Make your education transformative and build hope for the future through sustainability-led classes, activities, and experiences!
Be a part of 赌钱app可以微信提现’s commitment to sustainability with the Sustainability Distinction Program. This ground-breaking curriculum expands your knowledge of sustainable practices, helping you develop the knowledge and skillset to work towards solutions to local and global problems.
Study aspects of ecological health, economic prosperity, and social equity—and connect each perspective to your interests and career path.
Benefits of the Sustainability Distinction Program:
- Enhance your 赌钱app可以微信提现 transcript with the “Sustainability” recognition
- Add an academic focus on sustainability to your resume—which enhances your career prospects in any field!
- Improve your critical thinking ability and learn to understand local and global sustainability connections through the framework of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals
- Complete this program in conjunction with your degree requirements (as the courses overlap)
- Join a cohort of like-minded peers to gain networking and professional learning opportunities
- Receive a Sustainability Distinction Program cord for your graduation attire
To complete the Sustainability Distinction Program, you are required to fulfill all four areas: Academic Courses, Activities, Cohort Meetings, and Capstone Questions.
To be eligible for the Sustainability Distinction Program, you must:
- Apply for admission to this program
- Have a cumulative GPA of 2.5*
- Maintain a 2.5 GPA for all academic courses you complete in the program, which includes transfer courses
*You need a cumulative GPA of 2.5 to be admitted into the program. If no college courses have been taken, then a high school GPA of 2.5 or higher will be accepted.
You must apply at the beginning of the fall or spring semester. You will be notified when you have been accepted into the program.
Courses completed before admission to the program (including study away) may apply towards the program requirements, but no credit for participation in events will be given for activities or cohort meetings attended prior to program acceptance. You may transfer in up to 9 of the 12 credits needed in the Sustainability Distinction Program.
Apply to the Sustainability Distinction Program
The Spring 2025 application deadline is Tuesday, January 28. There will be two cohort meetings in the spring, with the first Wednesday, February 5, from 2 – 3 p.m. The second meeting is at the end of April and will be scheduled around cohort member availability.
赌钱app可以微信提现’s Center for Sustainability, located in CSB 165, coordinates the Sustainability Distinction Program. For more information, please contact the program advisor, Dr. Rachael Rost-Allen, Sustainability Education and Engagement Coordinator, at sustainability@js-ayds.com or 913-469-8500, ext. 2883.
Expand your sustainability mindset with these select courses!
Requirements
You must take 12 credits of sustainability-related courses to complete the academic course requirements of the Sustainability Distinction Program. This is broken down into four categories and you must take 3 credits per category.
A sustainability-related course critically analyzes and engages with complex, interdependent systems, such as ecological, social, cultural, economic, and political systems, and their impact on local and global scales. Through sustainability learning, you should:
- Become an informed, open-minded, and responsible citizen who seeks to solutions to the world’s wicked problems on individual and societal levels
- Understand how to be a responsible steward of the environment
- Address social and/or cultural inequities and work to overcome them on local and global scales
- Gain an understanding of how economic and/or political systems interact with and impact on social and/or environmental systems
Courses completed before admission to the program (including study away) may apply towards the program requirements. You may transfer in up to 9 of the 12 credits needed in the Sustainability Distinction Program. If transferring in credits, you must still meet the requirement of taking 3 credits per category.
Students enrolled in the Sustainability Distinction Program may also petition, on an individual basis, to have up to 3 credits not on this list count towards their 12 credits needed to complete the Sustainability Distinction Program.
List of Courses
Category 1: Foundational Sustainability Course
EVRN 134 - Principles of Sustainability (3 credits)
Category 2: Ecological Sustainability Course
Students will choose 3 credits from the following course options:
ENGL 214 - Environmental Literature (3 credits)
EVRN 115 - Natural History of Kansas (3 credits)
EVRN 124 - Oceanus: Essentials of Oceanography (3 credits)
EVRN 130 - Environmental Science (3 credits)
EVRN 130 - Environmental Science: Honors (3 credits)
EVRN/PHIL 155 - Bioethics (3 credits)
EVRN 255 - Freshwater Ecology (4 credits)
PHIL 128 - Environmental Ethics (3 credits)
PHIL 130 - Food Ethics (3 credits)
SAG 245 - Principles of Sustainable Market Farming (3 credits)
Category 3: Economic/Political Course
Students will choose 3 credits from the following course options:
BUS 235 - Introduction to International Business (3 credits)
ECON 132 - Survey of Economics (3 credits)
ECON 230 - Principles of Macroeconomics (3 credits)*
ECON 230 - Principles of Macroeconomics: Honors (3 credits)*
ECON 231 - Principles of Microeconomics (3 credits)
ECON 231 - Principles of Microeconomics: Honors (3 credits)
GEOS 145 - World Regional Geography (3 credits)*
PHIL 140 - Business Ethics (3 credits)
POLS 135 - International Relations (3 credits)*
POLS 175 - Environmental Policy and Law (3 credits)
POLS 200 - Model UN (3 credits)*
POLS 220 - Introduction to Public Policy (3 credits)
SAG 250 - Sustainable Food Systems (3 credits)
Category 4: Social/Cultural Course
Students will choose 3 credits from the following course options:
ANTH 125 - Cultural Anthropology (3 credits)*
ANTH 130 - World Cultures (3 credits)*
ANTH 220 - Food and Society (3 credits)
COMS 120 - Interpersonal Communication (3 credits)
COMS 180 - Intercultural Communication (3 credits)*
GEOS 155 - Human Geography (3 credits)
GIST 101 - Study Abroad Reflections (1-3 credits)*
GIST 250 - Introduction to Globalization (3 credits)*
ISAP 200 - Study Abroad (1-20 credits)
SAG 205 - Agroecology in the Americas (3 credits)
SOC 122 - Introduction to Sociology (3 credits)
SOC 122 - Introduction to Sociology: Honors (3 credits)
SOC 125 - Social Problems (3 credits)
SOC 125 - Social Problems: Honors (3 credits)
SOC 180 - Inequality and Diversity in the US (3 credits)
*Course option for the Global Awareness Program
These courses are meant to align with your degree requirements and can count towards both simultaneously. They can also align with courses in the Honors program and Global Awareness Program (GAP). Honors courses are denoted above, and GAP courses have an asterisk next to them.
Please see below for an example of how students can align their course requirements with the Sustainability Distinction Program list.
Example: Student A Pursuing an AA in Liberal Arts
| Course Number | Course Name | AA Requirement Met | Sustainability Distinction Met |
|---|---|---|---|
| COMS 180 | Intercultural Communication | Arts and Humanities Credit | Social/Cultural Option |
| EVRN 130 | Environmental Science | Natural/Physical Science Credit | Ecological Option |
| ECON 132 | Survey of Economics | Social and Behavioral Sciences Credit | Economic/Political Option |
| EVRN 134 | Principles of Sustainability | Cavalier Credit | Sustainability Course |
| Total | - | 12 Credits to AA | 12 Credits to Sustainability Distinction |
Example: Student B Pursuing an Associate of Applied Science in Business
| Course Number | Course Name | AAS Requirement Met | Sustainability Distinction Met |
|---|---|---|---|
| ENGL 214 | Environmental Literature | Humanities Credit | Ecological Option |
| BUS 235 | Introduction to International Business | Specific Degree Requirement | Economic/Political Option |
| EVRN 134 | Principles of Sustainability | Mathematics and Sciences Credit | Sustainability Course |
| COMS 120 | Interpersonal Communication | Communications Elective | Social/Cultural Option |
| Total | - | 12 Credits to AAS | 12 Credits to Sustainability Distinction |
Participate in sustainability-related activities and events of your choice!
To satisfy this component, you need to participate in three additional activities that have a sustainability focus and have been approved by the Center for Sustainability. You must complete one activity per pillar of sustainability:
- One activity regarding environmental preservation
- One activity regarding economic prosperity
- One activity regarding social equity
One of the three activities can be done virtually, while at least two activities must be done in-person. Examples of activities include attending a webinar or conference, volunteering or completing a service learning opportunity, conducting and sharing student research (not counted as course credit), and participating in cultural event days. No credit will be given for participation in activities attended prior to acceptance into the Sustainability Distinction Program.
Approved 赌钱app可以微信提现 activities will be listed one semester at a time in Canvas. You may also attend your own activities, outside of 赌钱app可以微信提现 activities/events, as well. These must be approved by the Center for Sustainability staff via email at least one week prior to the event. No single activity can count for more than one pillar of sustainability. These activities may be spread out over the entire time you are enrolled in the Sustainability Distinction Program. You are strongly encouraged to participate in activities outside of your ethnicity, nationality, or cultural background.
Join a cohort of like-minded peers who are interested in integrating sustainability into their academic, professional, and/or personal lives!
赌钱app可以微信提现’s Center for Sustainability will host cohort meetings for the Sustainability Distinction Program participants two times per semester. Most meetings will be in-person at 赌钱app可以微信提现; however, some meetings may be virtual. Cohort meetings may include networking opportunities, guest speakers, games, discussions on transfer opportunities to other colleges, and field trips. To complete the requirements of the Sustainability Distinction Program, you must attend four cohort meetings and be present the whole time.
There will be 4 cohort meetings in spring and 1-2 meetings in summer to accommodate spring and summer 2025 graduates completing this program.
At the final cohort meeting, you must present a 4-6 minute capstone presentation on your experience in the Sustainability Distinction Program. This presentation will include a reflection on the courses and activities chosen for the Sustainability Distinction Program, your favorite cohort meeting/activity, a description of your experience in the program centered around a theme, and concluding remarks on how this program will be valuable to your future.
Reflect on your transformative experiences through the Sustainability Distinction Program!
In order to complete the program, you need to complete and submit Capstone Reflections Questions. Submission of the answers to these reflection questions and the Application for the Completion of the Sustainability Distinction Program function as the application to complete the program.
In order to apply for completion in advance of graduation, all requirements of the Sustainability Distinction Program are required to be submitted by April 30 for spring graduation and November 30 for winter graduation each year. The Center for Sustainability will review all documents regarding the applicant’s request for transcribing their Sustainability Distinction Program completion.