Sustainability and Environmental Studies

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Think Critically. Act Responsibly. Lead for Change.

Grounded in critical thinking, social justice, and community engagement, Sustainability and Environmental Studies invites you to explore the complex relationships between human communities and the natural world.  

Whether you're passionate about climate justice, sustainable development, food systems, or global environmental politics, Sustainability and Environmental Studies will equip you with the knowledge and skills for careers that drive real-world impact toward a more just, resilient and sustainable future.

Program Highlights

• Flexibility to shape your area of focus on topics like food and energy systems, policy and politics, ethics and values, activism and social change, or community sustainability.
• Option to purse a major, minor, or honours.
• Opportunities for directed research, community-based projects, and field-based learning.
• Study abroad and internship opportunities.

Rooted in Place, Oriented to the World

The watershed of the Wolastoq – the beautiful and bountiful river –is the traditional and unceded homeland of the Wolastoqey people. From STU’s hilltop campus overlooking the Wolastoq, your studies connect you with Indigenous worldviews that shape relationships with the land and water, and the responsibilities we all share as dwellers in this place. Several Sustainability and Environmental Studies courses are are taught in the Aotiitj program in Elsipogtog First Nation.

As global citizens, Sustainability and Environmental Studies coursework and extra-curricular activities connect us to international processes and a global community of changemakers working towards a common goal of a socially just, ecologically resilient world.

Why Choose Sustainability and Environmental Studies? 

Interdisciplinary Learning: Blend insights from ecology, philosophy, policy and politics, economics, history, and Indigenous knowledge systems to analyze complex problems and derive solutions.

Experiential Learning: Engage in hands-on projects, field courses, community-based research, and internships that connect classroom learning with real-world impact.

Social Justice Focus: Our program centers social and ecological justice, recognizing that environmental degradation disproportionally impacts marginalized communities locally and globally, and that solutions arise from those communities.

What You’ll Learn

Students in the Sustainability and Environmental Studies program graduate with:

• The ability to connect environmental concerns with questions of ethics and human rights.
• The ability to analyze sustainability through ethical, cultural, economic, and scientific perspectives.
• Practical tools for sustainability assessment, community engagement, and sustainable development.
• Research, writing, and communication skills that transfer across careers and fields.
• Appreciation of the complexity of sustainability problems and solutions and recognition of your place within those complex relations.

Where the study of Sustainability and Environmental Studies Can Take You

Our graduates go on to make a difference in fields like:

• Entrepreneurship, social enterprise and sustainable business
• Renewable energy and sustainable food systems
• Climate change adaptation and mitigation
• Non-profit sector leadership and advocacy
• Public service - municipal, provincial, federal, international
• Policy research and urban planning
• Environmental law and journalism
• Communications and marketing
• Education and public health promotion
• Graduate studies in diverse fields

Featured Courses

• Understanding Environmental Problems
• Understanding Sustainability
• Food and Society
• Energy and Society
• UN Sustainable Development Goals: Critical Perspectives
• Climate Crisis: Society at a Crossroads
• Healthy Planet, Healthy People
• Pathways to Community Sustainability
• Communicating Sustainability
• Global Environmental Politics
• Canadian Environmental Law and Policy

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