ECOL 1000 – Ecological Basis of Environmental Issues (Fall 2019)
My first sustainability-focused course, Ecological Basis of Environmental Issues, satisfied the Ecological Sphere of my Sustainability Certificate. I initially took this course in the fall of my sophomore year to fulfill my life science general graduation requirement. At that time, I was an intended business who believed that I did not have any skill or passion in the sciences, so I was not particularly excited about taking a life science. What I did not know at that time was that this class would eventually inspire me to change the entire course of my college experience.
While learning about the ecological concepts that form the basis for understanding environmental issues, I was able to better understand the environment and the detrimental impacts humans were making on the health of the environment. In this course, I explored the long-term implications of population growth, loss of diversity, resource limitation, pollution, global climate change, and other environmental issues.
Throughout the semester of this course, I was assigned the task of creating a sustainable lifestyle change. I decided to stop eating meat products and reduce my consumption of other animal products such as dairy. I included a poster of my methodology, results, and conclusion as Artifact #1 in my portfolio. This project made a huge impact on my life as I still do not eat meat products three years later.
One day nearing the end of my second fall semester, the professor of this course mentioned that this class counts as one of the required spheres for the Sustainability Certificate. This fact, and my newfound appreciation of the environment, inspired me to apply for Sustainability Certificate. This class served as a staple of my college education. Many of the ecological concepts explored during this course have helped me throughout the rest of my sustainability courses, my internship with the Office of Sustainability, and my personal life.