Overview
The Bachelor of Environmental Studies (BES) degree program at Athabasca University (AU) supports you to design an interdisciplinary curriculum of study grounded in the liberal arts and focused on the environment that aligns with your goals in the environmental sector. This flexibility allows you, as an AU BES program student, to create a program of study that is uniquely tailored to your needs, interests, and passions. In this course, students are provided with a series of learning activities to help them identify and interrogate their intellectual passions and interests in the environmental sector. Students become familiar with the BES program regulations and are tasked with developing a program of study for the first 60 credits toward their BES degree. Following, students begin developing an e-portfolio to document their current knowledge, skills, and achievements related to the environment and chart the future direction of their studies.
Learning outcomes
On completion of the learning activities for ENVS 201, students will
- demonstrate familiarity with the BES program regulations;
- identify their passions and/or interests related to environmental studies;
- outline the major skills and knowledge required to secure a position in the environmental field that aligns with their passions and interests;
- develop a program of study for the first 60 credits of their BES degree and map the alignment of the courses with the BES program regulations;
- begin developing an e-portfolio pertinent to their BES degree; and
- apply feedback to improve their work.
Outline
ENVS 201 is divided into seven units:
Unit 0: Context for the Course
Unit 1: Your Bioregion
Unit 2: Environmental Challenges and Active Hope
Unit 3: Environmental Inspiration
Unit 4: Gaining Competencies to Realize Passions
Unit 5: Creating a BES Program Plan
Unit 6: Developing an E-Portfolio
Evaluation
To receive credit for ENVS 201, students must satisfactorily complete two tutor check-ins and the following six learning activities.
| Activity | Weight |
| Learning Activity 1: What defines the place where I live? | Pass/Fail |
| Learning Activity 2: What are the key environmental challenges facing society? | Pass/Fail |
| Learning Activity 3: What or who gives me inspiration and hope? | Pass/Fail |
| Learning Activity 4: What are my environmental passions and interests? | Pass/Fail |
| Tutor Check-In 1 | Pass/Fail |
| Learning Activity 5: What courses should I take to achieve my goals and realize my passions? | Pass/Fail |
| Learning Activity 6: Beginning a BES e-portfolio | Pass/Fail |
| Tutor Check-In 2 | Pass/Fail |
Materials
This course either does not have a course package or the textbooks are open-source material and available to students at no cost. This course has a Course Administration and Technology Fee, but students are not charged the Course Materials Fee.
All course materials are available online.
This course includes the use of an e-portfolio platform called PebblePad, where students will post their responses to some of the learning activities. This platform is external to Brightspace, and students are given instructions on how to access it.