Center for Energy and Environmental Studies

Interdisciplinary Program

The following list reflects the 2006/2007 faculty.

Director Robert Kaufmann

Executive Director T. R. Lakshmanan

Director of Graduate Studies 
Robert Kaufmann

Faculty Advisory Committee

William P. Anderson Professor of Geography and Environment; Center for Transportation Studies, College of Arts and Sciences. BA, MA, PhD, Boston University

Michael S. Baram Professor of Public Health, School of Public Health; Adjunct Professor of Law, School of Law. BS, Tufts University; LLB, Columbia University Law School

Lata Chatterjee Research Professor of Geography and Environment, College of Arts and Sciences; Professor of Urban Affairs, Metropolitan College. BA, MA, PhD, Calcutta University (India); PhD, Johns Hopkins University

Cutler J. Cleveland Professor of Geography and Environment, College of Arts and Sciences. BS, Cornell University; MS, Louisiana State University; PhD, University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign

Adrien Finzi Assistant Professor of Biology, College of Arts and Sciences. BS, University of New Hampshire; MS, PhD, University of Connecticut

Mark Friedl Associate Professor of Geography and Environment, College of Arts and Sciences. BS, McGill University (Canada); MA, PhD, University of California, Santa Barbara

John G. Gagliardo Professor of German History and International Relations, College of Arts and Sciences. BA, MA, University of Kansas; PhD, Yale University

William C. Green Associate Professor of Soviet Military Matters and National Security Issues, Center for International Relations. AB, MA, PhD, University of Southern California

John R. Harris Professor of Economics, College of Arts and Sciences; Senior Research Associate, Center for Asian Development Studies. BA, Wheaton College; MA, PhD, Northwestern University

Robert Kaufmann Director, Center for Energy and Environmental Studies; Professor of Geography and Environment, College of Arts and Sciences, and Center for Energy and Environmental Studies. BS, Cornell University; MA, University of New Hampshire; PhD, University of Pennsylvania

Thomas H. Kunz Professor of Biology, College of Arts and Sciences. BS, MS, Central Missouri State University; MA, PhD, University of Kansas

T. R. Lakshmanan Executive Director, Center for Energy and Environmental Studies, Graduate School of Arts and Sciences; Professor of Geography and Environment, College of Arts and Sciences. BSc, MA, Madras University (India); PhD, Ohio State University

Norman N. Lichtin University Professor; Professor of Chemistry, College of Arts and Sciences. BS, Antioch College; MS, Purdue University; PhD, Harvard University

Igor Lukes Associate University Professor of International Relations, College of Arts and Sciences; Associate Professor of Former Soviet Union, Central and Eastern Europe, the University Professors Program. BA, MA, PhD, Universita Karlova (Czech Republic); PhD, Tufts University

Stephen R. Lyne Professor of International Relations, College of Arts and Sciences; former United States Ambassador to Ghana. BA, Amherst College; MA, PhD, Stanford University

Terry Edward MacDougall Associate Professor of International Relations and Political Science, College of Arts and Sciences; Associate Professor of Japan and Far East Studies, Center for International Relations. PhD, Yale University

H. Joachim Maître Professor of Journalism, College of Communication; Professor of International Relations, College of Arts and Sciences. PhD, McGill University (Canada)

Scott C. Mohr Associate Professor of Chemistry, College of Arts and Sciences (Biophysical Chemistry). BA, Williams College; AM, PhD, Harvard University

David Scott Palmer Professor of International Relations and Political Science, College of Arts and Sciences. PhD, Cornell University

Richard B. Primack Professor of Biology, College of Arts and Sciences. AB, Harvard University; PhD, Duke University

Uri Ra’anan University Professor; Professor of International Relations; Director, Institute for the Study of Conflict, Ideology, and Policy. MA, MLitt, University of Oxford (England)

Christine H. Rossell Professor of Political Science, College of Arts and Sciences. BA, University of California, Los Angeles; PhD, University of Southern California

Guido D. Salvucci Associate Professor of Earth Sciences and Geography and Environment, College of Arts and Sciences. BE, The Cooper Union for the Advancement of Arts & Sciences; BS, New York University; MS, PhD, Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Henry A. Shockley Professor of International Relations, College of Arts and Sciences. BA, University of Richmond; MA, PhD, American University

Ian Sue Wing Assistant Professor of Geography and Environment, College of Arts and Sciences, and Center for Energy and Environmental Studies. BA, BE, Dartmouth College; MSc, Oxford University; PhD, Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Frederick F. Woerner Professor of International Relations. BS, U.S. Military Academy; MA, University of Arizona

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MA in Energy and Environmental Analysis

The Center for Energy and Environmental Studies sponsors an MA degree in Energy and Environmental Analysis. Students and their advisors in the center work together in planning an individualized program of study. The program provides a professional training degree for the student with an undergraduate degree in the natural sciences, the social sciences, the humanities, or engineering. The degree requirements include a core curriculum, a sequence of concentration courses, and an interdisciplinary breadth requirement.

Admission Applicants are asked to submit their test scores on the Graduate Record Examination General Tests. In the case of curriculum deficiencies, additional coursework without credit will be required for the degree.

Course Requirements At least 10 courses (40 degree credits) must be taken, including (1) at least four courses in core requirements; (2) four elective courses in a concentration area; and (3) two courses to fulfill the interdisciplinary breadth requirement.

Core Requirements Four courses as follows:

Quantitative Methods A course in quantitative analysis is required. The specific selected course, with the approval of an advisor, depends on the background of the student. Recommended courses include CAS MA 684.

Physical or Ecological Environmental Principles The required course is CAS GE 510. Students with extensive backgrounds in physical environmental principles may select a more specialized course in biology, engineering, geography, or geology.

Energy, Society, and the Environment The required course is CAS GE 519.

Environmental Policy Analysis The required course is GRS EE 625.

Concentration Courses A concentration area and four courses making up the concentration are chosen with the consent of an advisor. One of these courses can be an environmental internship in an appropriate public, private, or nonprofit organization. Students who choose the internship option are required to complete an oral or written summary of their work experience. The registration for the internship is GRS GE 902. Concentration topics and associated courses ordinarily are selected from the following list. This list is not meant to be an exhaustive list of the concentrations in energy and environmental studies available at Boston University, but is provided to assist in the planning of the student’s program. Course descriptions and prerequisites may be found under appropriate departmental listings.

Interdisciplinary Breadth Requirement The purpose of the breadth requirement is to expose students to the broad, interwoven nature of the environmental field. The breadth requirement consists of two courses, one from each of the following groups. Note: Any of these classes taken to fulfill a required core class cannot fulfill this breadth requirement.

Theory and Concepts

Modeling and Analysis

For further details on either MA program write to the Director of Graduate Studies, Center for Energy and Environmental Studies (CEES), 675 Commonwealth Avenue, Boston, MA 02215.

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Energy and Environmental Studies Electives

Resource Management

Land Resources
CAS BI 637 Plant Ecology
CAS ES 512 Surface Water Hydrogeology
CAS ES 541 Coastal Processes
MET UA 620 Urban and Regional Land Use and Planning
MET UA 629 Urbanization and the Environment

Water Resources
CAS ES 511 Groundwater Hydrogeology
CAS ES 512 Surface Water Hydrogeology
CAS GE 503 Applied Climatology
GRS GE 517 Models for Hydrologic Analysis
GRS ES 640 Marine Geology
GRS ES 653 Microbial Geology
GRS ES 711 Fluvial Geomorphology
GRS ES 714 Advanced Groundwater Hydrogeology

Air Resources
CAS GE 503 Applied Climatology
CAS GE 566 Physical Climatology
GRS CH 893 Seminar: Photochemistry
GRS GE 921 Problems in Meteorology

Urban Environments
CAS ES 511 Surface Water Hydrogeology
CAS ES 512 Groundwater Hydrogeology
CAS GE 503 Applied Climatology
CAS PS 564 Environmental Psychology
CAS PS 565 Social and Environmental Psychology of Urban Life
MET UA 533 Health Care and the Environment
MET UA 620 Urban and Regional Land Use and Planning
MET UA 629 Urbanization and the Environment

Ecology and Population
CAS BI 504 Evolution
CAS BI 524 Biology of Populations
GRS BI 615 Biology of Mammals
GRS BI 637 Plant Ecology
GRS BI 650 Biophysics
CAS BI 666 Biochemical Ecology

Modeling and Systems Analysis

Energy Facility Planning

Systems Engineering

Policy Analysis and Evaluation

Quantitative Analysis for Policy Analysis

Comparative Systems Analysis

Resources, Environment, and Economic Development

Environmental Health

Risk Analysis and Management
GRS BI 618 Ecotoxicology
MET UA 729 Environmental and Resource Policy Formulation
SPH EH 708 Introduction to Environmental Health
SPH EH 764 Work and Health
SPH EH 808 Solid Waste Management
SPH EH 862 Radiation Protection
SPH EH 866 Seminar: Environmental Health Risk Assessment
SPH EH 869 Environmental Planning
SPH LW 757 Occupational Health and Safety Law
SPH LW 758 Corporate Management of Risks to Health, Safety, and Environment
SPH LW 852 Environmental Health Law

Health, Safety, and Work Environment
CAS PS 564 Environmental Psychology
MET UA 629 Urbanization and the Environment
SPH EH 708 Introduction to Environmental Health
SPH EH 764 Work and Health
SPH EH 765 Survey of Environmental Health
SPH EH 862 Radiation Protection
SPH EH 866 Seminar in Environmental Health Risk Assessment
SPH EH 961 Directed Studies in Environmental Health
SPH LW 757 Occupational Health and Safety Law
SPH LW 758 Corporate Management of Risks to Health, Safety, and Environment

Sanitation, Waste Disposal, and Community Health
CAS ES 511 Groundwater Hydrogeology
CAS ES 512 Surface Water Hydrogeology
MET UA 521 Environmental Law
MET UA 620 Urban and Regional Land Use and Planning
SPH EH 708 Introduction to Environmental Health
SPH EH 765 Survey of Environmental Health
SPH EH 768 Principles of Toxicology
SPH EH 803 Waste and Wastewater
SPH EH 808 Solid Waste Management
SPH EH 860 Municipal Sanitation
SPH EH 862 Radiation Protection
SPH EH 864 Environmental Microbiology
SPH EH 867 Soil Pollution
SPH EH 869 Environmental Planning
SPH LW 852 Environmental Health Law

Environmental Pollution and Public Health
CAS ES 511 Groundwater Hydrogeology
CAS ES 512 Surface Water Hydrogeology
MET UA 521 Environmental Law
SPH EH 708 Introduction to Environmental Health
SPH EH 765 Survey of Environmental Health
SPH EH 768 Principles of Toxicology
SPH EH 803 Waste and Wastewater
SPH EH 808 Solid Waste Management
SPH EH 862 Radiation Protection
SPH EH 864 Environmental Microbiology
SPH EH 866 Seminar in Environmental Health Risk Assessment
SPH EH 867 Soil Pollution
SPH EH 869 Environmental Planning
SPH EH 961 Directed Studies in Environmental Health
SPH LW 758 Corporate Management of Risks to Health, Safety, and Environment
SPH LW 852 Environmental Health Law

Hazardous Waste
CAS ES 511 Groundwater Hydrogeology
CAS ES 512 Surface Water Hydrogeology
GRS BI 729 Marine Ecology
SPH EH 768 Principles of Toxicology
SPH EH 803 Waste and Wastewater
SPH EH 808 Solid Waste Management
SPH EH 864 Environmental Microbiology
SPH EH 867 Soil Pollution
SPH EH 869 Environmental Planning
SPH LW 758 Corporate Management of Risks to Health, Safety, and Environment
SPH LW 852 Environmental Health Law

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Master of Arts in International Relations and Environmental Policy

The management of natural resources and the resolution of environmental issues are increasingly important factors in determining the course of international relations. Competition for natural resources and efforts to control that competition are shaped largely by the geographical distribution of resources and by those who consume them. Environmental problems cross borders. This unique 12-course joint degree program offers students an opportunity to combine study in international relations and environmental science. Students divide their coursework between the Department of International Relations (IR) and the Center for Energy and Environmental Studies (CEES).

Students, please note that admission into this joint degree program requires separate admissions decisions by the IR department and by CEES.

These decisions are based on one complete application to the Graduate School of Art and Sciences. Students who are admitted by one department and not the other have the option to pursue the one-year MA degree in the department into which they were admitted.

Degree Requirements

Students are required to complete the core degree requirements for the one-year IR MA program as previously stated. Additionally, students must complete nine courses (36 credits) for a degree total of twelve courses (48 credits). Of these nine additional courses, six are taken through the CEES, two through the IR Department, and the final course may be taken either through CEES or IR.

Students are required to take four courses—IR/GE 594 and three others from the following list:

GE 566 International Resources and Environmental Issues and Management (required course)
GE 510 Physical Principles of the Environment
GE 511 Ecological Economics
GE 550 Modeling Social and Environmental Systems
GE 703 Energy and Environmental Policy Analysis

CEES Elective Courses

Students are required to complete two approved elective courses from the CEES course offerings for a total of 8 CEES elective credits. Students must select 8 graduate level courses with the approval of their faculty advisor.

Students are required to complete two approved IR elective courses for a total of 8 IR elective credits.

In addition to the 16 elective credits listed above, students must take a fifth elective which may be either IR or CEES.

Master of Arts in Environmental Remote Sensing and Geographic Information Systems

The Environmental Remote Sensing and Geographic Information Systems (ERS/GIS) program is designed for students with diverse natural science and social science backgrounds who desire specialized training in the use of remote sensing and Geographic Information Systems (GIS) in environmental and natural resource analysis and management. Instruction addresses the theories underlying remote sensing and GIS and their practical applications. Students are trained for careers in the private, public, and nonprofit sectors where there is increasing demand for professionals with advanced technical skills who can organize and analyze spatial environmental data. Applicants to the ERS/GIS program must have completed calculus through integration and statistics through multiple regression. Candidates who do not have the required quantitative skills may be admitted, but they will be required to do independent work or additional coursework to acquire the necessary background. Students should consult the Director of Graduate Studies to ascertain if they have the required background.

Degree Requirements

At least 10 courses (40 degree credits) must be taken as follows:

Plus three classes from:

CAS GE 565 Environmental Analysis and Modeling Using GIS
GRS GE 640 Digital Image Processing in Remote Sensing
GRS GE 645 Physical Models of Remote Sensing
GRS GE 646 Remote Sensing of the Lower Atmosphere
GRS GE 648 Remote Sensing of Vegetation
GRS GE 805 Spatial Data Analysis Using Geographic Information Systems

Interdisciplinary Breadth Requirement (two courses)

Theory and Concepts (one course)

Modeling and Analysis (one course)

CAS GE 550 Modeling Social and Environmental Systems
CAS ES 577 Groundwater Modeling
CAS GE 517 Models for Hydrologic Analysis
GRS GE 712 Regional Energy Modeling

Elective Courses in a Concentration Area (three courses)

Students choose three electives in consultation with their faculty advisor that form a set of courses that focuses on a particular aspect of Environmental Remote Sensing and Geographic Information Systems. One of these courses can be GRS GE 902 Environmental Internship.

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Courses Offered Within the Center for Energy and Environmental Studies

CAS GE 425/625 U.S. Environmental Policy

Survey and historical overview of key environmental policies and regulations in the United States. Emphasis on policy development, including formulation and implementation of federal pollution control regulations since the National Environmental Policy Act of 1970. Considers possible future policy needs. Wing. 4 cr, 2nd sem.

CAS GE 440/640 Digital Image Processing: Remote Sensing

Prereq: CAS GE 302 or equivalent. Pursues both the algorithms involved in processing remotely sensed images and their application. Topics include spectral and spatial enhancement, image classification and clustering, spatial analysis and linear transformations. Woodcock. 4 cr, 2nd sem.

CAS GE 502 Advanced Topics in Remote Sensing

Prereq: CAS GE302. Examines advanced concepts in radiative transfer and information extraction relevant to remote sensing. Emphasis on applications of digital image processing to remote sensing problems. Strahler. 4 cr, 2nd sem.

CAS GE 505 Geographic Information Systems (GIS)

Prereq: CAS GE 365 and CAS MA 213. Provides a theoretical and practical introduction to Geographic Information Systems (GIS). Introduces the essentials in GIS, methods of data capture and sources of data, nature and characteristics of spatial data and objects, data structures, modeling surfaces, volumes and time, and data uncertainty. Emphasis is on applications. Laboratory exercises included. Gopal. 4 cr, 1st sem.

CAS GE 510 Physical Principles of the Environment

Prereq: CAS BI 306, CAS GE 304, or consent of instructor. Principles and concepts that underlie the physical and ecological forces that cause environmental change. Topics include soil erosion, acid rain, thermal pollution, greenhouse effect, stratospheric ozone depletion, and loss of biodiversity. Dye. 4 cr, 1st sem.

CAS GE/ES 514 Dynamic Land Surface Hydrology

Prereq: CAS MA 121 or MA 123 or MA 127, and CAS CH 101 or CH 111 or CH 131 or CH 161 or CH 171 or CAS PY 105 or PY 211 or PY 233 or PY 251. Land surface hydrology with emphasis on the unsaturated zone. Development and applications of physics governing transport of water, vapor, and heat in soils and the near surface atmosphere. Effects of vegetation, topography, and water table runoff, evapotranspiration, and recharge. Salvucci. 1st sem.

CAS GE 517 Models for Hydrologic Analysis

Prereq: consent of instructor. Principles and practices of modeling hydrologic models. Classes and goals of hydrologic models. Methods of model selection and construction. Use of models in surface and groundwater hydrology studies and decision making. Emphasis on conceptual and stochastic hydrologic models. (Offered alternate years.) Salvucci. 4 cr, 2nd sem.

CAS GE 519 Energy, Society, and Environment

Prereq: CAS GE 304 or equivalent. Overview of technical, historical, economic, social, and environmental aspects of energy systems, including fossil fuels, nuclear, solar, wind, biomass, and energy end use efficiency and conservation.Cleveland. 4 cr, 1st sem.

CAS GE 520 Topics in Energy and Environmental Policy

Prereq: consent of instructor. Topics vary from year to year and may include the policy aspects of environmental regulation, risk assessment and environmental decision making, international environmental policy, natural resource policy, and energy policy. Staff. 4 cr, either sem.

CAS GE 521 Environmental Law and Policy

Survey of the major features of environmental law and relevant procedural and consitutional issues. Comparison of practical realities (political, economic, social, geographic, biological) with the ideal context for what should be. Projects include legal research and mock advocay. Reibstein. 4 cr, 1st sem.

CAS GE/IR 536 European Environmental Policy

Prereq: Junior standing or consent of the instructor. Focuses on key concepts, actors, and issues related to European integration, environmental policy making, and sustainable development. Also examines transatlantic environmental relations and the role of the European Union in global environmental governance. Also offered as CAS IR 536. Selin. 4 cr, 2nd sem.

CAS GE 550 Modeling Environmental and Social Systems

Requires stamped approval. Prereq: CAS GE 275, CAS EC 414, or consent of instructor. The techniques of organizing energy, environmental, or social systems into mathematical computer models. Includes the theory underlying different modeling techniques, programming skills, and a hands-on research project in which students develop their own models. TBA. 4 cr, 1st sem.

CAS GE 594 Global Environmental Negotiation and Policy

Key concepts, actors, concerns, and issues related to the process of negotiating global environmental policies. Overviews of the international system and environmental problematique; an international negotiation simulation; case studies of global agreements on ozone depletion, climate change, desertification, and biodiversity, among others. Najam. 4 cr, 1st sem.

CAS GE 599 Science, Politics, and Climate Change

Applies a science and technology studies perspective to climate change science and policy. Examines the relationships between scientific and political systems at global, national, and local levels. Also offered as CAS GE 599. Selin. 4 cr, 2nd sem.

CAS GE 620 Environmental Policy Method

This course provides an introduction to the analysis of environmental policy, the implications of environmental problems for public decision making, the tools available to decision-makers, and their effectiveness, advantages, and disadvantages. Wing. 4 cr, 1st sem.

GRS GE 712 Regional Energy Modeling

Prereq: consent of the instructor. Regional energy modeling techniques and existing regional energy models. Current energy issues are discussed. Modeling procedures are introduced. Current regional and energy models are explored. Kaufmann. 4 cr, 2nd sem.

GRS GE 805 Spatial Analysis Using Geographic Information Systems (GIS)

Prereq: CAS GE 505 or GE 565 and CAS MA 613 or MA 614. Covers advanced research topics in GIS dealing with the measurement, storage, retrieval and analysis of spatial information. Topics include fuzzy sets, fractals and spatial statistics. Completion of project is required. Gopal. 4 cr, 2nd sem

GRS GE 902 Energy and Environmental Studies Internship

Staff. 4 cr, either sem.

GRS GE 903 Research in Energy and Environmental Studies

Staff. Hours arranged. Variable cr, either sem.

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Published by Trustees of Boston University
One Sherborn Street
Boston, MA 02215

31 October 2007
Boston University
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