CRSN - Carson College

Teaches foundational concepts for intellectual exploration and personal development within an academic community: analysis, critical thinking, metacognition, engagement with others across difference, and self-efficacy. Engages students in Rachel Carson's intellectual tradition of investigating relationships between environment and society.

Orientation to and exploration of the nature of the liberal arts, and of learning at research universities. Topics include: academic planning for upper-division coursework; enrollment processes; and understanding pathways to degree completion; UCSC resources that support health and well-being strategies for academic success; the cultivation of just communities; the prevention of sexual harassment and violence; campus conduct policies; awareness of risks associated with drug and/or alcohol use; and an introduction to traditions of community-engaged learning, ground-breaking research, and interdisciplinary thinking that define a UC Santa Cruz degree. This course can be taken for Pass/No Pass grading only.

An interactive course providing students with the opportunity to assess and revise methods of and purposes in studying. Critical, effective approaches to reading, writing, participating in lectures and sections, taking exams, balancing competing responsibilities, and utilizing campus resources are all explored. Enrollment by permission of college adviser.

Lower-division introduction to the sustainabilities and social justice minor. Students grapple with the complex and interconnected challenges of the climate crisis, settler colonialism, and racial capitalism as theoretical lenses to explore the different ways “sustainability” as a term is taken up and used in different contexts for different goals.

Introduces tips and techniques to supplement and expand a student's existing repertoire of science/mathematics problem-solving skills for science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) classes. The material covered is intended to aid development as a confident learner and future expert in the student's major.

Introduces tips and techniques to supplement and expand a student's existing repertoire of science/mathematics problem-solving skills for science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) classes. The material covered is intended to aid development as a confident learner and future expert in the student's major.

Students consider the representation of the sea in selected texts, noting how it becomes the focal point for the fears, hopes, and prejudices of Western civilization. Students write critical papers and their own narratives.

Students understand their peers and themselves better through an exploration of issues that affect the daily life of college students. Topics include campus/student cultures, the academic system, and other critical issues. Overview of campus resources also provided.

Examines issues of oppression, privilege, and social justice within a global and environmental context through self-reflective and group work. May include an optional service-learning component requiring travel during spring break.

A case study of the 1970s-1990s UC Santa Cruz effort to restore a nearly extinct peregrine falcon population including reviews of the Endangered Species Act, falcon physiology, and the innovative conservation biology techniques that led to success.

Develop practical skills and knowledge in naturalist observation. Acquire an overview of the field of natural history, particularly applied to the UCSC campus. Document an evolving and multidimensional personal experience of natural spaces, including, but not limited to, wilderness. (Formerly KRSG 3.)

Overview of theories of student development, critical student issues, and skills needed for appropriate peer leadership interventions. Utilizes a variety of learning modes including readings, discussions, case studies, lectures, and group projects. Interview only: approval of instructor; Resident Assistant (RA) pre-employment training course.

Discussion-based seminar where students read works by two key figures in science fiction: Octavia Butler. Ursula K. LeGuin. Students reflect on the social commentary and speculative futures these books offer in a time of global climate change; the impact of these authors on science fiction and environmental thinking; the unique power and possibilities of science fiction genre itself; and how to cultivate a lasting reading practice based on pleasure, not obligation. Emphasis is placed on developing skills and practices of collaborative reading and reflection. To promote reading deeply and mindfully, all texts are read in hard copy, provided at no cost to students. (Disability Resource Center digital accommodations will be provided as needed.) (Formerly Kresge College 12, Reading Science Fiction: Octavia Butler and Ursula LeGuin.)

Introduces service-learning theory and practice for students engaging in service-learning work in the college, college-related projects, community service organizations, or public agencies.

Students develop and work on media projects related to the college theme of Environment and Society in film, on television, in print, and on the Internet. Students work in groups with specific instructors and project leaders. Enrollment by application and instructor consent.

Students explore how to find active hope and agency within the evolving climate crisis. Through classroom discussions, journal reflections, interactive workshops, and guest speakers, students actively engage in collaborative learning around climate justice movements with a focus on the intersectionality of race, gender, class, and more. (Formerly Education for Sustainable Living Program.)

Introduces key technological solutions to environmental problems; discusses their underlying principles; and examines their societal dimensions. Topics include: conventional and renewable energy; emerging technologies for transportation, energy efficiency clean water; planetary engineering; and lean manufacturing.

Students write about and discuss a variety of films and articles about environment and society. Topics may include water, food systems, wilderness, wildlife, pollution, global warming, nuclear energy, conservation, and environmental activism.

Learn sustainable, ecologically sound horticulture, permaculture, and small-scale organic agricultural practices through hands-on gardening experience. This outdoor interdisciplinary course operates within a food justice framework. (Formerly Rachel Carson College Garden Internship.)

Individual study for lower-division students directed by a faculty member affiliated with the college. Students submit petition to sponsoring agency.

What is the role of writing in the environmental justice movement? What is the role of art and narrative during times of global change? In this interdisciplinary creative nonfiction course, students explore the expansive and exciting genre of creative nonfiction. This course is structured as a writing workshop class, which means our central activity throughout the quarter will be writing nonfiction essays and sharing them with the class in a generative, community-oriented setting. No previous creative nonfiction writing experience is necessary, just a willingness to explore writing, take risks, and attend to the work of others with care.

Examines environmental justice movements across the hemispheric Americas, with a focus on how power, inequality, and resistance shape struggles over land, water, and sustainability. Case studies show how Indigenous peoples, rural communities, and grassroots organizations confront extractivism, privatization, state violence, and unsustainable development. Students engage with concepts of sovereignty, migration, sustainability, and more-than-human relations, while reflecting on their own positionalities.

Advanced practicum for the application of skills and theoretical knowledge studied in course 28. Uses many learning modes including readings, discussions, case studies, lectures, and group projects. Prerequisite(s): CRSN 28. Enrollment by permission of instructor.

Introduces the concepts, methods, practices, and tools of the trade for conceptualizing and conducting research in sustainability praxis in the built and natural environment, and the quantitative and analytical tools required to conduct such analysis and research.

Teaches how to become innovators and entrepreneurs, develop projects and enterprises, and adopt professional practices. Focuses on sustainability for students in Sustainability Studies, especially in connection with students' research and interests.

Introduces the concepts, skills, and strategies fundamental to the successful development of sustainability-related projects appropriate to the Sustainability Lab. Provides access to functional and living laboratory space, equipment, professional development, and technical training.

Introduces the concepts, skills, and strategies fundamental to the successful development of sustainability-related projects in the field, for community and ecosystem development. Provides technical and professional training in quantitative and qualitative methods for data accumulation using laboratory and field equipment for resource assessment, data analysis, and efficiency in water and energy systems.

Course designed to enhance students' skills, practice and implementation of a variety of sustainability strategies. The course meets in a variety of on- and off-campus community settings including schools, private residences, and community organizations. Topics vary each quarter and may include sustainable design, water harvesting, local resource management, soil science, and mycology. (Formerly IDEASS Laboratory Practicum.)

For students undertaking sustainability-oriented service-learning work in the college (college-related projects, community service organizations, or public agencies). Students are supervised by the instructor and project supervisor, and determine the content of their internship with the instructor and supervisor.

Centered around an internship, students learn how to use design thinking and lean innovation tools to research global sustainability problems, design innovative solutions, prototype and test them, and launch them in the real world. These tools will help students initiate and develop sustainability innovation projects in companies, non-profit organizations, startups, government, and more, with the intention to make a positive impact on people and the environment. This course fulfills a requirement for the sustainability minor, and is also open to any students from other minors and majors.

Prepares students to facilitate working groups for Sustainable Living (courses 61/161) during the spring quarter. The skills acquired during this course include: facilitation skills; problem-solving; syllabus planning; curriculum building; experiential learning techniques; leadership skills; cultural competence; and non-violent communication training. Enrollment by interview only. Enrollment restricted to sophomores, juniors, and seniors.

Analyzes sustainability and its application in daily life and on campus, involving collaboration between students, faculty, staff, administration, and the community. Guest lecturers, discussions, an optional UC-wide retreat, and essays allow engagement with aspects of ecological and social sustainability.

Introduces students to sustainable practices and state, local, and UC-wide policies through projects. Matches students with UCSC staff partners to work collaboratively on projects that integrate sustainability into aspects of campus operations. Supports students to develop the competencies necessary to become effective environmental professionals through learning models including hands-on work experience; professional skills training; guest lectures; reading, and discussion; and peer-to-peer advising. In addition to project deliverables, students complete and present a portfolio of their work upon completion of their project. Enrollment limited to Sustainability Office Interns and by instructor permission; an interview, resume, and cover letter are required.

Provides for individual programs of study sponsored by the college and performed off campus. Must be sponsored by college faculty. Approval of the student's adviser and the academic preceptor is needed to enroll. May be repeated three times for credit. Students submit petition to sponsoring agency.

Individual study for upper-division students directed by a faculty member affiliated with the college. Students submit petition to sponsoring agency.