This course examines the interrelated sustainability of the natural, built and social environments of the place in which we will live. While there is not yet a definitive definition of sustainability, we will look at some of the definitions used in recent scientific discussion and assess the sustainability of the place we will be living from those different perspectives as well as our own. A universal theme of sustainability is a triple bottom line, which recently is often is framed as people, planet and profit, or equity, ecology and economy. We will take field trips to see multiple major social, natural and built environments in the region where we live, some of which are the best and some of which are problematic from each of these perspectives. We will look at their functions and behaviors and used structured interview methods to identify our assessments of how and why these environments work as they do as well as to learn the assessments of people from the community about these same environments. Students will create simple electronic portfolios of their work, which we will share on the web, including digital photos; their own sketches and diagrams; descriptions of what they find in literature, history and personal visits; and discussions of the way natural, built and social environments relate. We will use the portfolio as the basis for discussions; as a place to structure and integrate multidisciplinary perspectives; as a student and faculty-initiated progress assessment, and as a place to integrate the visual, conceptual and emotional views of what we see and experience. We will use the portfolios to create significant thinking, reflection, writing and presentation experiences. From our perspective today, we will make special effort to assess the sustainability of these different environments from two and one hundred years ago and discuss how the current environments might be viewed a century from now.

Field trips will include visits to major sites in Madrid and as many as we can around Spain in order to look at elements of the natural, social and built environments. We will look at the these environments individually and as they relate to each other and the history of the country, and we will contrast them with others we know from around the world and across time.

Students will create simple electronic portfolios of their work, including digital photos; their own sketches and diagrams; descriptions of what they find in literature, art, history and personal visits; and discussions of the way the environments, their use and self-perception relate. We will use the portfolio as the basis for discussions; as a place to structure and integrate multidisciplinary perspectives; as a student and faculty-initiated progress assessment, and as a place to integrate the visual, conceptual and emotional views of what we see and experience. We will use the portfolios to create significant thinking, reflection, writing and presentation experiences.

Vamos a leer algunos de los materials en Engles y otras en espanol. Toda la tarea sera presentado y discutido en espanol.

last updated 21 October 2009