Introduction to Sustainability System Science Classes

Fundamental principles of a systems-thinking approach in evaluating complex systems related to a bioeconomy, which includes continued use and reuse of materials, chemical, and energy derived from natural materials within both industrial and natural environments. Systems mindset and frameworks, methodologies, and tools to contribute to discussions on solving complex problems integrating interconnected social, economic, and environmental factors while considering ethics. Case study-based approach to analyze and assess the impacts of conventional and alternative solutions to real-world challenges.

Pathway Concept Area(s): 3 Reasoning in Social Sciences, 10 Ethical Reasoning

Instructional Contact Hours: (3 Lec, 3 Crd)

Concepts, principles, and frameworks to understand sustainable production and consumption systems. Critical exploration of the six “R’s”: Reduce, Reuse, Repair, Refurbish, Remanufacture, and Recycle. Circular economy models for technical and bio-based materials to enable sustainable design. Special emphasis on systems-thinking methods for evaluating alternative/circular system design for sustainable biomaterials. Elements of sustainable biomaterial products and business models that optimize material efficiency and value-retention. Current initiatives by industry and governments to implement sustainable production and consumption practices and policies around the world.

Instructional Contact Hours: (3 Lec, 3 Crd)

Macroscopic and microscopic structure and chemical composition of wood and other biomaterials such as grasses, bamboo, and bagasse. Relationships between anatomical structure and physical/mechanical behavior. Microscopic identification of commercially important biomaterials. Preparation and analysis of microscope slides and scanning electron micrographs.

Prerequisite(s): BIOL 1105 and CHEM 1035

Instructional Contact Hours: (2 Lec, 3 Lab, 3 Crd)

Concepts, principles, and framework to understand systems level interactions in linear (cradle-to-grave) and circular (cradle-to-cradle) processes. Problem solving application and practice utilizing computational tools and data analytics. Special emphasis on quantifying and evaluating life-cycle circularity of common products and processes used to meet societys demand. Evaluation of case study results towards the planning of more circular business models in a complex global economy. Risks and ethical issues associated with decision making and policy based on results from computational models. Pre: Precalculus with Transcendental Functions (3 credits)

Prerequisite(s): MATH 1014 or MATH 1025 or MATH 1225 or MATH 1524 or MATH 1535 or MATH 1525

Pathway Concept Area(s): 5A Quant & Comp Thnk Adv., 10 Ethical Reasoning

Instructional Contact Hours: (2 Lec, 3 Lab, 3 Crd)

Sustainability, raw materials and energy needs of society. Use of sustainable biomaterials to meet societys needs and reduce impact on the environment. Methods to evaluate and certify the sustainability of materials and consumer goods. Carbon sequestration and the use biomass for energy.

Instructional Contact Hours: (3 Lec, 3 Crd)

Principles of manufacturing sustainable biomaterials into primary and secondary products used in construction of buildings, houses and other structures; product demand and environmental impact; raw material quality and volume estimation; industry standards; manufacturing processes; and quality control methods.

Prerequisite(s): SBIO 2124

Instructional Contact Hours: (2 Lec, 3 Lab, 3 Crd)

Descriptive and inferential statistics in a biological context with real-world examples. In analytical contexts, develops problem-solving skills and ethical reasoning. 3615: Fundamental principles, one- and two-sample parametric inference, simple linear regression, frequency data. 3616: One- and two-way ANOVA, multiple regression, correlation, nonparametrics, using a computer package. STAT 3615 partially duplicates STAT 3005 and STAT 4604, only one may be taken for credit. STAT 3616 partially duplicates STAT 3006, 4604 and 4706, only one may be taken for credit.

Prerequisite(s): MATH 1225 or MATH 1025 or MATH 1524 or ISC 1105

Pathway Concept Area(s): 5A Quant & Comp Thnk Adv., 10 Ethical Reasoning

Instructional Contact Hours: (3 Lec, 3 Crd)

Descriptive and inferential statistics in a biological context with real-world examples. In analytical contexts, develops problem-solving skills and ethical reasoning. 3615: Fundamental principles, one- and two-sample parametric inference, simple linear regression, frequency data. 3616: One- and two-way ANOVA, multiple regression, correlation, nonparametrics, using a computer package. STAT 3615 partially duplicates STAT 3005 and STAT 4604, only one may be taken for credit. STAT 3616 partially duplicates STAT 3006, 4604 and 4706, only one may be taken for credit.

Prerequisite(s): STAT 3615

Instructional Contact Hours: (3 Lec, 3 Crd)

Data analytics, metrics, and tools essential for navigating sustainability standards, current policies, regulations, and reporting requirements, and their applications in sustainable investment. Explore innovations in sustainable investment strategies, emphasizing the integration of sustainability concepts and industrial ecology principles into business frameworks. Case studies approach to illustrate both successful and unsuccessful sustainability strategies across diverse contexts, such as energy sector, manufacturing, among other, providing insights into practical applications and outcomes.

Instructional Contact Hours: (3 Lec, 3 Crd)

Introduction to green engineering and global environmental issues. Impacts of human and engineering activities on the environment, and techniques that can be utilized to minimize adverse environmental impacts with emphasis on environmentally conscious design and manufacturing.

Instructional Contact Hours: (3 Lec, 3 Crd)

Quantification of the environmental impacts for products, processes, and systems across all engineering disciplines. A detailed look at life cycle phases and formal and informal Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) methodologies including ISO standards, stream-lined LCA, green building ratings systems, carbon footprints, and other environmental ratings systems.

Prerequisite(s): ENGR 3124

Instructional Contact Hours: (3 Lec, 3 Crd)

Social and ecological dynamics of human-environment systems. Effect of complex environmental problems on ecosystems and human well-being. Introduction to systems thinking. History, philosophy, and application of decision making in the field of natural resource management. Pre: Sophomore standing.

Instructional Contact Hours: (3 Lec, 3 Crd)

Foundational study and practice of sustainability and social issues in a business management context. Uses the emerging environmental, social, and governance (ESG) framework to explore the historical context of sustainability in business, influential ESG stakeholders, business commitments towards “net zero” status, business’ role in creating and mitigating environmental impact of greenhouse gas emissions (GHG’s), profitability of sustainable businesses, relevant government policy and regulation, ESG measurement and reporting, innovation and competitive advantage, sustainable supply chain management, sustainable business models, embedding sustainability into strategy, and how managers conceptualize and initiate ESG programming.

Pathway Concept Area(s): 3 Reasoning in Social Sciences, 10 Ethical Reasoning

Instructional Contact Hours: (3 Lec, 3 Crd)

Planning for green and sustainability values for profit and non-profit enterprises that produce and market nature-based products and services (e.g., wood products, wildlife, fish, ecotourism). Understanding current green business environments to foster natural resource-based enterprises.

Instructional Contact Hours: (3 Lec, 3 Crd)

Cultivate hands-on experience in defining the scope and system boundaries of life cycle assessment (LCA) to collect data for computational LCA work. Apply the step-by-step LCA methodology to real-world problems to develop a streamlined LCA impact assessment and interpret the results in simple language for discussions with stakeholders. Use feedback from stakeholder discussions to discover how to improve the LCA assessment process. Each class will concentrate on specific types of LCA applications, namely Social LCA, Economic LCA (e.g., Life Cycle Costing), or Environmental LCA (e.g., water or carbon footprinting). Students will have an opportunity to apply their LCA work across selected sectors such as manufacturing, transportation, agricultural and/or forestry, and energy. This course may be repeated two times with different content for a maximum of 3 credit hours.

Instructional Contact Hours: (1 Lec, 1 Crd)

Repeatability: up to 3 credit hours

Definition of green buildings with specific focus on wood frame single family housing and appropriate green building systems. Site specification, resource efficiency, water efficiency, indoor environmental quality, homeowner education and global impact. Certification in various green building systems.

Instructional Contact Hours: (3 Lec, 3 Crd)

Sustainable business management models of renewable-based materials organizations. Application of strategy deployment tools to sustainable bio business strategies. Analysis of financial statements of bio businesses using ratio analysis. Implementation of models and tools to analyze production systems based on cycle time, throughput, and inventory (factory dynamics). Simulation and optimization of manufacturing systems using probability function models. Statistical quality control charts for discrete and continuous variables.

Prerequisite(s): STAT 2004 or STAT 3615 or STAT 3005 or STAT 3604

Instructional Contact Hours: (3 Lec, 3 Crd)

Biomass utilization as an industrial resource. Biorefinery processes such as cultivation, harvesting, separation, and biomass processing into industrial products compared to the petroleum refinery. Routes to the production of bioenergy, biochemicals, and biofuels. Resource availability and energy consumption, environmental implications of a biorefinery system, public policy influence on development of biorefineries.

Instructional Contact Hours: (3 Lec, 3 Crd)

Computational and quantitative thinking applied to urban problems. Multiple data sources and tools for urban analysis. Application of computational and quantitative thinking in decision making and policy processes. Data cleaning, joining/merging, and summarizing. Evaluation of computational and quantitative thinking in urban planning and policy. Ethical and other issues related to computing, analysis and problem solving.

Pathway Concept Area(s): 5A Quant & Comp Thnk Adv., 10 Ethical Reasoning

Instructional Contact Hours: (3 Lec, 3 Crd)

Integrated study of philosophy, politics, and economics. Trains students to make decisions that are not only economically sound, but also socially, ethically, and politically informed. Core concepts, topics, and ideas include: models of human nature, rational choice theory, social cooperation, distributive justice, markets, and democracy. Pre: Sophomore standing.

Pathway Concept Area(s): 2 Critical Thinking Humanities, 3 Reasoning in Social Sciences, 10 Ethical Reasoning

Instructional Contact Hours: (3 Lec, 3 Crd)