Environmental Studies

“Four tropical storms in one month.” “Drought in the Midwest.” “Invasive species on the rise.” These captions from a major newspaper indicate that environmental issues are very much in the press. Wherever we look, concerns about weather patterns and waste removal, air pollution and water allocation, acid rain and global warming, are seemingly everywhere. Indeed, recent opinion polls in the United States show that environmental issues rank high on our collective consciousness. There appears to be a heavy sense that ecological degradations are very real and getting worse.

What really is going on in the world? What does the best science tell us? How have social and political and economic forces contributed to the problems? And how are they contributing to workable solutions? What role has religion played in the environmental problems and debates of yesterday and today? What can and what should we do? The Environmental Studies program at Hope College is designed to allow you to explore these and other pressing questions at the heart of these important issues.

So if you would like to increase your understanding of how the world as a bio-physical system works and to sharpen your awareness of the earth's vital signs, this program is for you. If you would like to expand your knowledge of the various historical, political, economic, ethical, and religious forces that have shaped our world, this program is for you. If you would like to develop an ecological frame of mind able and willing to see things whole, beyond the bodies of knowledge found in traditional academic disciplines, this program is for you. If you would like to cultivate the knowledge, care, and practical competence necessary to live in an ecologically responsible way, this program is for you. If you would like a chance to explore the connections between environmental issues and different religious traditions, this program is for you.

The multidisciplinary faculty brings a wealth of expertise and a common passion to this program. All are first-rate researchers, with numerous scholarly articles and academic books to their credit, as well as very fine teachers. Above all they share a desire to help you learn and grow and flourish. You are invited to join us in this exciting course of study—classes in biology and geology, economics and history, literature and religion. Put your hard-earned knowledge to work to make this world and your own neck of the woods a better place.