Program / Courses

Purpose and Scope

The challenges of managing natural resources and environmental quality are well-recognized and becoming increasingly important. Issues arise at the site, local, regional, national, and global scales, and decisions often require the balancing of competing interests with different objectives. The methods and applications of environmental policy analysis provide a basis for more informed decision making. The purpose of the Environmental Policy Analysis Specialization is to teach students the skills to apply various methods of policy analysis, evaluate their strengths and weaknesses, and apply them to better understand the implications of various decision options to manage environmental and natural resource challenges.
 
The Environmental Policy Analysis specialization will be of interest to MEM students who seek to understand and employ analytical frameworks that apply to a broad range of environmental issue areas and are critical for strategic environmental policy within organizations that develop, analyze, practice and evaluate environmental and natural resource management. Students specializing in Environmental Policy Analysis frequently seek employment in a range of organizations spanning all areas of environmental management, including government agencies, international development institutions, non-governmental organizations, corporations, and consulting firms.

Note that a capstone course used to fulfill the MEM capstone requirement cannot also be used toward fulfilling an MEM Specialization requirement; a capstone course taken once cannot be used to fulfill multiple requirements. Learn more about YSE capstone courses by visiting the MEM Capstone page.

Specialization Coordinator: Dan Esty