Environmental Studies at King's

• Choose a program that prepares you for one of the fastest growing employment sectors in Canada.
• Participate in a 13-week internship and apply coursework to real life situations as you prepare for future careers.
• Explore solutions to world-wide environmental challenges through social, ecological, economic, and spiritual avenues. Consider how social justice and environmental health are connected.
• Choose to study the environment from a natural science or arts and humanities perspective. Specialize in an area of environmental studies that you find most interesting.
• Think critically about how civilization impacts the environment and how humans can develop more restorative ways of living on the planet.

The ENVS program is known for its many field trips. There is no better way to learn about the environment than by spending time exploring it. Field trips provide opportunities for hands-on learning about the workings of geographical and biological systems, the relationship between humankind and the natural world, innovative solutions to social and environmental problems, and the dedicated work of people working in environmental careers. In addition to short day trips to the river valley and programs and initiatives around Edmonton, several classes feature overnight trips to national parks, natural resource sites, and unique geographical features around Alberta.

Regular field trips include:

• Local trips: River valley and ravine system (hikes, rafting, etc.); Edmonton Waste Water Treatment Plant; Edmonton Waste Management Centre; net-zero-energy church and social housing project; urban social justice walk.
• Fort McMurray: oil sands and pulp mill.
• Bow Valley: people and parks in Canmore and Banff.
• Jasper: physical geography of mountains and glaciers.
• Drumheller: physical geography of the badlands.
• Crowsnest Pass: ecology of plants, mammals, birds, and crops in the Porcupine Hills.
• Western Division of the Canadian Association of Geographers conference: students present research to fellow scholars from Alberta, British Columbia, and the northwestern USA.

After completing their third year, all Environmental Studies students participate in a 13-week summer internship. With support from instructors in the program and in conjunction with pre-internship job preparation seminars, students search for and secure a position in the environmental sector according to their areas of interest.

Students have held internships in a wide variety of positions in municipal, provincial, and federal government, small and large-scale industry, and non-governmental organizations. Interns put into practice the skills and knowledge they are learning within the program and gain valuable work experience. The job-searching skills students practice and the internship work experience greatly enhance job-readiness after graduation.

Available as a major

• 4-Year Bachelor of Arts
• 4-Year Bachelor of Science