2026-2027 Catalog

Introduces new Environmental Science & Policy graduate students to program requirements, expectations, resources, and faculty members.
P: graduate status
Fall and Spring.

The primary objective of this seminar is to provide a forum for discussing current ideas and issues in environmental science, environmental policy, ecology, evolutionary biology, environmental education and other topics related to the graduate program. The course also provides an opportunity for students and faculty to interact in an informal environment. The overall goal is to help students become more comfortable in the ability to articulate and express opinions and ideas about current scientific topics. Course is repeatable for credit; may be taken 3 times for a total of 3 earned credits.
Fall and Spring.

This course addresses our current scientific understanding of ecosystems, and the application of this knowledge for the sustainable management of both human dominated and natural ecosystems and the biodiversity that they support.
P: gr st.
Spring Even.

Community and landscape ecology move beyond the consideration of single species and their populations, emphasizing interactions among species and variation in space and time. Concepts and methods will be studied through lectures, readings, discussions, and practical analytical applications.
P: gr st; REC: prior cse in ecological studies and statistics.
Spring Odd.

This course will cover the history of Environmental Law in the United States, from the early days of patchwork regulation and common law, through the modern era of Federal Statutes, Administrative agency oversight, and landmark Supreme Court Cases. By reading court cases, statutes, agency regulations, industry guidelines, and scientific research, students will learn how environmental law has reshaped the natural environment in Wisconsin and the rest of the US.
P: Graduate standing
Fall Even.

Capstone course of the program in Environmental Science and Policy. This course provides an overview of contemporary topics in global environmental change from the local to global scale, with emphasis placed on scientific evidence, policy approaches, public attitudes, and sustainable solutions. Both policy and scientific aspects of the topics are addressed.
P: major in Ms Env Sci and grad earned cr > or = 17.
Spring.

P: gr st.

Topics vary.
P: graduate status.

Field Experience in Environmental Science & Policy.
FSS.

P: gr st.
Fall and Spring.

P: gr st and thesis proposal on file.
Fall and Spring.

This course emphasizes the principles of data analysis using advanced statistical software (such as R, SAS, etc.). It employs primarily environmental examples to illustrate procedures for elementary statistical analysis, regression, analysis of variance and nonparametric statistics.
P: intro stats cse and grad st.
Fall Only.

Stable isotope analysis has become a standard tool in the sciences. The natural variability in non-radioactive (stable) isotopes corresponds to specific physical and biological processes throughout the global Earth System. This course explores the basics of stable isotope chemistry, with most of the course dedicated to examples of their application across several scientific fields.
P: None. REC: CHEM 211 and CHEM 212
Spring Odd.

This course maps the legal and policy architecture that governs Great Lakes fish and wildlife—from the 1909 Boundary Waters Treaty to the 2012 revision of the Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement; from the 1954 Convention on Great Lakes Fisheries (and the sea lamprey program it launched) to the Great Lakes–St. Lawrence River Basin Water Resources Compact; from federal funding mechanisms for fisheries and wildlife to tribal treaty rights and co-management. We focus relentlessly on translation: how these instruments shape what agencies and tribes do on the water and on the ground.
Fall Odd.

Humanity is dependent on energy to thrive in the modern world; however, "Green Energy" technologies require more critical minerals than traditional energy sources. This course explores the geology and geography of these minerals, their clean energy uses, and the environmental, political, and social consequences of their extraction. Students will read, evaluate, and discuss peer-review papers, government reports, and other relevant sources.
Spring Odd.

Radioactive isotopes play a significant role in many aspects of the natural and human environments. People are affected throughout their lives by natural and anthropogenic isotopes at local, national, and global scales. From radon in houses and radium in local drinking water supplies to fallout from Chernobyl, humans and the natural environment are directly impacted through health, economic, and technological pathways. We will discuss the science behind radioactivity and the issues that affect our society.
REC: high school chemistry or Earth science
Fall Even.

This seminar provides a deep dive into the world of the bryophytes—the non-vascular land plants—including mosses, liverworts, and hornworts. We will learn about and discuss topics such as bryophyte community ecology, peatland ecology and biogeochemical cycles, spatial and ecological diversity of bryophyte lineages, moss polyploidy and diversification, and Sphagnum (peatmoss) biogeography. The course will be a mix of readings, discussions, bryophyte walks on campus, and an introduction to bryophyte identification using microscopic characters.
P: Graduate standing
Spring.

Culminating Field Experience in Environmental Science & Policy.
P: Graduate Standing and Practicum proposal on file.
FSS.