BSc (Hons) Environmental Sustainability with Foundation Year

Course description

Pressure is increasing on industry and governments around the world to respond to the harmful outcomes of human activity, and rapidly develop innovative approaches to ensure the sustainable future of the environment. This course is designed to meet the growing demand for graduates skilled in shaping innovative solutions that have a positive impact on environmental and sustainability issues.

• This course will start in September 2021
• This is a future-focused course, specially built to equip you with the applied skills to help mitigate today’s environmental issues, and identify those which may emerge in the future
• This is a flexible course, enabling you to specialise in a specific area to suit your career ambitions, or study a range of inter-disciplinary topics for a broad knowledge-base
• You’ll graduate with the core skills in demand; our module content has been mapped against the needs and ambitions outlined in key initiatives like the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, the Convention on Biological Diversity, as well as national agendas such as the 25 Year Environment Plan, the Industrial Strategy and Bioenergy Strategy
• Learn from an expert teaching team of active researchers, investigating topics such as climate change, marine ecosystems, environmental degradation, ecosystem services, urban sustainability and biodiversity conservation
• We blend theory with plenty of practical experience. Examples include the ‘Environmental and Ethics Legislation’ module in your second year that includes a minimum of 30 hours work placement. In your final year, the ‘Business and Sustainability’ module includes a fieldtrip where you can experience current sustainability initiatives in charities, businesses and government
• In your final year, choose to complete an Independent Study (dissertation) or an Industrial Project, where you can work in industry on a live brief to help solve a real problem.

Environmental Sustainability at Derby

The impact of climate change and loss of biodiversity is disrupting our ecosystems, with experts predicting that we have just a few decades remaining before we pass the 1.5°C limit that could accelerate lasting harm to biodiversity, the economy and people, especially the poorest and most vulnerable communities. We know that change has to happen - this course prepares you to step up to the world’s most pressing environmental challenges.

On this course, you will explore major environmental threats including:

• Climate change: you’ll explore how anthropogenic greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions are contributing to the climate emergency and what needs to be done to halt and reverse the impacts
• Loss of biodiversity: you’ll explore the cause and effect of changes in biodiversity, how this impacts the sustainability of the planet and what needs to be done to conserve and enhance the natural world
• Sustainable living: you’ll also look at what makes a sustainable city and how sustainable cities and urban environments balance economic, social and physical progress with minimal risk to the environment
• Environmental degradation and human life: you’ll consider how the degradation of the Earth’s ecosystems is negatively impacting the wellbeing of billions of people, pushing the planet towards a sixth mass species extinction, and risking the economic sustainability and long term future of human societies.