Environmental Studies
Academic Contributors
Md Shafi Noor Islam (Programme Leader)
Gabriel Yong (Coordinator)
Shirley Chin Wee Lee
Khairunnisa Haji Ibrahim
Dk. Noor Hasharina bte Pg. Haji Hassan
Description
There is growing awareness of interdependence between our
human society and the natural environment that surrounds us. We cannot live
without the resources that our environment provides us, such as the air we
breathe, the water we drink and the food that we eat. However, increasingly, our
activities are seen to be harming the very environment that supports us. Through
our actions we are reducing the capacity of the environment to provide us with
our needs in order to exist on this planet. Given that we live in an
increasingly more densely populated, resource-hungry world, the challenge that
faces us today is to learn how to manage the environment so that it will
continue to sustain us in the future.
This course follows the philosophy that an
ideal environment operates in a natural, self-sustaining way. However, there is
increasing evidence that through our actions some environments are not able to
do so which, in turn, can impact on our lives. Through careful
study of how natural environments operate we can learn how to reduce the
environmental pressures caused by our actions.
While all students taking this major will take the same two core modules in the first year and a single core module in the second year, there is a
great deal of choice during the remaining study period. The remaining modules in this major fall into three different broad themes, reflecting the teaching strengths of the academic staff members. Students may follow one of these themes or opt to select across the full range of modules. These themes are:
The physical environment
This examines the environment as a natural system, looking at processes that shape and form the land and coastal regions. Whilst this strand will be grounded in theory, a great deal of the study will take place in the field to gain first-hand experience of how natural systems operate and how human activities can alter the behaviour of these systems.
Spatial techniques in environmental studies
This theme examines how the environment can be studied from a spatial perspective. A number of techniques will be covered, including land surveying, satellite imagery and geographical information systems (GIS), which can then be applied to examine a range of environments at different scales. A great deal of the study in this theme will be practically-based.
Human-environmental interactions
This theme looks at how society treats and interacts with the environment. This covers ideas such as ethics, philosophy, law and cultural values. It allows students to explore how our perceptions and beliefs modify our actions and is of fundamental importance in understanding why we consider the environment the way we do.
You may specialise in one of these
strands or, if you wish, follow a broader ranging programme in
environmental studies encompassing parts of all three.
As with all GenNext degrees, this undergraduate programme is
designed so that you have a broad understanding of the subject area
(depth) along with a wide variety of other modules from other programmes (breadth) that
together will give you a well-rounded degree.
A blog of interesting material relating to the Environmental Studies, Geography & Development and Tourism programmes is available at http://geoenvibrunei.blogspot.com/.
Level 1000 - Foundation Year
AV-1201 Introduction to Environments & Environmental Issues |
AV-1202 Environmental Systems |
SC-1401 Chemistry of the Environment |
Level 2000 - Establishment Year
Level 3000 - Discovery Year
AV-3301 Introduction to Remote Sensing |
AV-3302 Climate Change: Science |
AV-3303 Tropical Rainforest Environments |
AV-3304 Integrated Coastal Management |
AV-3305 Environmental Hazards II |
AV-3306 Environmental Data Acquisition |
AV-3307 Environmental and Sustainability Development Project (double coded with AD-3307) |
SP-3402 Energy, Environment and Society |
SP-3407 Introduction to Renewable Energy |