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NYC 103 freshmen test water quality at the River Project at Pier 40 on the Hudson River.

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Urban and Environmental Sustainability

Humans are rapidly urbanizing the planet, with half the Earth’s population already living in cities. At the same time, our thirst for natural resources is stronger than ever. Managing population expansion, urbanization, and resource demand in a sustainable manner will be humankind’s primary challenge in the decades to come. The major in Urban and Environmental Sustainability (UES) prepares students for careers finding sustainable solutions to environmental problems in a rapidly urbanizing world.

Urban Ecosystem freshman seminar 2017The UES program is holistic and interdisciplinary, requiring coursework in the natural and social sciences as well as the humanities. You will get to know faculty across the College. Your courses will take you all over NYC, using the city as a learning laboratory. With the UES degree, you will be equipped to work towards greater food security, biodiversity safeguards, climate resilience, and positive changes in how humans interact with our environment. This program produces environmentally literate graduates who can enter the workforce ready to tackle these critical issues.

Urban and Environmental Sustainability makes an ideal double major, as many of its course requirements can simultaneously satisfy general education requirements. We also offer a minor in Urban and Environmental Sustainability that can complement any degree program.

Faces of MMC

  • <span class="lw_profiles_image" style="float: left;"><span class="lw_item_thumb"><a href="/live/profiles/3041-gianna-oconnor-21"><img src="/live/image/gid/108/width/215/src_region/1043,422,2732,2112/21361_Gianna_OConnor.rev.1554146331.JPG" alt="Gianna O'Connor '21" class="lw_image" width="215"/></a></span></span><div class="lw_profiles_103 styled-link"><p> I intern at The New York League of Conservation Voters, a non-partisan statewide nonprofit organization that fights for clean air, clean water, renewable energy, and open space through various political organizations. It is truly an organization that intertwines environmental advocacy with political action.</p></div><div class="lw_profiles_name"><a href="/live/profiles/3041-gianna-oconnor-21">Gianna O’Connor ’21</a></div><div class="lw_profiles_104"><p> Class of 2021, Double Major in <a href="/departments/natural-sciences/urban-and-environmental-sustainability/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Urban & Environmental Sustainability</a> and <a href="/departments/politics-human-rights/the-major/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Politics & Human Rights</a></p></div>

Contact Us

For more information, please contact our UES Program Coordinator: