Environment, Sustainability, and Health
The Environment, Sustainability, and Health (EHS) focus area provides multidisciplinary
approach that blends the sciences of environmental health and sustainability sciences.
Environmental health is aimed at understanding, identifying, characterizing and mitigating
environmental exposures that may adversely impact human health and the environment.
Sustainability science addresses the dynamics of human-environment systems and the
design, implementation, and evaluation of practical interventions to evaluate, mitigate,
and minimize the consequences of human impacts on society and the planet.
Unique to the University of Michigan, this suggested focus area provides students
with the background and skills to evaluate and develop sustainable solutions to prevent
environmental exposures.
- Exposures to environmental stressors, including chemical and microbial contaminants
in air, water, food and consumer products, are studied through a combination of field
measurements, laboratory studies, modeling, risk, health and life cycle assessment.
- Health and environmental risks and impacts are evaluated using a comprehensive life
cycle approach, addressing local to global scales.
- This knowledge provides the basis for designing and promoting innovative and sustainable
solutions and policies that prevent adverse exposures, and for developing synergies
and solutions that improve human and ecological health in a sustainable manner.
At the interface between sustainability and health, the scientist works in a variety
of private, governmental and academic settings to meet present and future needs for
environmental management related to human health
- We study, identify and characterize the natural background and the extent of chemical,
physical and biological comtaminant impacts on our environment and health.
- We communicate knowledge to strengthen our ability to anticipate, recognize and respond
to environmental health challenges
Expertise in this focus area responds to the growing need for qualified professionals
in both public and private sectors who have expertise in environmental health as well
as sustainability fields. These individuals find employment in a wide range of fields:
- government (local, state and federal) in positions related to environmental and occupational
health, environmental quality, planning and infrastructure, and economic development,
and infrastructure;
- industry (consulting and industry), in jobs related to environmental and sustainability
policy, product stewardship, and community relations;
- non-profit/non-government sector (community organizations, foundations and international
programs), where they respond to concerns and needs of communities, states and other
associations,and
- academia for research and teaching.
Below are examples of careers where formerstudents have started in the past years:
- Environmental Sanitarian at Livingston County Department of Public Health, Michigan
- Environmental Quality Analysis, Michigan Department of Environmental Quality
- Certification Project Manager at NSF International
- Environmental Defense Fund (NGO)
- Research Associate at Qatar Environment and Energy Research Institute
- ORISE Fellow at US EPA
MS ESH Sample Schedule
Category A Required: Quantitative Course (select one)
| EAS 635: Multivariate Statistics for Environmental Science |
3 cr |
| EAS 538: Natural Resource Statistics |
4 cr |
| BIOSTAT 522: Biostatistical Analysis for Health-Related Studies |
3 cr |
| EHS 655: Human Exposure Analysis |
3 cr |
| EHS/EPID 675: Data Analysis for Environmental Epidemiology |
3 cr |
| NUTR 620: Multivariate Analysis of Nutrition Related Studies |
3 cr |
Category C Required: Select 1 of the following (3-4.5 credits):
| EAS 529: Indigenous Sustainability and Environmental Justice |
3 cr |
| EAS 550: Systems Thinking for Sustainable Development and Enterpris |
3 cr |
| EAS 573: Environmental Foot Printing and Input-Output Analysis |
3 cr |
| EAS 557: Industrial Ecology (take with EAS 610) |
3 cr |
| EAS 610: Advanced Life Cycle Assessment Methods and Tools (take with EAS 557) |
1.5 cr |
| EAS 597: Environmental Systems Analysis |
3 cr |
| EAS 641: Social Research Methods for Environment and Sustainability |
3 cr |
| EAS 501.106: Methods and Approaches for Analyzing Sustainability and Dev Problems |
3 cr |
| URP 552: Healthy Cities |
3 cr |
