Skip to Main Content

Introduction to Environmental Science, 2015 edition

2017 and 2018 revisions of this textbook for Environmental Science 1000 are available

Chapter 1: Introduction to Environmental Science by Dr. Kailina Manoylov

Parts of this chapter have been modified from Open Stax textbooks:

Tom Theis and Jonathan Tomkin, Editors, Sustainability: A Comprehensive Foundation. OpenStax CNX. Jan 5, 2015 http://cnx.org/contents/1741effd-9cda-4b2b-a91e-003e6f587263@43.5.
 
OpenStax College, Concepts of Biology. OpenStax CNX. Jun 29, 2015 http://cnx.org/contents/b3c1e1d2-839c-42b0-a314-e119a8aafbdd@8.55.

Chapter 1 Outline

1.1 Environment and environmental science
1.2 Sustainability and Sustainable Development
1.3 The IPAT Equation
1.4 The Process of Science
1.5 The scientific method
1.6 Global perspective
1.7 Urbanization
1.8 The precautionary principle

Learning Outcomes

By the end of this chapter students should be able to:

  1. Define environment, ecosystems, and environmental sciences.
  2. Understand the interdisciplinary nature of environmental science.
  3. Define sustainability and sustainable development.
  4. Understand the complex relationship between natural and human systems.
  5. Understand scientific approach and begin to apply the scientific method.

Read the Chapter