Engage pressing environmental issues and practice stewardship of the Earth.
Now offered as a major in addition to the existing minor!
Widespread environmental problems rank among the most pressing global issues of our time, and their scientific, social and moral dimensions require a sophisticated, informed and compassionate response. The Environmental Studies major cultivates a deep understanding of human connections to the natural world so you can analyze and debate complex environmental problems and devise constructive, imaginative solutions.
You’ll discover how to practice stewardship of the earth in the context of Christian theology and social and environmental ethics. You'll also develop the knowledge and skills to engage contemporary environmental issues such as biodiversity loss, pollution, resource depletion, climate change, renewable energy, sustainable agriculture and sustainable development from local to global scales.
Environmental Studies Flyer
Selected Courses
- Introduction to Environmental Studies
- Electives in Natural Sciences, Social Sciences, and Humanities, such as:
- Land into Landscape
- Environmental Politics
- Food Systems
Courses can include up to 4 units of internships or research.
Several courses satisfy GE requirements.
Internships
- Allison Lab
- Apeel Sciences
- Channel Islands Restoration
- Contakes Lab
- Deckers
- Drake Schultheis Lab
- ECOFaith of Santa Barbara
- Gaviota Coast Conservancy
- Santa Barbara Botanic Gardens
- Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisors
- Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History
- Santa Barbara Wildlife Care Network
- Santa Barbara Zoo
- Sparkman Lab
- The Trust for Public Land
- Westmont Garden
- Wilderness Youth Project
- And many more!
Year 1
- ENV 1
- ENV 2
Year 2
- ENV Ethics
- GIS
Year 3
- Elective
- Elective
Year 4
- Elective
- Elective
- Senior Capstone
A strong education in environmental studies will prepare you in innumerable ways for careers in governmental, academic, for-profit and/or non-profit institutions. Potential career paths include environmental law, green business, science journalism, wilderness therapy, outdoor education, natural resource management, restoration ecology, and sustainable agriculture.
Curious about where a major in Environmental Studies can take you?
Explore these exciting and impactful career opportunities:
- Environmental consulting
- Environmental policy and law (J.D., L.L.M.)
- Sustainable development
- Conservation and natural resource management
- Urban and regional planning
- Climate science and advocacy
- Renewable energy and energy policy
- Environmental education (K–12, outdoor, museum, non-profit)
- Ecotourism and sustainable business
- Public health and environmental justice
- Nonprofit and NGO leadership
- Government and regulatory agencies (EPA, NOAA, local/state environmental offices)
- Environmental journalism and communication
- Waste management and pollution control
- Agriculture and food systems sustainability
- Wildlife and habitat conservation
- Corporate sustainability and ESG (Environmental, Social, Governance) roles
- Research and academia
- Environmental data science and GIS analysis
Where are our Environmental Studies Alumni now?
BROOKE MURPHY
I graduated in 2023, with a double major in Environmental Studies and Religious Studies. This fall, I’ll be heading to Cal Poly SLO to start the Environmental Science and Management masters program. The Westmont ENV program led me to explore a discipline that I hadn’t had the opportunity to explore before. My education opened my eyes to the interconnectedness of ES with other disciplines, the humanities in particular. I’m grateful for the staff and faculty who advocated for me along the way. I most value the time spent doing research with Dr. Marianne Robins. For my senior capstone, Dr. Marianne Robins helped me with an Environmental History project, which culminated in my presentation at the Westmont Research Symposium. Without the time spent doing research with her, I don’t know if I would have pursued further research in graduate studies.
PHILIP SMYTHE
Since graduating in 2023 I have worked several seasonal positions and am now pursuing masters advisors for continuing education. My two most recent positions are working as a scientific diver for a freshwater mussel consulting company and working as a fish hatchery technician with Idaho Fish and Game where I currently work. Something I appreciated a lot from my environmental studies major was how interdepartmental it was. Beyond just liberal arts I was able to experience multiple disciplines and specifically how they all engaged with the same environmental issues and relationships.
Faculty Highlights
She studies the evolutionary ecology of reptiles and advises the Environmental Studies major.
She is an art historian who writes on the role of visual art in worship.
She is an invertebrate zoologist working with Eastern Pacific gorgonian corals who loves spending time exploring tide pools up and down the west coast.
He examines the associations between religion/spirituality and population health and well-being.
He’s an internationally known expert on biology, love and religious belief.
He has research interests in moral and political philosophy, especially political obligation and state authority, distributive justice, property rights, and some more practical public policy issues related to poverty.
She inspires global health students to be involved locally and throughout the world.
News
Offering Grants for Climate Projects
In the last two summers, Westmont has hosted more than 100 evangelical students, professors and nationally recognized experts for conferences about Christian climate advocacy. The Faith.Climate.Action. Workshop, funded by the Arthur Vining Davis Foundations, now provides nearly $40,000 in grants to support sustainability initiatives for eight members of the Council for Christian Colleges and Universities (CCCU).
Growing Oaks Offer Wildfire Resilience
A Westmont biology class is celebrating the growing success of an oak woodland restoration project in the barranca along the westside of Westmont’s campus. Nearly all of the 60 coast live oaks that were planted along the dry Westmont Creek in November 2023 are surviving and many have grown more than three feet tall.