Colorado State University
AC-4: Graduate Program

In a world facing increasing pressures to meet social, economic and environmental needs, business skills are required to influence and create real change. CSU’s College of Business Impact MBA provides the critical business skills needed to drive organizational change and create ventures that incorporate the triple bottom line of people, planet and profit. Implementing a triple bottom line in business plans can increase competitive advantages in reputation, efficiency and resiliency, and produce long-term financial returns. As organizations look to create sustainable solutions across every aspect of their business, the demand for professionals with the knowledge, skills and mindset to solve complex problems using a social, economic and environmental framework will continue to grow. Impact MBA is the degree for those seeking to use business to create a better world.

CSU’s innovative new graduate program in Ecosystem Sustainability enables students to develop core competencies in ecosystem science—the study of organisms and the environment—and apply that knowledge to address real-world issues. We help develop leaders in sustainability science: a new generation of practitioners able to address complex, integrated social and ecological problems, in collaborative partnerships with researchers, resource users and decision-makers. Graduates have the tools to understand complex scientific questions in sustainability, and the leadership and collaborative skills required to address current and future issues in sustainability. The program serves as a foundation for a wide range of careers, including academic and scholarly professions, and work in government agencies, non-governmental organizations, and corporate and entrepreneurial environments.

This program is designed to provide an interdisciplinary curriculum that combines courses in estimating and scheduling with the basics of civil engineering, business, management, communication skills, and the humanities. The focus is on integrating innovative management systems, computers and other technologies into the construction process. Faculty members in both departments pursue applied research opportunities by maintaining a close association with the needs of the regional, national, and global Architecture/Engineering/Construction industry. In pursuing this applied research, the faculty has identified three core research alliance areas that span research, teaching, and outreach activities and provide a common ground for interaction between faculty and students. As the demands of the industry change over time, these research alliance areas may evolve and additional areas may be established. Current research alliance areas are: Sustainability (e.g., energy-efficient buildings, sustainable development and construction, social sustainability, life cycle assessment) Transportation Infrastructure (e.g., asset management, traffic, and work-zone safety, transportation project management, asphalt and concrete paving) Productivity and Workforce Development (e.g., construction safety, construction leadership, construction pedagogy and training, construction productivity improvement)

https://green.colostate.edu/courses/

The Political Science Graduate Program is unique in its emphasis on the study of environmental politics and policy. Our Doctoral Program is now part of the Western Regional Graduate Program consortium. This is a program of the Western Interstate Commission on Higher Education and includes unique programs of high quality. As a result of membership students from the 14 member states (not including California) can pay in-state tuition while attending our program. We hope that this will make it easier for some of your students to attend our program. For more information please visit https://www.wiche.edu/state-highlights/colorado. Due to the unique focus on environmental politics and policy, the program welcomes and attracts M.A. and Ph.D. candidates from diverse academic backgrounds and careers who all share an interest in the political dimensions of environmental protection. Graduate level courses include: POLS 670 Politics of Environment and Sustainability POLS 692 Seminar in Environmental Policy POLS 709 Environmental Politics in the US POLS 729 Political Theory and the Environment POLS 739 International Environmental Politics POLS 749 Comparative Environmental Politics POLS 759 Environmental Policy and Administration

Increasing rates of poverty, landlessness, and declining health are co-occurring with rapid shifts in land use, land cover, loss of biodiversity, and global warming. These interconnected human/environmental changes represent a clear risk to the well being of individuals, communities, and societies now and in the future. Students learn about the human aspects of environmental issues such as human drivers of environmental change and the feedbacks on individuals and social systems and their institutions, past, present, and future. This is accomplished through material presented in classes, in research projects, theses and dissertation research, and joint work with faculty on professional papers.

Sustainability research focuses on the environmental, economic, and social impacts of construction projects during their life cycle. This research area also aims to understand better how current and future community’s infrastructure adapt and evolve into configurations that more resilient. (e.g., energy-efficient buildings, sustainable design and construction, LCA, renewable energy sources, historic preservation, social sustainability, net-zero and -positive buildings/communities).

https://green.colostate.edu/courses/

Document titled, Program List contains a complete inventory of sustainability-focused majors, minors, specializations, and certificates at both the graduate and undergraduate level. Total of 27 undergraduate majors, 60 graduate programs, 18 minors and 11 certificates that are sustainability-focused programs.