Students in river

Set the pace for sustainability

Enabling students to apply their knowledge of the environment, global issues and geography is key to paving a path toward global impact.
Dr. Benjamin Ofori-Amoah, founding director

Create solutions in and out of the classroom

Create a healthier planet at one of the first environmental studies programs in the country. Students like you keep our tradition of academic excellence and critical research alive at the School of Environment, Geography, and Sustainability.

This interdisciplinary school exposes you to areas of conservation, law, business, communication, the arts and beyond. When you pursue a degree with us, you will find meaning, purpose and drive both inside and outside the classroom. Our faculty and advisors will be here to help guide your research and shape your career path. Let's break ground together.

Programs that target your interests

Career outcomes

We'll give you a deep understanding of resiliency, adaptability and sustainability to promote and apply in your future profession. Students who have graduated from our programs at Western have gone on to build professional careers as:

  • Directors of nonprofit organizations
  • Directors of governmental agencies
  • Consultants
  • Field technicians
  • Laboratory technicians

The organizations they work for include:

  • U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
  • U.S. Forest Service
  • Pierce Cedar Creek Institute
  • SET Environmental
  • Van Buren Conservation District
  • Wolf Lake State Fish Hatchery
  • MI Department of Transportation
  • City of Kalamazoo
  • Wightman and Associates
  • Bureau of Land Management
  • Wildcare Foundation (Oklahoma)
  • Kalamazoo Nature Center

What you gain from our programs

As a student at the School of Environment, Geography, and Sustainability, you will be bold, curious and creative citizens and stewards who seek just and sustainable solutions to society’s pressing environmental and sustainability issues.

You will acquire essential interdisciplinary knowledge about global environmental and sustainability issues in the following realms:

  • Environmental sciences and humanities: Explore cultural forces that affect resource use and social systems. Get hands-on field and lab experience and connect concepts of ecosystem studies to a changing climate.
  • Social sciences: Examine social, economic and political systems that determine human-ecological interactions.
  • Experience-driven learning: Apply knowledge and skills to real-life issues, including the application of geospatial technologies.

 

Resources and experiences

Project community garden on WMU's campus.

 

Take full advantage of your Western education with the School of Environment, Geography, and Sustainability's resources, including career advice, professional development and events to connect with other students.

Internship, fellowship and study abroad opportunities