Sustainable Environmental Design BA

About this programme

The Sustainable Environmental Design (SED) major recognizes that the emergent field of sustainability is growing rapidly in cross-sector activities from product design and manufacturing to governance and social equity. As the world population grows and urbanizes, the planning and design of systems that produce outcomes that are resilient, resource-efficient, healthy and socially just is profoundly important. The College of Environmental Design, with its long-standing, multidisciplinary focus on innovation and social equity is an ideal setting for an undergraduate major in SED, with a strong focus on systems . The major offers students a critical understanding of the sustainability challenges facing regions in California and around the globe, and equips them with the technical and analytical tools key to solving sustainability problems that affect people, products and places . Graduates have many career paths and fields of graduate study open to them as a function of the diversity of topics and tools they will encounter and engage in SED. Students who complete this major will: Understand the features and functions of systems that drive sustainability challenges Analyze the relationships between technological systems, systems of governance, and production systems. Identify interactions between sustainability, equity and social justice. Use quantitative analysis to understand the potential of sensors and information dashboards to produce innovation in design and management approaches. Leverage the potential of strategy, policy, business and institutions to adapt to and influence environmental, social and economic trends.