Sustainability efforts have been part of University of Minnesota programming for many years. Academically, the University has shown great strength in programs focusing on the environment. In 1967, the College of Biological Sciences established the Department of Ecology and Behavioral Biology (later the Department of Ecology, Evolution and Biological Behavior), which included groundbreaking research such as David Tilman’s work at Cedar Creek Natural History Area on the impact of biodiversity on grassland productivity and Eville Gorham’s work on the impact of acid rain on lakes and streams.1
Over time, sustainability has become a touchstone in many areas of the University of Minnesota. The College of Architecture and Landscape Architecture (CALA), the College of Agriculture, Food, and Environmental Science (COAFES), the College of Biological Sciences (CBS), the College of Human Ecology (CHE), the College of Liberal Arts (CLA), and the College of Natural Resources (CNR) all have courses, research, and programming related to sustainability efforts, as do several departments within the University’s Academic Health Center (AHC).
Several departments and graduate programs are highly ranked (top fifteen) at the national level by the National Research Council, including Evolution, Ecology, and Behavior (CBS)2, Geography3, and the School of Public Health4. Institutionally, successful interdisciplinary graduate programs such as Conservation Biology and Water Resources Sciences reflect the benefits gained when disparate environmental approaches are integrated across campus. Interdisciplinary centers also assemble faculty from diverse programs to engage in research, teaching, and outreach. Examples include the Institute for Social, Economic, and Ecological Sustainability, the Water Resources Center, the Environmental Resources Spatial Analysis Center, and the Natural Resources Research Institute.
In 2002, the Commission on Environmental Science and Policy produced a report that became the basis for creating a University-wide Sustainability Policy. Led by Dr. Alfred D. Sullivan, former dean of the College of Natural Resources and now executive associate vice president, a team of deans, key research faculty, and staff explored the vital academic resources available for addressing issues of sustainability.
Information above from:
1Lehmberg, Stanford and Ann Pflaum. The University of Minnesota, 1945-2000. Regents of the University of Minnesota, 2001.
2Research-Doctorate Programs in the U.S, National Research Council, 1995.
3Research-Doctorate Programs in the U.S, National Research Council, 1995.
4America’s Best Graduate Schools 2005., US News and World Report, April 2004 |
