Urban Planning and Sustainable Development, BA

Department of Environmental Studies, Huxley College of the Environment

126-131 Credits: Phase I, Phase II, and Major

Introduction/What is the Study of Urban Planning and Sustainable Development?

This interdisciplinary program prepares students to enter professional fields concerned with the sustainability of the human and natural environment. The Urban Planning and Sustainable Development program consists of a core, and specialization electives. The core incorporates the interdisciplinary foundation of Huxley College’s approach to the study of the environment. Urban planning and sustainable development concentrate studies in public policy development, law, and methods and processes of planning and decision making. The specialization elective component of the program is flexible. It allows students to develop an area of special interest, concentrating on a minor in an academic discipline, or to select from a number of thematically oriented clusters of courses.

Huxley’s Urban Planning and Sustainable Development major emphasizes an interdisciplinary approach to solving complex problems that face communities from the local to the global level. The program emphasizes a concern for progressive change that is needed towards the design of equitable, healthful, livable, and sustainable communities for present and future generations. The curriculum combines urban planning, sustainable design, environmental policy, and environmental science to provide students with an understanding of the linkages between urban and natural systems and the multidimensional problems in urban development.

The program prepares students with the knowledge and skills necessary to make positive changes towards sustainability in an increasingly complex world. Graduates are prepared for careers in planning agencies, consulting firms, and nonprofit organizations at the local, state, and federal levels of government, as well as advanced graduate study. Students are accepted into the Urban Planning and Sustainable Design major based on the review of their application and portfolio of work demonstrating their affinity to integrate sustainable design, social equality concerns, and environmental systems principles, and on enrollment limits.

Why Consider a Study of Urban Planning and Sustainable Development Major? 

Do you want to use your knowledge and skills to promote positive change in the environment? Do you love solving problems and implementing shared visions in both natural settings and urban communities? Are you interested in the laws and policies that govern environmental change? Then Planning and Sustainable Development is the major for you.

Contact Information

Interim Department Chair Debnath Mookherjee Arntzen Hall 217 360-650-3284 Debnath.Mookherjee@wwu.edu

Huxley College Admissions Advisor Kathryn Patrick Environmental Studies 539 360-650-3520 Kathryn.Patrick@wwu.edu

Planning Program Advisor Nicholas Zaferatos Environmental Studies 444 Nicholas.Zaferatos@wwu.edu

Sample Careers

Urban Planner | Environmental Lawyer | County Planner | Environmental Public Relations | Director of Non-Profit Organizations

Major/Career Resources

http://www.wwu.edu/careers/students_choosingamajor.shtml

How to Declare (Admission and Declaration Process):

You can declare yourself as an Environmental Studies (ENVS) major at any time, and there are several advantages to declaring during your freshman or sophomore year. Once you are declared as a phase I major you are assigned a Huxley faculty advisor based on your interests at the time of declaration. You can then meet with your faculty advisor to discuss which courses to take and when, how to prepare for graduate school or a future career, or simply to get assistance navigating through the Huxley curriculum. Your email is added to an email distribution list for Huxley majors so you will begin to receive notifications and general announcements, as well as information about jobs, internships, or research opportunities.

Some important information about the ENVS major:

1. Most students begin the ENVS major in Phase I, while completing the preparatory classes for ENVS Phase II admission (BIOL 101 or 204, PLSC 250, ECON 206, Math 114 or equivalent, CHEM 121, as well as ENVS 201, 202, and 203). You can declare an ENVS Phase I major at any time by going to the central Huxley College office in Environmental Studies Building 539 and filling out a major declaration card. 

2. Admission to Phase II is a competitive process and requires the coursework above and a grade of B- or better in ENVS 201, ENVS 202, and ENVS 203, as well as a satisfactory GPA in all other coursework. You must then submit an application that includes a 1-2 page essay describing your reasons for wanting to enter into one of the five ENVS majors (Environmental Education, Environmental Studies, Geography, Urban Planning, or Policy) as well as a plan of study created with the Huxley admissions advisor and signed by a faculty advisor. Entry into the Urban Planning major also requires a portfolio, and entry into the Environmental Studies major requires the signature of a second departmental faculty member on the plan of study. ENVS Phase II applications are accepted at central Huxley College office in the fall, winter, and spring quarters.

3. Changes to your major, plan of study, or requests for a change of advisor during Phase II require completing a new declaration card.

If you have any questions, please contact an undergraduate advisor at the central Huxley College office in Environmental Studies Building 539, or by phone 360-650-2817, or 360-650-3748.

Grade Requirements

A grade of C- or better is required for a student’s major or minor courses, and supporting courses for majors and minors.