology of marine plankton; regulation, extent and fate of production in the sea. | ||
| BIOL 540 | Ecology of Species Invasions. | 3 |
Ecology of Species Invasions. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Causes and consequences of biological invasion, as well as risk assessment methods and management strategies for dealing with invasive species. | ||
| ENVB 305 | Population and Community Ecology. | 3 |
Population and Community Ecology. Terms offered: Winter 2026 Interactions between organisms and their environment; historical and current perspectives in applied and theoretical population and community ecology. Principles of population dynamics, feedback loops, and population regulation. Development and structure of communities; competition, predation and food web dynamics. Biodiversity science in theory and practice. | ||
| ENVB 410 | Ecosystem Ecology. | 3 |
Ecosystem Ecology. Terms offered: Fall 2025 Biotic and abiotic processes that control the flows of energy, nutrients and water through ecosystems; emergent system properties; approaches to analyzing complex systems. Labs include collection and multivariate analysis of field data. | ||
| ENVB 500 | Advanced Topics in Ecotoxicology. | 3 |
Advanced Topics in Ecotoxicology. Terms offered: Fall 2025 Exploring the impact of environmental chemicals on biological organisms in an ecological context. Basic topics in ecotoxicology, such as source and fate, routes of exposure, bioavailability, dose-response, biomarkers, and risk assessment will be covered from both theoretical and applied perspectives. The processes by which pollutants are tested, regulated, and monitored will be critically examined. | ||
| ENVR 540 | Ecology of Species Invasions. | 3 |
Ecology of Species Invasions. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Causes and consequences of biological invasion, as well as risk assessment methods and management strategies for dealing with invasive species. | ||
| PLNT 460 | Plant Ecology. | 3 |
Plant Ecology. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Theory and practice of plant ecology with an emphasis on the interaction between patterns and ecological processes and the dynamics, conservation and management of plant populations and communities over a range of temporal and spatial scales. | ||
Area 2: Biodiversity and Conservation
| Course | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| BIOL 305 | Animal Diversity. | 3 |
Animal Diversity. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. The characteristics of the major groups of animals, their ancestry, history and relationship to one another. The processes of speciation, adaptive radiation and extinction responsible for diversity. Methods for constructing of phylogenies, for comparing phenotypes, and for estimating and analyzing diversity. | ||
| BIOL 310 | Biodiversity and Ecosystems. | 3 |
Biodiversity and Ecosystems. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Ecological bases of the natural causes and consequences of current global environmental changes, including how biodiversity and ecosystem processes are defined and measured, how they vary in space and time, how they are affected by physical and biological factors, and how they affect each other and human societies. | ||
| BIOL 343 | Biodiversity in the Caribean. | 3 |
Biodiversity in the Caribean. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Biodiversity loss and the measure of ecological integrity of ecosystems, patterns of diversification and evolution of terrestrial and oceanic biotas in the Caribbean. | ||
| BIOL 427 | Herpetology. | 3 |
Herpetology. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Principles of biology as exemplified by amphibians and reptiles. Topics include: adaptation, social behaviour, reproductive strategies, physiology, biomechanics, ecology, biogeography and evolution. Laboratories will emphasize structure, systematics and identification of local and world herpetofauna as well as field methods. | ||
| BIOL 465 | Conservation Biology. | 3 |
Conservation Biology. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Discussion of relevant theoretical and applied issues in conservation biology. Topics: biodiversity, population viability analysis, community dynamics, biology of rarity, extinction, habitat fragmentation, social issues. | ||
| MICR 331 | Microbial Ecology. | 3 |
Microbial Ecology. Terms offered: Winter 2026 The ecology of microorganisms, primarily bacteria and archaea, and their roles in biogeochemical cycles. Microbial interactions with the environment, plants, animals and other microbes emphasizing the underlying genetics and physiology. Diversity, evolution (microbial phylogenetics) and the application of molecular biology in microbial ecology. | ||
| PLNT 358 | Flowering Plant Diversity. | 3 |
Flowering Plant Diversity. Terms offered: Fall 2025 Principles of classification and identification of flowering plants and ferns, with emphasis on 35 major families of flowering plants and the habitats in which they grow. | ||
| WILD 307 | Natural History of Vertebrates. | 3 |
Natural History of Vertebrates. Terms offered: Fall 2025 The diversity and natural history of Canadian vertebrates illustrated with trophic, phylogenetic, and macroecological approaches. | ||
| WILD 350 | Mammalogy. | 3 |
Mammalogy. Terms offered: Winter 2026 This course focuses on the evolution, classification, ecology and behaviour of mammals and relations between humans and mammals. Also structure, systematics and identification of local and world mammals, as well as field methods will be emphasized. | ||
| WILD 420 | Ornithology. | 3 |
Ornithology. Terms offered: Fall 2025 Taxonomic relationships and evolution of birds. Examination of the physiology, migration, identification and ecological processes of North American birds. | ||
Area 3: Field Studies in Ecology and Conservation
| Course | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| BIOL 240 | Monteregian Flora. | 3 |
Monteregian Flora. Terms offered: Summer 2025 Field studies of ferns, fern allies, conifers and flowering plants; the use of keys for plant identification. | ||
| BIOL 331 | Ecology/Behaviour Field Course. | 3 |
Ecology/Behaviour Field Course. Terms offered: Summer 2025 Methods of sampling natural populations. Testing hypotheses in nature. | ||
| BIOL 334D1 | Applied Tropical Ecology. | 1.5 |
Applied Tropical Ecology. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Relevant to agriculture, forestry, fisheries and conservation of natural resources. Field component taught at the University's Bellairs Research Institute in Barbados, for two weeks in early May. The course is organized in a series of small-group field projects of 2-3 days each. Interested students should check the course website, attend the full information session and fill out an application form. | ||
| BIOL 334D2 | Applied Tropical Ecology. | 1.5 |
Applied Tropical Ecology. Terms offered: Summer 2025 See BIOL 334D1 for course description. | ||
| BIOL 335 | Marine Mammals. | 3 |
Marine Mammals. Terms offered: Summer 2025 Biology of marine mammals with special emphasis on seals and whales of the Bay of Fundy. Taught at the Huntsman Marine Science Centre, St. Andrews, N.B., for two weeks in August. The course combines lectures, laboratory exercises, field trips, and individual projects. | ||
| BIOL 553 | Neotropical Environments. | 3 |
Neotropical Environments. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Ecology revisited in view of tropical conditions. Exploring species richness. Sampling and measuring biodiversity. Conservation status of ecosystems, communities and species. Indigenous knowledge. | ||
| GEOG 495 | Field Studies - Physical Geography. | 3 |
Field Studies - Physical Geography. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Field research projects in physical geography. Held locally in Monteregian or Eastern Township regions. The course is organised around field projects designed to formulate and test scientific hypotheses in a physical geography discipline. May Summer session. | ||
| WILD 475 | Desert Ecology. | 3 |
Desert Ecology. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. A three week field course exploring relationships between climate, geology, landforms, biodiversity, biotic adaptations and ecosystem conditions in the arid regions of Arizona and southern California. Focus is on the Sonoran and Mojave deserts but includes the transitions to adjacent grassland and forest biomes of the Sky Islands and Colorado Plateau. Exploration of issues arising from human use of land and water, and conservation in arid environments. Experiential learning involving team and individual projects and assignments before and during the field trip. | ||
Area 4: Hydrology and Water Resources
* Note: If chosen, you may take only one of: GEOG 322 Environmental Hydrology., BREE 217 Hydrology and Water Resources., or CIVE 323 Hydrology and Water Resources..
** Note: If chosen, you may take EPSC 522 Advanced Environmental
Hydrology. or GEOG 522 Advanced Environmental Hydrology..
| Course | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| BREE 217 | Hydrology and Water Resources. | 3 |
Hydrology and Water Resources. Terms offered: Winter 2026 Introduction to water resources and hydrologic cycle. Precipitation and hydrologic frequency analysis. Soil water processes, infiltration theory and modeling. Evapotranspiration estimation methods and crop water requirements. Surface runoff estimation as a function of land use modifications. Estimation of peak runoff rates. Unit hydrograph. Design of open channels and vegetated waterways. | ||
| CIVE 323 | Hydrology and Water Resources. | 3 |
Hydrology and Water Resources. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Precipitation, evaporation and transpiration. Streamflow, storage reservoirs, flood routing. Groundwater hydrology. Ecohydrology. Statistical analysis in hydrology, stochastic modelling. Simulations using hydrologic models. Case studies in flood damage mitigation, surface and ground water management, and water-energy-food nexus. | ||
| EPSC 522 | Advanced Environmental Hydrology. | 3 |
Advanced Environmental Hydrology. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Traditional and emerging theories of dominant runoff generation processes. Streamflow generation. Surface and near-surface solute and contaminant transport. Concentration-discharge relationships. Geochemical mixing models. Dyes and biological tracers of water. Isotope ecohydrology. Water source and water age estimation approaches. Development, execution, and evaluation of process-based watershed models. Case studies from forested, agricultural and periurban watersheds. | ||
| EPSC 549 | Hydrogeology. | 3 |
Hydrogeology. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Introduction to groundwater flow through porous media. Notions of fluid potential and hydraulic head. Darcy flux and Darcy's Law. Physical properties of porous media and their measurement. Equation of groundwater flow. Flow systems. Hydraulics of pumping and recharging wells. Notions of hydrology. Groundwater quality and contamination. Physical processes of contaminant transport. | ||
| GEOG 322 | Environmental Hydrology. | 3 |
Environmental Hydrology. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Quantitative, experimental study of the principles governing the movement of water at or near the Earth's surface and how the research relates to the chemistry and biology of ecosystems. | ||
| GEOG 470 | Wetlands. | 3 |
Wetlands. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. An examination of the structure, function and utility of wetlands. Topics include the fluxes of energy and water, wetland biogeochemistry, plant ecology in freshwater and coastal wetlands and wetlands use, conservation and restoration. Field trip(s) are envisaged to illustrate issues covered in class. | ||
| GEOG 522 | Advanced Environmental Hydrology. | 3 |
Advanced Environmental Hydrology. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Traditional and emerging theories of dominant runoff generation processes. Streamflow generation. Surface and near-surface solute and contaminant transport. Concentration-discharge relationships. Geochemical mixing models. Dyes and biological tracers of water. Isotope ecohydrology. Water source and water age estimation approaches. Development, execution, and evaluation of process-based watershed models. Case studies from forested, agricultural and periurban watersheds. | ||
| GEOG 530 | Global Land and Water Resources. | 3 |
Global Land and Water Resources. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Linkage of physical processes (hydrology and ecosystems) with issues of societal and socio-economic relevance (land, food, and water use appropriation for human well-being). Application of a holistic perspective on land, food and water issues in an international setting, highlighting linkages, feedbacks and trade-offs in an Earth system context. | ||
Area 5: Human Health
| Course | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| NUTR 307 | Metabolism and Human Nutrition. | 3 |
Metabolism and Human Nutrition. Terms offered: Fall 2025 This course looks at the importance of nutrition from the molecular to the organismal levels in human health and disease. The focus will be on the significance of nutrients in regulating metabolism, and impact of genotype in the metabolism of nutrients. | ||
| PARA 410 | Environment and Infection. | 3 |
Environment and Infection. Terms offered: Winter 2026 Infectious pathogens of humans and animals and their impact on the global environment are considered. The central tenet is that infectious pathogens are environmental risk factors. The course considers their impact on the human condition and juxtaposes the impact of control and treatment measures and environmental change. | ||
| PATH 300 | Human Disease. | 3 |
Human Disease. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Provides a fundamental understanding of the diseases prevalent in North America, for upper level students in the biological sciences. Includes: general responses of cells and organ systems to injury; assessment of individual diseases by relating the causes, symptoms, diagnosis, treatment and prevention to the primary biological abnormalities in each disorder. | ||
| PHAR 303 | Principles of Toxicology. | 3 |
Principles of Toxicology. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Fundamental mechanisms by which toxic compounds damage a biological system (organelle, cell, organ, organism, ecosystem). Detection and quantification of toxicity and risk/benefit analysis are considered. Selected agents of current risk to human health or the environment are evaluated in depth. | ||
Area 6: Earth and Soil Sciences
| Course | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| ATOC 215 | Oceans, Weather and Climate. | 3 |
Oceans, Weather and Climate. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. An introduction to key physical and dynamical processes in the oceans and atmosphere. Topics typically include air-sea-ice interactions, laws of motion, the geostrophic and thermal wind relations, general circulation of the atmosphere and oceans, weather, radiative balance, climate sensitivity and variability, role of the atmosphere and oceans in climate. | ||
| ATOC 341 | Caribbean Climate and Weather. | 3 |
Caribbean Climate and Weather. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. The climate system and ongoing global change, ocean and atmosphere circulation and future trends in the tropics; local climate variability and dynamics, extreme weather events in the Caribbean | ||
| EPSC 201 | Understanding Planet Earth. | 3 |
Understanding Planet Earth. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Learn about Earth's origin, its place in the solar system, its internal structure, rocks and minerals, the formation of metal and fossil fuel deposits, and the extinction of dinosaurs. Discover the impact of the volcanic eruptions, earthquakes and mountain chains on Earth's past, present and future. Explore 125 million-year-old Mount Royal. | ||
| GEOG 272 | Earth's Changing Surface. | 3 |
Earth's Changing Surface. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Introduction to the study of landforms as products of geomorphic and geologic systems acting at and near the Earth's surface. The process geomorphology approach will be used to demonstrate how landforms of different geomorphic settings represent a dynamic balance between forces acting in the environment and the physical properties of materials present. | ||
| GEOG 305 | Soils and Environment. | 3 |
Soils and Environment. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Discussion of the major properties of soils; soil formation, classification and mapping; land capability assessment; the role and response of soils in natural and disturbed environments (e.g. global change, ecosystem disturbance). | ||
| GEOG 321 | Climatic Environments. | 3 |
Climatic Environments. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. The earth-atmosphere system, radiation and energy balances. Surface-atmosphere exchange of energy, mass and momentum and related atmospheric processes on a local and regional scale. Introduction to measurement theory and practice in micrometeorology. | ||
Area 7: Economics
Note: If chosen, you may take AGEC 200 Principles of Microeconomics. or ECON 208 Microeconomic Analysis and Applications..
| Course | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| AGEC 200 | Principles of Microeconomics. | 3 |
Principles of Microeconomics. Terms offered: Fall 2025 The field of economics as it relates to the activities of individual consumers, firms and organizations. Emphasis is on the application of economic principles and concepts to everyday decision making and to the analysis of current economic issues. | ||
| AGEC 333 | Resource Economics. | 3 |
Resource Economics. Terms offered: Fall 2025 The role of resources in the environment, use of resources, and management of economic resources within the firm or organization. Problem-solving, case studies involving private and public decision-making in organizations are utilized. | ||
| ECON 208 | Microeconomic Analysis and Applications. | 3 |
Microeconomic Analysis and Applications. Terms offered: Summer 2025 A university-level introduction to demand and supply, consumer behaviour, production theory, market structures and income distribution theory. | ||
| ECON 326 | Ecological Economics. | 3 |
Ecological Economics. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Macroeconomic and structural aspects of the ecological crisis. A course in which subjects discussed include the conflict between economic growth and the laws of thermodynamics; the search for alternative economic indicators; the fossil fuels crisis; and "green'' fiscal policy. | ||
| ECON 347 | Economics of Climate Change. | 3 |
Economics of Climate Change. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. The course focuses on the economic implications of, and problems posed by, predictions of global warming due to anthropogenic emissions of greenhouse gases. Attention is given to economic policies such as carbon taxes and tradeable emission permits and to the problems of displacing fossil fuels with new energy technologies. | ||
| ECON 405 | Natural Resource Economics. | 3 |
Natural Resource Economics. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Topics include: Malthusian and Ricardian Scarcity; optimal depletion of renewable and non-renewable resources; exploration, risk and industry structure, and current resources, rent and taxation. Current public policies applied to the resource industries, particularly those of a regulatory nature. | ||
| ECON 511 | Energy, Economy and Environment. | 3 |
Energy, Economy and Environment. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Interdisciplinary study of the short-term and long-term interactions between economic activity, energy usage and the environment. Implications of rising fossil fuels usage for environmental damage and its consequences for the future. The political economy of energy in national politics and international relations; the interface of energy and financial flows; the challenge of globally managing toxic residues. | ||
| GEOG 216 | Geography of the World Economy. | 3 |
Geography of the World Economy. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. The course introduces the geography of the world economic system. It describes the spatial distribution of economic activities and examines the factors which influence their changing location. Case studies from both "developed" and "developing" countries will test the different geographical theories presented in lectures. | ||
Area 8: Development and Underdevelopment
| Course | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| AGRI 411 | Global Issues on Development, Food and Agriculture. | 3 |
Global Issues on Development, Food and Agriculture. Terms offered: Winter 2026 International development and world food security and challenges in developing countries. Soil and water management, climate change, demographic issues, plant and animal resources conservation, bio-products and biofuels, economic and environmental issues specially in tropical and sub-tropical regions. Globalization, sustainable development, technology transfer and human resources needs for rural development. | ||
| ANTH 212 | Anthropology of Development. | 3 |
Anthropology of Development. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Processes of developmental change, as they affect small communities in the Third World and in unindustrialized parts of developed countries. Problems of technological change, political integration, population growth, industrialization, urban growth, social services, infrastructure and economic dependency. | ||
| ANTH 418 | Environment and Development. | 3 |
Environment and Development. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Advanced study of the environmental crisis in developing and advanced industrial nations, with emphasis on the social and cultural dimensions of natural resource management and environmental change. Each year, the seminar will focus on a particular set of issues, delineated by type of resource, geographic region, or analytical problem. | ||
| ECON 313 | Economic Development 1. | 3 |
Economic Development 1. Terms offered: Summer 2025 Microeconomic theories of economic development and empirical evidence on population, labour, firms, poverty. Inequality and environment. | ||
| ECON 314 | Economic Development 2. | 3 |
Economic Development 2. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Macroeconomic development issues, including theories of growth, public finance, debt, currency crises, corruption, structural adjustment, democracy and global economic organization. | ||
| GEOG 325 | New Master-Planned Cities. | 3 |
New Master-Planned Cities. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. This course examines the origins, designs, motivations and cultural politics of planned cities, focusing primarily on those currently under construction in Africa, the Middle East and Asia. A variety of themes will be explored including design responses to urban pollution and over-crowding, 'new' cities from earlier decades, totalitarianism and the city, utopianism, 'green' cities, and 'creative' cities. The course examines the various motivations underlying the design and construction of planned cities and how they are shaped by power, religion, and political ideologies. There will be a focus on evolving concepts used in city design as well as the continuities and cultural revivalism expressed through urban design and architecture. Students interested in urban and cultural geography, cities, architecture and planning in different cultural contexts will enjoy this course. | ||
| GEOG 408 | Geography of Development. | 3 |
Geography of Development. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Examines the geographical dimensions of development policy, specifically the relationships between the process of development and human-induced environmental change. Focuses on environmental sustainability, struggles over resource control, population and poverty, and levels of governance (the role of the state, non-governmental organizations, and local communities). | ||
| GEOG 409 | Geographies of Developing Asia. | 3 |
Geographies of Developing Asia. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Current development questions that are of concern to the Asian region. Emphasis on critically studying the major processes of social, economic and environmental change through regional case studies in rural, peri-urban and urban contexts. Covers important debates and considerations that lie at the heart of development geography. | ||
| GEOG 423 | Dilemmas of Development. | 3 |
Dilemmas of Development. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Africa seems beset by development problems. Some of these appear to have no clear answer. Such dilemmas present significant barriers to moving forward with durable, effective development in Africa. This course will examine two primary and frequently interlocked dilemmas in East Africa with wide ranging impact - food security, and conflict. | ||
| POLI 227 | Introduction to Comparative Politics - Global South. | 3 |
Introduction to Comparative Politics - Global South. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. An introduction to politics across the Global South. A comparative examination of the legacies of colonialism, the achievement of independence, and political and socio-economic development in Africa, Asia and Latin America. Topics include modernization, dependency, state-building, political violence, revolution, the role of the military, authoritarianism, and democratization. | ||
| POLI 445 | International Political Economy: Monetary Relations. | 3 |
International Political Economy: Monetary Relations. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Advanced course in international political economy; the politics of international of monetary relations, such as international rules governing international finance, the reasons for and consequences of financial flows, and the functioning of international financial bodies such as the IMF and World Bank. | ||
Area 9: Cultures and People
| Course | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| ANTH 206 | Environment and Culture. | 3 |
Environment and Culture. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Introduction to ecological anthropology, focusing on social and cultural adaptations to different environments, human impact on the environment, cultural constructions of the environment, management of common resources, and conflict over the use of resources. | ||
| ANTH 339 | Ecological Anthropology. | 3 |
Ecological Anthropology. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Intensive study of theories and cases in ecological anthropology. Theories are examined and tested through comparative case-study analysis. Cultural constructions of "nature" and "environment" are compared and analyzed. Systems of resource management and conflicts over the use of resources are studied in depth. | ||
| ENVR 421 | Montreal: Environmental History and Sustainability. | 3 |
Montreal: Environmental History and Sustainability. Terms offered: Summer 2025 This course will focus on the role of place and history in the cities in which we live and in our understanding of sustainability. Each year, students will work to develop a historical reconstruction of the natural environment of Montreal and of its links to the cultural landscape, building on the work of previous cohorts of students. | ||
| GEOG 210 | Global Places and Peoples. | 3 |
Global Places and Peoples. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Introduction to key themes in human geography. Maps and the making, interpretation and contestation of landscapes, 'place', and territory. Investigation of globalization and the spatial organization of human geo-politics, and urban and rural environments. | ||
| GEOG 498 | Humans in Tropical Environments. | 3 |
Humans in Tropical Environments. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Focus on understanding of inter-relations between humans and neotropical environments represented in Panama. Study of contemporary rural landscapes, their origins, development and change. Impacts of economic growth and inequality, social organization, and politics on natural resource use and environmental degradation. Site visits and field exercises in peasant/colonist, Amerindian, and plantation communities. | ||
| HIST 292 | History and the Environment. | 3 |
History and the Environment. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Sketch of the history of the material aspects of human interaction with the rest of nature. Included will be a historian's view of the social, technical, and ecological implications of the great variety of activities devised by our species. Though global in outlook, this course will emphasize the relevant historiography of France, England and North America. | ||
| HIST 510 | Environmental History of Latin America (Field). | 3 |
Environmental History of Latin America (Field). Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Human-nature interactions over different scales of time in Latin America (with an emphasis on neo-tropical environments) and the application of the historical perspective to contemporary environmental issues, including historiography and methodology; cultures of environmental knowledge. | ||
Area 10: Human Ecology and Health
| Course | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| ANTH 227 | Medical Anthropology. | 3 |
Medical Anthropology. Terms offered: Summer 2025 Beliefs and practices concerning sickness and healing are examined in a variety of Western and non-Western settings. Special attention is given to cultural constructions of the body and to theories of disease causation and healing efficacy. Topics include international health, medical pluralism, transcultural psychiatry, and demography. | ||
| GEOG 303 | Health Geography. | 3 |
Health Geography. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Discussion of the research questions and methods of health geography. Particular emphasis on health inequalities at multiple geographic scales and the theoretical links between characteristics of places and the health of people. | ||
| PHIL 343 | Biomedical Ethics. | 3 |
Biomedical Ethics. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. An investigation of ethical issues as they arise in the practice of medicine (informed consent, e.g.) or in the application of medical technology (in vitro fertilization, euthanasia, e.g.) | ||
| SOCI 225 | Medicine and Health in Modern Society. | 3 |
Medicine and Health in Modern Society. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Socio-medical problems and ways in which sociological analysis and research are being used to understand and deal with them. Canadian and Québec problems include: poverty and health; mental illness; aging; death and dying; professionalism; health service organization. | ||
| SOCI 309 | Health and Illness. | 3 |
Health and Illness. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Health and illness as social rather than purely bio-medical phenomena. Topics include: studies of ill persons, health care occupations and organizations; poverty and health; inequalities in access to and use of health services; recent policies, ideologies, and problems in reform of health services organization. | ||
Area 11: Spirituality, Philosophy, and Thought
| Course | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| ANTH 318 | Globalization and Religion. | 3 |
Globalization and Religion. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. The interactions between religion and the economic, social and cultural transformations of globalization: relations between globalization and contemporary religious practice, meaning, and influence at personal and collective levels. | ||
| EDER 461 | Society and Change. | 3 |
Society and Change. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Factors influencing patterns of stability and change in major social institutions and the implications for formal and non-formal education. | ||
| PHIL 221 | Introduction to History and Philosophy of Science 2. | 3 |
Introduction to History and Philosophy of Science 2. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. A survey of the development of modern science since the Eighteenth Century. | ||
| PHIL 237 | Contemporary Moral Issues. | 3 |
Contemporary Moral Issues. Terms offered: Summer 2025 An introductory discussion of central ethical questions (the value of persons, or the relationship of rights and utilities, for example) through the investigation of currently disputed social and political issues. Specific issues to be discussed may include pornography and censorship, affirmative action, civil disobedience, punishment, abortion, and euthanasia. | ||
| PHIL 341 | Philosophy of Science 1. | 3 |
Philosophy of Science 1. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. A discussion of philosophical problems as they arise in the context of scientific practice and enquiry. Such issues as the philosophical presuppositions of the physical and social sciences, the nature of scientific method and its epistemological implications will be addressed. | ||
| PHIL 348 | Philosophy of Law 1. | 3 |
Philosophy of Law 1. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. A discussion of the nature of justice and law, and of the relationship between them. | ||
| RELG 270 | Religious Ethics and the Environment. | 3 |
Religious Ethics and the Environment. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Environmental potential of various religious traditions and secular perspectives, including animal rights, ecofeminism, and deep ecology. | ||
| RELG 370 | Religion and Human Rights. | 3 |
Religion and Human Rights. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Social justice and human rights issues as key aspects of modem religious ethics. Topics include: the relationship of religion to the modem human rights movement; religious perspectives on the universality of human rights; the scope and limits of religious freedom; conflicts between religion and rights. | ||
Area 12: Environmental Management
| Course | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| AGRI 550 | Sustained Tropical Agriculture. | 3 |
Sustained Tropical Agriculture. Terms offered: Winter 2026 Contrast theory and practice in defining agricultural environmental "challenges" in the Neotropics. Indigenous and appropriate technological means of mitigation. Soil management and erosion, water scarcity, water over-abundance, and water quality. Explore agro-ecosystem protection via field trips and project designs. Institutional context of conservation strategies, NGO links, and public participation. | ||
| COMS 360 | Environmental Communication. | 3 |
Environmental Communication. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. A survey of contemporary approaches to communication, media and environment in the field of communication studies. Focus on critical attention on media, communication and knowledge practices concerning environmental information, issues and controversies, as well as the environmental impacts of media technologies, infrastructures and practices. Topics include public communication of science and environmental information (journalism, governments; social movements), climate change communication, media materialities and toxicities (energy, pollution, waste), environmental racism and environmental justice, environment and disability, | ||
| ENVB 437 | Assessing Environmental Impact. | 3 |
Assessing Environmental Impact. Terms offered: Winter 2026 Principles and practice of Environmental Assessment (EA) in Canada and internationally. Exploration of issues surrounding impact assessment for sustainable development in different sectors, including their limitations. | ||
| ENVR 422 | Montreal Urban Sustainability Analysis. | 3 |
Montreal Urban Sustainability Analysis. Terms offered: Summer 2025 Applied and experience-based learning opportunities are employed to critically assess Montreal as a sustainable city through research, discussion, and field trips. The urban environment is considered through various specific dimensions, ranging from: waste, energy, urban agriculture, green spaces and design, or transportation. | ||
| GEOG 302 | Environmental Management 1. | 3 |
Environmental Management 1. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. An ecological analysis of the physical and biotic components of natural resource systems. Emphasis on scientific, technological and institutional aspects of environmental management. Study of the use of biological resources and of the impact of individual processes. | ||
| GEOG 340 | Sustainability in the Caribbean. | 3 |
Sustainability in the Caribbean. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. The local environmental, social, historical, political and economic context of Barbados and the Caribbean. The small island developing States (SIDS), and why those nations are more vulnerable to global environmental challenges. The 17 Sustainability Development Goals of the United Nations, with a focus on the leadership role played by Barbados for the entire Caribbean region. | ||
| GEOG 404 | Environmental Management 2. | 3 |
Environmental Management 2. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Practical application of environmental planning, analysis and management techniques with reference to the needs and problems of developing areas. Special challenges posed by cultural differences and traditional resource systems are discussed. This course involves practical field work in a developing area (Kenya or Panama). | ||
| NRSC 333 | Pollution and Bioremediation. | 3 |
Pollution and Bioremediation. Terms offered: Fall 2025 The environmental contaminants which cause pollution; sources, amounts and transport of pollutants in water, air and soil; waste management. | ||
| POLI 350 | Global Environmental Politics. | 3 |
Global Environmental Politics. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Environmental problems like climate change, deforestation, biodiversity loss, and ocean acidification transcend national borders. Solving these problems will require global cooperation on an unprecedented level. This course will explore the challenges of contemporary global environmental governance and the innovative solutions being advanced at the community, municipal, provincial, national, and international levels. | ||
| WCOM 314 | Communicating Science. | 3 |
Communicating Science. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Production of written and oral assignments (in English) designed to communicate scientific problems and findings to varied audiences Analysis of the disciplinary conventions of scientific discourse in terms of audience, purpose, organization, and style; comparative rhetorical analysis of academic and popular genres, including abstracts, lab reports, research papers, print and online journalism. | ||
| WILD 401 | Fisheries and Wildlife Management. | 3 |
Fisheries and Wildlife Management. Terms offered: Fall 2025 Principles of fisheries and wildlife management are considered and current practices of research and management are discussed. | ||
| WILD 421 | Wildlife Conservation. | 3 |
Wildlife Conservation. Terms offered: Winter 2026 Study of current controversial issues focusing on wildlife conservation. Topics include: animal rights, exotic species, ecotourism, urban wildlife, multi-use of national parks, harvesting of wildlife, biological controls, and endangered species. | ||
| WOOD 441 | Integrated Forest Management. | 3 |
Integrated Forest Management. Terms offered: Winter 2026 The study of silviculture and silvics and their application to forest management to sustain the production of wood and other ecological goods and services such as wildlife, water and landscape in natural forests and rural environments (agroforestry). Acquisition of practical skills in forest surveying and computer simulation of forest growth. | ||