DEC Systems (DECS)

The field of sustainability will be surveyed using the lens of Systems Thinking. Students will be introduced to the rate and scale of environmental impacts resulting from climate change, our industrial food system, and waste accumulation in linear models of production, with case studies considered from multiple perspectives and disciplines. Students will develop systems models to identify key feedbacks and interactions among factors. A final team-based inquiry-driven project will involve analysis of a focal area of choice, to characterize sustainability challenges and opportunities for focused interventions, with consideration of social equity dimensions and model limitations.