The Certificate in Wicked Environmental Problems is designed to let students confront "wicked problems" that emerge from the intersection of the environment and human affairs. Wicked problems are stubborn and intractable, and they are difficult to solve for many reasons: incomplete or contradictory information; values conflicts among stakeholders; multiple constraints in different spheres (political, economic, environmental); incompatible framing of both solutions and problems; connections to other problems. Wicked problems abound in natural resources and environmental sciences -- from climate change, to pollution, to environmental justice, and invasive species.
This certificate highlights NRES classes that specifically center these wicked problems, and it allows students from across the University to bring their own individual and disciplinary knowledge to bear on these problems. It is open to students of all majors.
This combination of courses, along with the courses that students select in their major course of study, will give students a unique perspective on some of the most pressing environmental challenges that confront humanity, and it will allow them to reflect on the complexity and multi-dimensional nature of potential solutions to these problems. With a combination of spring and fall course offerings, and a selection of both in-person on online classes to choose from, the Certificate in Wicked Problems in NRES is a flexible course of study that can be completed with as little as 9 credit hours. Successful completion of this certificate will help students become better problem-solvers as they embark upon their future careers.
