Environmental Studies

The course examines the diversity of major groups of living organisms, and the importance of maintaining diversity in natural ecosystems. Emphasis is on the need for conservation of biodiversity to maintain a balance of nature. The course highlights the biodiversity in the major habitats and vegetation types in and around Singapore. The course requires students to take the prerequisite of General Biology.

The course explores the interface of water resources management and sustainable development through the perspective of politics of water use and allocation. The course first examines different types of water and their uses and relevance to sustainable development. Secondly, the class examines politics of water use and allocation at the local, national, and international levels through issues of community irrigation, Integrated Water Resources Management and international transboundary river basin agreements. Particular focus is on the actors and institutions involved in water governance at these spatial scales. Thirdly, through discussions, group work, and poster presentations, students assess the policy responses to the problems of water resources management in developing country contexts.

Natural disasters are a part of everyday life and may cause significant economic, social, and emotional damage. Natural disasters include earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, tsunamis, meteorite impacts, floods, droughts, wildfires, hurricanes, landslides, and land subsidence. Many natural disasters act at scales so large that humans have no choice but to adapt or suffer the consequences. But in many others, it is mostly human (in)action and behavior before and after the event itself that determines the scale and scope of a disaster. This course connects several recent developments; the ongoing climate change, the increasing connections between economies which cause, for example, the next earthquake in Tokyo or California to have global repercussions, modern media showing the tsunami in Thailand real-time into our homes, refugee flows, and climate conflicts. The course is designed for bachelor students in economics, social sciences, physical geography, earth sciences, history, social geography, environmental sciences, and liberal arts and sciences.