Environmental Psychology and Urban Ecology

Environmental Psychology and Urban Ecology explores the dynamic relationship between humans and their environments, both natural and built. Students will investigate how our surroundings impact mental health, behavior, and well-being while also delving into the ecological challenges facing urban environments today. By combining the fields of environmental psychology and urban ecology, the course will foster a deeper understanding of how urban planning, environmental policy, and personal behavior can shape sustainable and healthy communities. This course will feature a variety of hands-on, project-based learning experiences, including independent fieldwork using the iNaturalist app for ecological observations, and gamified elements designed to make learning engaging and interactive.

To successfully complete this course, students will need access to a laptop or desktop computer with a reliable internet connection and a working webcam and microphone. This course may also require purchase of texts or other course materials.

This Fixed-Paced course incorporates a blend of synchronous and asynchronous elements. Students and teacher meet live via zoom on a regular weekly schedule. In addition, students complete coursework including guided readings, interactive videos, text and video-based discussion threads, problem sets, individual and collaborative projects, and so on. While these activities are time-flexible, teachers sequence them with weekly deadlines to help students keep on track and encourage and support the development of productive time management skills.

During the course orientation period, CLI asks students to complete a survey on their availability for live class meetings. Teachers set individual class meeting times based on student responses.