Study Abroad and Field Expeditions

These courses will be held during a 2-3 week mini-semester at the end of the May and beginning of June. The courses will be experiential and be daylong courses, in some cases, (e.g. when Study Abroad") with overnight components. For the 2007-8 program we are planning to offer the following:

1) Architecture of the City - an explorations of the buildings and structures that make-up our city. Students will study the history, architecture, engineering and human ecology of representative city structures using readings, movies, and daily site visits.

2) "Water". Have you ever wondered where the water of NYC's 11 million inhabitants comes from? What does it take to produce and transport what some have claimed is the best tap-water in world? This course uses readings, movies, laboratory experiences and fieldtrips (including several camping trips in the NYC watershed area forests) to explore where our water comes from and what we have to do to it to get it to reliably come out of our faucets.

 3) Ecology and Culture of Puerto Rico. Puerto Rico's rich biological and cultural heritage serve as outdoor classroom in which to learn fundamental biological, historical and cultural principles. We will travel by plane to the island, and camp and hike in a representative sample of the island's ecosystems, and visit the historically and culturally significant sites. This is a trip for those who do not mind roughing it out in the rainforest, getting soaked to you neck in mud in the mangrove swamps, or snorkeling in the coral reefs.